Road to Damascus Chronicles
by Yashodoa
Summary: This is Cloud’s chronicle, of her journey, her determination to fight and win in the end, all in the name for love and her friends. What more can the Planet want from her? … More summary inside… Serendipity Sequel up now.
1. S1:1: To Midgar

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**A Cloud Strife Story**

'_Let the Angels do the Battle… And let the Soldiers rest.'_

Cloud has a secret, a secret well kept until Zack and Sephiroth found out. From there, their friendship bonded and more. Until they got to Nibelheim, their world turned upside down.

Now, Cloud is on a long journey to find Sephiroth, to rescue or to kill him? That's another secret. A group of rebels, Avalanche, formed on the journey, strange sort of people coming together in a bond like family, each had their own past, their own secrets, and their own sins.

Together, the Avalanchers set a goal, to save the Planet, at first, it was simple, and their archenemy was the ShinRa Co. But, as the time goes on, the farther they traveled down the road, they found it wasn't simply the ShinRa, it was something bigger, something far older and ancient. An eon old grudge.

The world they live on, the world they're striving to save wasn't what they thought it was. It was full of mythical fantasies that no one dared to dream of them ever existing. There are gods and goddess, races that didn't exist existed, guardians and angels.

The Hero isn't what you think, the Villain is not what you think, nothing makes senses then they do. When in the end, everything may seem to be over, but then again, it is not over. Happily ever after doesn't last forever. What more can the Universe give us?

This is Cloud Strife's story.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

This story is an alternate version of Cloud's Secret and the second and last version of Road to Damascus, if you have read Cloud's Secret, you will find it similar, however, a lot of holes had been filled and changed, it is canon to the game story line, however it falls under Alternate Universe greatly.

Spoiler is greatly in this story if you haven't finished the game or played it. I advise you to finish the game, if not, tread carefully and enjoy.

Please do visit the Road to Damascus website and if you have any fan arts, I'd love to see them and I'll post them up on the website.

I'd like to mention here, in the early chapters, you will find that Cloud will be referred as male from the character's point of view and switching to female gender from the author's view. I apologize for the inconvenience if you get confused. I'm trying to figure out how to work this out and I also apologize for my English grammatical errors. I am merely writing this story because I enjoy writing and I am also practicing my English as well. Thank you.

Road to Damascus is part of a larger version of the entire story, called the Road to Damascus Chronicles. It includes many side stories and sequels. This posting will include the four Sagas and the Interlude. Keep watch for the side stories and sequels after this story completes. Here are the stories in chronically order according to the timeline:

**Madoshi & Megamiki** (Coming Soon)

**Jenova – The Tale of the Valkyrie** (Coming Soon)

**Road to Damascus**

_ Saga One – The Academy_

_ Interlude – Last Order_

_ Saga Two – The Journey I_

_ Saga Three – The Journey II_

_ Saga Four – Advent Children_

**Seraph & Seraphim** (Coming Soon)

**Serendipity** (Re-edited Version Coming Soon)

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Disclaimer:

Story plot and concept and unrecognized characters © Lady Katilean Yashodoa 2007.

Game Plot and recognized characters © Final Fantasy © 2007 SQUARE ENIX CO., LTD. All Rights Reserved. SQUARE ENIX is a trademark of Square Enix Co., Ltd.

Disney Characters © 2007 Walt Disney

Bible Verses © God, from eternity to eternity, all right reserved.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter One: To Midgar

_We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. _

Roman 6:4, The Holy Bible

Deep in the mountain range of the world's spine where the peaks jagged upward to heaven in danger with malicious edges, a small quaint town lay nested at the base of the rocks facing the rolling hills of plains. The town looked sweet and friendly despite the monstrosity of the Nibel Mountains.

A green military canvas truck rolled into the town, as it always did every year for a day, gathering young recruits as it does it usual round across the continent. A large blazing red diamond shaped logo decorated each side of the doors indicating the symbol of the Corporation of the ShinRa.

ShinRa was the planet's largest business in Mako that has it own army, naval and air force, running almost like a government over few minor cities and town that surrounded the main Headquarter set deep in Midgar. The said city was halfway across the world from the small town, nesting center in the flat land with a much milder mountain range bordering its western edge.

Two men suited in dark blue military uniforms stepped out of the truck; each had electro guns strapped to their backs. The one who stood by the passenger seat gave a glance around the quiet town of Nibelheim's square center, full of the town's population with several families giving final good byes to some boys in their mid teens. He then gave his usual addresses to the crowd in a bored manner, "ShinRa recruits line up and sign your name on the board here." He dropped the clipboard on the front hood of the truck, standing aside watching as few boys came up to sign. The driver answered some questions to other boys that appeared too young to join up.

Not far from the square of the town, a small two story house stood near the edge of the road that led up to the dangerous path of the Nibel Mountains. A young blond teenager with unusual gravity defying hair stood at the gate of the yard, facing her mother. She looked a lot like her mother, with blond hair and brilliant blue eyes; one would think they were sisters.

"Cloud, do you really have to go?" The teenager's mother asked, pushing straying blond hair, hints of graying back into its wayward bun. She stood at the doorway of the house, wearing concern on her face. She worried for her cross-dressing daughter, dressing and going around as her son instead of her daughter, but for a very good reason.

Cloud sighed in exasperation, "Mom, I already told you many times before, I got the scholarship to go. It's better for me to go, after all… sooner or alter, they'll find out about me." She gestured to the town behind her.

Her mother nodded, knowing the town's fear of blond haired and blue eyed women. They were fortunate to live among them, yet they treated them with fear and contempt. Though, she wished there were another way for her daughter to have a better life, however, she knew, there was no way. She has to let fate run its course.

She couldn't help but ask, "Couldn't there be a better way than this?"

Cloud shook her head, "No. I am sorry!" She sighed, slightly regretting leaving but she knew she wanted to leave the town. "I'll write to you every week, and let you know how I am. I better go and catch my ride before I miss it."

Her mother came up to her at the gate and hugged her, whispering in her ear, "are you going as a female or still as a male?" She asked, looking into her daughter's sapphire eyes.

"Male. Its better that way, I'll get more from the Academy as a male than a female. You know how the world treats the women."

"All right," her mother nodded, knowing full well how the world had viewed women's place, usually status below than the men. "Promise you will write." She gave an assuring smile and watched her only child take off. She knew deep in her heart, the motion has been set. Her daughter will meet someone in Midgar and from there, the world will topple. She turned back and entered her house, closing the door, wondering if she would ever see her daughter again.

Cloud ran down the short path to the truck and grabbed the pen, signing her name before climbing into the back of the truck along with other recruits. The truck started up again and rolled back out of the town, to continue on its way to Cosmo Canyon in the south in the rocky desert and then to Gongaga in the far jungle beyond the desert. The last stop would be at Costa Del Sol by the port in late afternoon. The trip was uneventful, stopping several times when forced as they encountered some creatures in the wild. The young teenager passengers seized the chance to watch the experienced soldiers battle with the creatures with ease, rather giving shows than demolishing them.

The blond hair bobbed as the truck went over the dirt road with lumps, her blue eyes watched the window to her side with glazed and distorted dizziness, half with sleepiness. The trip wasn't doing any good to her stomach. She was having motion sickness and never was good with traveling.

"Hey, you al'right?" A brown haired boy from Gongaga asked.

Cloud nodded slightly and groaned, "I am never good with long rides."

"We're almost there." Another boy announced as he watched the front window from the back of the truck. The youths could see the long pale golden sands that lined the ocean beside the road from the back flap of the truck. The truck finally halted to stop and the driver announced that they had arrived at Costa Del Sol, a ritzy small tourist beach town by the ocean.

"Good." Cloud groaned and got out of the truck and looked around. Soon her motion sickness forgotten, she ran to keep up with the other boys that were led by one of the soldiers toward where there were queue for registration. She glanced around and saw signs at the head of the lines and found the one where she should stand in. She went over to the one where the line was for the ones who already had recruiting slips or forms from ShinRa. She glanced over to her side and saw the non-form and recruiting slips were longer.

She took out the forms and letters she had gotten in the mail from the ShinRa Academy that she had applied to. She was accepted into the Academy with two years scholarship. It was difficult for her to get the scholarship; she had wanted to go to the Academy to get out of the town and start a new life and worked very hard to obtain the money to go. She was worried about paying for the education since the budget was tight for her mother and her. Her mother was surprised and thrilled that Cloud had gotten the scholarship, she had worried that she'd have to dip into their life saving to let her daughter go.

Cloud brushed the straying bang from her eyes as she glanced around the area, there were two small military ships docked at the port, waiting to transport the new recruits across the ocean to Junon Base for the naval base and from there, the rest would ride over to Midgar, where the Academy and the main Military training center were with the Headquarter of the ShinRa.

After waiting a while for her turn, she stepped up to the table where a man in uniform of a sergeant officer of the ShinRa Army sat behind with several form of papers and clipboard. He looked up to her and held out his hand, "Forms, papers, whatever you have." He said with bored tone.

Cloud handed the papers over and glanced to find a woman in dark sunglasses and sharp navy three pieces suit, the uniform of the Turks. Cloud had heard of them, they were one of the military branches of the ShinRa, serving as body guards, overseer and occasionally dubbed as the ShinRa's Henchmen. They were one of the highest ranking military personnel along with the Elites Soldiers of the Army. They served and worked under the direct order of the President while the Elites Soldiers answered to the General of the Army.

She swallowed, nervously waiting for the man to finish looking over her papers. She had given him the letters, forms and birth certificate. She nearly missed his comment, "All right…" He nodded and wrote down on the clipboard and mumbled as he wrote, "Cloud Strife, male, fifteen, Nibelheim…" He then looked up again, "Perhaps you'd consider joining the military branches along with the academics?"

Cloud's eyes went slightly wide, relieved that the man had overlooked her gender. She shook her head as she took her papers back. "No sir. I don't know yet."

"Very well, you look like a promising candidate for Solders. Consider it and enjoy your time at the Academy." He gave a quick smile as he handed the small slip of paper after ripping it from the board, "Please take this, and wait over there with the others." He gestured toward the crowd on the other side of the area by the harbor. Cloud took the paper and looked at it to find it was a ticket slip, granting her passage to Midgar. She walked over to where she was directed to and walked through the crowd of young recruits to the other side and slipped down the wall of the building to sit along with few others boys.

She studied the crowds to find several more soldiers in different ranks standing guard. She had studied to the extent before coming and recognized each ranks and branches each soldiers belonged to. The naval men were standing at the port in front of the two ships, wearing white and black uniform that was almost a similar cut to the Army branches.

The Army and Air Forces wore same cuts of uniforms with slight difference; the Air Force had jackets and logos of the Air Force while the Army wore sleeveless crew shirt with dark navy pants and brown or black combat boots. She even spotted several Cadets in their dark blue and gray long sleeved shirt and trouser with belt and suspender. The boots were shiny black, reaching high to the knees.

Cloud pondered slightly on if she should join up the military or not. All she wanted to go to the Academy and get the education, perhaps major in the degree and follow his father's footsteps in science, to be precise, Mako Science. However, to obtain such goal, she'd have to pay for the rest of the years after her two years are up and the offer of joining the Military would pay for her education was tempting. It was a tempting idea but with much more risks, she did not want to be discovered of her gender, not until she proved her worth someday.

She looked around a little bit more and found few girls grouping around some women in the services. It wasn't unheard of, but there were a much smaller number of women in the service of the military even though there were military compound for the women only. Their uniform was similar to the men in many ways but with cuts that fitted the women's body better. There was no women military that has high rankings in the history of ShinRa, many of them reached only to Class Three, rarer number reached Class Two. The Class One was also known as the Elite Soldiers or the Turks, very few female in numbers made it to the Turks but never the Elite Soldiers.

Cloud rolled her eyes and looked up to find the brown haired boy he met on the truck joining him at the wall. She had earlier learned his name was Luke and was the same age as she was.

"Mind if I join ya?" He asked as he slid down beside her.

Cloud shook her head. "Nah."

"What you're joining up for?"

"Just going for the Academy. You?"

"I'm going for the Army. There's a guy from my town that got up to Class Two. So, I wanna to see if I can do it too."

"Good luck to you."

"So, you're really not going for the Army?"

"No, maybe get a job to work for the ShinRa, like a doctor or a scientist, like my father was."

Luke smiled as he nudged his shoulder to Cloud's, "Well, at least try to train a bit, maybe you'll like it. The Army is supposed to be like the best job out there. Traveling, fighting and all. You'd even get to see the world. And not to forget, to serve under General Sephiroth! The best General ever in the entire history."

Cloud grinned as she scooted to the side a little bit, fining her space being overcrowded. Luke didn't notice, if he did, he wouldn't bother. "I don't know. I'm never too good with traveling. You've seen me in the truck."

The other boy laughed, "They'll even fix that problem up with no problem. If you get to a rank, they'll infuse you with Mako, make you stronger, strengthen your senses and give you better healing capabilities."

Cloud shuddered at the though of Mako infused concepts. She had read up about it before and found the whole thing a bit vague and sketchy, even if she had gotten every details of it. All of the Army with Class Three or higher were given Mako Treatment, and it was easily to identify if a person were one of them out of uniform with their inhumanly strength and eerily glowing eyes. There were so many side effects that didn't sound pleasing to her to even think about it. Even she was going to major in Mako Science, for only purpose of creating energy for common uses, not in use of human physiology, it just sounded wrong to her.

Luke shot up and urged Cloud to follow, "Come on; let's get the best spot on the ship before we lose it." Sure enough, she heard the intercom crackling and booming announcement for the recruits to board the ships.

Cloud wrinkled her nose and followed the mousy haired boy onto the first ship and soon, they found themselves some spot to settle for the overnight long trip to Junon Base.

Through the night, Luke found Cloud's face interesting to watch, turning several shades of green. Luckily, no contents of Cloud's stomach had spilled yet since the water was fairly smooth all the way through with no encounter of any sea creatures.

From Junon Base, the truck ride wasn't even better but she was relieved when they got to the ShinRa Academy compound that was conjoined with the Military Fortress.

Cloud's jaw dropped as they filed out of the truck to find the looming city of Midgar before her. It was so massive and dark in coloring. There were high walls of concrete lining the outskirt of the city and the ShinRa Military Fortress. Along the face of the wall were electrifying bluish violet light that hummed. She knew if you were to touch it, it would fry you upon contact, solely created for the monstrosity beast that roamed around the areas. She could see the ground nearly black and gray; from ashes remains that dared to venture too close, all around them for a mile, no grass sprouted anywhere.

As she followed the group around the truck to enter the Fortress, she could see massive gates along the walls, about a half mile apart in between all along the edge of the city. What was more awe to the sight of Midgar alone was the massive plate that stood directly over the center of the city, looming and shadowing the area. She had heard somewhere that was the heart of ShinRa, the main Headquarter and the factory that sucked Mako from the earth to feed the electricity to the city and the surrounding area.

The scents were slightly putrid and she recognized it to be processed Mako and pollutions. Wrinkling her nose in a bunch, she turned to follow the rest of the group into the compound, showing her ticket before ushering to the first building to get her paper and passes.

Finally, after long three hours of waiting, she got her papers, passes, identification card and issued uniforms, she found herself onto the Academy base with few others that were also going for the academics. The Academy was off the side of the Fortress with their own buildings for classes and library.Unfortunately, the students had to share dormitory with the recruits and soldiers. She hoped she wouldn't get the worse of bunches for roommates. She found her building and scowled as she had to use her card several time before it beeped her access into the building.

"Floor Two… two… four… six…eight!" she found her door and found it wide open from the inside and hearing voices as well. There were two men already occupying the room. She felt so small compared to them as she saw them, both of them towering over her, obviously older nearly by five to a decade. She suddenly felt conscious of her size and hoped they wouldn't find her too suspicious; after all, she was portraying a young teenage boy.

"Heey! Reno, we got another one, even he has the hair!" The first turned to her with a face cracking smile that flashed perfect white teeth. Cloud returned a shy smile and fidgety tried to smooth her wayward gravity defying spikes on her skull. The man had long ebony hair that fell down to his waist topped with long spiked tendrils going backward from his forehead. He was large build with roping muscles over his chest and arms. He was nice to look at with friendly violet eyes that glowed with hint of Mako in his bloodstreams. She felt she could trust him, but not just yet.

"Welcome!" The other man quipped; slapping Cloud's back, shoving her into the room. He had tanned skin with bright red hair that fell down to his mid back, sticking in uncontrollable mess only to be discreetly tied back in a ponytail. His eyes were dark blue but didn't show any Mako glows.

"I'm Zack, this is Reno." The first stuck his hand out to Cloud and shook hands. The blonde winced slightly as she withdrew her hand from the strop grip and told them her name, making sure her voice wasn't too high, "Cloud Strife…" She then shook Reno's hand, finding the grip nearly strong but not painful.

"Take your pick for bunk. The top one is mine on the right, and he took the bottom on the left." Zack gestured to the small but decently sized room that also had two desks to each other in between the beds and two large trunks at the edge of the bunk beds. There was another door near the left bunk bed leading to a small bathroom with a shower stall. From across the left bunk were a half refrigerator and a counter that lined along the wall. There were some posters plastered on the wall of some famous rock and pop bands, military sport teams' banner and to her dismay, wads of gums that stuck few smaller posters to the wall where thumbtacks ran out. There was a massive broadsword that stood taller than her hanging from specialized hook next to the trunk; she supposed if she were to try to lift it, she wouldn't be able to.

She looked at the two men that watched her expectantly. "The other roommate has not arrived yet?" She asked quietly.

Zack shook his head as he grinned. "No, not yet."

Cloud gave a small smile and found she'd be more comfortable sharing bunk with ebony haired man. For some reasons, he had a comforting and trusting atmosphere to him, rather more than Reno where he felt more mysterious. "I'll take the bottom one." Cloud moved to put her bag on the mattress. Zack grinned more, and Cloud wondered if he could smile anymore before cracking his face in half.

Zack grabbed the issued duffel bag and open the trunk, "There's divided sections, yours on the right, is that all right?"

Cloud shrugged as she pulled out some stuffs from her personal bag. "Fine with me. There are no dressers here?"

Reno shook his head as he sat down on his bed. "Nah. I guess somewhere in the past, the dressers got destroyed more than enough that it was removed from the dormitory. Once you get to the top, you can get your own apartment at the complex at the back of the fortress. So, tell us about yourself, roomie."

Cloud looked up to Reno and gave another shy smile. "You know my names… I'm from Nibelheim and I'm majoring in Mako Science."

Zack stood back up from the trunk. "Not for the military?"

"No."

"Too bad." He sat down on Cloud's bed next to the youth. "Field Lieutenant Zack Donovan, the Residential Advisor for this entire second floor of this building and a whole lot of others; I teach some classes, mostly train the Basic Training. Any problem or question, come and see me." He chuckled, "I'm from Gongaga and in Class Two Soldier if you don't know which rank I am. I don't want to hear any 'Yes Sir', or 'Lieutenant Donovan' from you, Zack will only do." He smirked as he leaned back to rest on his elbows.

Cloud nodded as she took it all in. "Sure, Zack."

"I'm in Class Three Solider, Class Two Corporal, but once I get to Class Two, I'm going to transfer over to Turks. They get better paid and better jobs!"

Zack shook his head in disagreement. "Nah, the best one would be Class One Elite."

Reno scoffed. "If you can beat General Sephiroth."

Cloud frowned in confusion. "Beat General Sephiroth?"

Reno chuckled. "You know of General Sephiroth?"

Cloud nodded, how can she not? This General Sephiroth was known as the highest ranking man in the entire ShinRa Military, the fourth in line of the ranks under the President and the only one in the Elite Class One Solider. He had single handily won the Wutai war a decade ago and was known as the most ruthless fighter and the most cold hearted man to grace the planet. .

"If you get into Class Two, it's better to get comfortable with the rank for the rest of your life. Only way to get into Class One is to challenge General Sephiroth and beat him in a match or if you are up for a trial run, which is very rare. If he deems you worthy of his equal, you'll be Class One. But dream on, no one had ever been Class One for a long time, ever since the Great War."

"Really?" Cloud gaped at the information. "What happened to those who were in Class One before?"

Zack shrugged as he got up from the bed. "Oh, the last of them were killed in the Wutai War. General Sephiroth was the only one left and the strongest out there. You'd not want to mess with him. It is not easy to get along with him; he's like an ice block."

Reno scoffed as he leaned against his bunk bed, "Zack here is the only one who can hang around General Sephiroth without getting killed."

She turned her head to the other man with wide eyes. Zack shrugged in reply, "I'm just a friend… He's difficult to talk to." He laughed and helped Cloud tossing her clothes into the trunk beside the bed.

Cloud soon learned more about the rankings and the two men, feeling slightly at ease after traveling a long way. She figured she might as well get away with it for the next few years as long they don't evade too much of her privacy. She had sought for a better life after a hard childhood in Nibelheim.

She learned that you could obtain a weapon of your choice in Class Three where Reno had an Electrorod tucked away in a specialized box under the trunk and Zack had an issued wide blade Buster Sword with two slots for gems of Materia hanging on the wall in its glory next to their bunk bed. She also learned that Zack dreamed of reaching Class One someday and is working hard on it.

Zack appeared to be jovial, easygoing with rebellious streak while Reno was more reserved with heavy mischievous side to him. Finally, their fourth roommate joined them, a Private, Class Four, just freshly out of Cadet Rank, employing as a guard at the Headquarter named Phil whom they would hardly ever see from now on.

Cloud was given a tour of the fortress by Zack with several other new recruits that lived on their floor in the building. Then they had dinner at the Mess Hall before turning in for the night. She felt relieved that she had made it this far and closed her eyes, wondering how much farther she could go before she could achieve something. Little she knows that her life was just a beginning.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	2. S1:2: In Tarsus

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

_Note: Cloud is referred as 'he' from character's view. The author's view will switch back to 'she'._

Chapter Two: In Tarsus

_Then Paul said: "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. Under Gamaliel I was thoroughly trained in the law of our fathers and was just as zealous for God as any of you are today. _

Acts 22: 3, The Holy Bible

Zack strolled down the hallway, returning to his room at the dormitory building after a long day of work. His mind wandered to the newcomer, the young boy, he knew the kid would be in their room, studying. He always comes back to the dorm right after classes and training, to study and sleep.

Several months ago, shortly after Cloud had came to the Academy, he and Reno convinced the kid to join the Military so he'd get the complete education he wanted without having to pay anything. Cloud had agreed after couple of weeks of convincing and decided to join for the Soldiers. There was a private bet between Reno and Zack to what Cloud would choose, the Soldiers or Turks, in the end, Zack won after Cloud had told them that he didn't think he would get far into Class Two.

He remembered the blonde being very hesitant at first but Reno offered Cloud to try his hand on hand combating and sword sparring to see if he liked it. They both had two weeks before the Basic Training and devoted their spare time in dragging the blonde to the gymnasium and teach on both hand to hand combat and swordplay.

To their surprises, Cloud was extremely skillful once he picked up the basics and held on his own. Zack noticed that his size wasn't up to the regulation but knew the speed and agility that Cloud had made up more than most of it and had a feeling that Cloud would have gone far in ShinRa Military.

By the end of two week, Cloud agreed after seeing that the Basic Training would not interfere with his desired education. Those who joined up had two choices, join the Military and get the education, the Basic Training were two weeks longer than the regular one, meaning it ran eight weeks instead of six. After that, there were no beginner duties for the scholars until the end of the first year.

The ShinRa was rather harsh on their Military personnel, requiring the best out of them. Only the best went far. Usually, the Scholars who also joined up for the Military had to juggle with full time schedule of full time training, full time schooling and full time duties and in the end, they get the best field jobs that the ShinRa offered.

Zack stopped at his door and quietly ease the unlocked door open to find the blonde sitting at the desk already working into his studies. He smiled as he leaned against the doorframe, complementing the blonde before him. He had grown to like the kid very much over several months, finding that he would never cease to be amazed by many things that the boy had done in short time alone.

He had personally seen Cloud though the Basic Training and was amazed how he endured the harshness that many would had broken down halfway though. Not this boy, from dusk to dawn, he had drilled his recruit group with many exercises and drills with no mercy and Cloud went though them all with out complaint. He even remembered that by around the fourth week, with morning of drills, afternoons of classes and half of the night of more drills topped with studying, he even saw that the blonde nearly went out with exhaustion and got worried a bit there because the blonde happened to be the smallest and youngest of the entire group, the only one teenager that opted for the education by ShinRa, many others were four or six years older than he was.

His heart went out to the kid when he learned of the social status that he had, which was none. Cloud didn't make any friends, only enough to learn everyone's names and that would be it. Cloud wouldn't socialize with anyone but mostly with his two ever frequently seen roommates, him and Reno. Phil was hardly ever around except to sleep or shower and he had his own life.

Overall, Zack learned more about Cloud by observing him closely though the Basic Training and regular drills even went to the extent to see how he was doing academically. He had to sit down when he learned that the blonde were extremely intelligent, passing his classes with ease and even speed. The kid was one regular human robot, absorbing the drills and enduring the physical while his brain sponged in all the lessons. Cloud had passed an entire semester lessons in all of his classes during the whole Basic Training and was on the top of his classes in grades too.

Not many had ever done that, in fact, only very few in the near hundred years of ShinRa history had done so. The first one who had done something like that was the second and the current President of ShinRa, Roscoe ShinRa, way back in the late forties and early fifties. The few others happened to be the three top scientists, Doctor Gast, Doctor Hojo and Doctor L. Brown and then recently, General Sephiroth.

Zack shifted and moved away from the doorframe as he watched the blonde continue reading the book that was propped up on the desk and pen scribbling down on the paper. Cloud was working on some reports that actually was for the third semester of the first year and the first semester wasn't finished by far. Cloud had requested to keep his accomplishment silent among the other students and allow him to continue on with his education. He even had to beg the teachers to allow him advance in classes as he goes along. At first, the teachers wouldn't allow him and he came to Zack personally to complain that he was getting bored waiting around for other students to catch up. Zack had told him to take advantage and enjoy the time he had free, but he wouldn't listen. So, Zack had to speak with other superiors and finally, confront General Sephiroth personally about the matter.

Once General Sephiroth caught the wind of the matter, he took an interest and quickly pulled up Cloud Strife's records and grades and agreed with Zack that Cloud should go at his pace on his own to pass the grade. The raven haired lieutenant took another surprise blow to find out that General Sephiroth was willing to give up some of his busy time to get the matter seen though personally, but unfortunately, Cloud and Sephiroth never got the chance to meet. Though, Sephiroth, being Zack's friend asked to be kept updated about the blonde's progress once in a while.

Zack kept the promises and informed Sephiroth every week when he went to assist the General in his office about Cloud. At first, it looked like the General had absolutely no interest in any recruits or students, but one or two short questions were thrown once in a while.

At personal level, Zack learned that Cloud was very closed off to everyone. Cloud kept to himself a lot of times and appeared nonchalant and almost emotionless. It had bothered him so much that he was reminded that Cloud was a lot like the silver haired General. Feeling like a déjà vu, he was up to the challenge once again to break through and gain the blonde's trust and friendship like he had done with General Sephiroth before.

He was more than glad to find that Cloud felt at ease around his presence and trusted him a teeny bit, at the most than anyone else, even Reno. The red-head was around once in a while, but had his own group and friends, always using his free times to go to bars and other raves, even the rumors about him hanging out with the esteemed ShinRa prince, Rufus ShinRa was true, at the most what Zack knew.

Stepping into the room fully and quietly taking his place on Cloud's bed next to the desk. He noticed the blonde shift and tense for a bit before continuing his report, ignoring him. At the slight sign, he knew that Cloud knew he wasn't alone in the room anymore. Most time, when Reno was in the room alone with Cloud, he would stop whatever he was doing and move about, keeping his distance nonchalantly and unnoticeable until Reno left the room, but never with Zack, where he knew that the blonde was more comfortable with him rather than anyone else.

Zack peered over the blonde's shoulder to find her writing report on ShinRa's history and chuckled slightly, "Boring, eh?"

Cloud glanced up from her paper and gave a small smile, "Not much to write about and the teacher's being an idiot, assigning us to write twenty five pages report. That's like asking everyone to write the entire history with exact details. I don't think the teacher actually read the stuffs, so I'm throwing in some junks."

Zack laughed outright at this, "I did the same thing, even threw in a small details on Dwight ShinRa's sex life and got an A plus. It was so funny."

Cloud laughed softly, returning back to her essay. "Since I'm ahead of the class, I am sure he'll read this one toughly, so that's out of the question."

Zack shook his head as he stood and clapped on Cloud's back in friendly gesture before moving to hang his sword up. He felt the youth tense slightly and sighed, wondering when Cloud would ever not flinch at anyone's touch. His thoughts trailed to ponder Cloud's childhood and wonder if Cloud were ever abused to the point that he wouldn't trust anyone, let alone anyone physically touch him at the most simplest gesture. He suddenly felt sad at the though and shook it off, vowing to help the boy as much he could, feeling that if the boy ever happens to fall in the wrong direction, something bad would happen.

He even remembered the day couple of months ago, a few weeks after the Basic Training that burned in his mind. He had done something that was simple but the action and language that Cloud had used appalled him so much that he'd never forget.

_ Two weeks after Basic Training _

Zack bounced into the room after a long day, wanting to have some fun for the afternoon, "Cloud!" He found the blonde already glued at the desk, nose buried into the book and writing some assignment away. "Jeez! Already working and no fun at all?"

Reno popped his head into the doorway just that moment, "Hey! Come on, there's some games at the park right now, let's go!"

Cloud didn't budge or moved her head to look, still working at her assignment as if she had heard nothing. Her hand waved them away, "Uh, maybe some other time."

Reno and Zack frowned as they looked at each other, mischievous glints shone in their eyes as they grinned secretly to one another. Zack announced, "I don't think so!" He darted to where Cloud sat with Mako speed and strength, spinning the poor blonde's chair around so fast that Cloud had no idea what was going on. As soon Cloud faced Zack, the next thing she knew, she was over the bigger man's shoulder high in the air, failing.

Then, as they started to head out of the door, Cloud trashed and beat upon Zack's back. Zack didn't notice as he grinned to Reno. Cloud was so light that it momentary shocked Zack as he had lifted the kid from the chair, though the thought fled his mind when some words entered his ears, "Hey!" Cloud shrieked indignantly, "Dammnit! Put me down! I don't fucking want to go, so fucking let me down already!"

Zack paused as he met Reno's wide eyes. It was their first time to hear Cloud utter such language. In the twelve weeks they had known Cloud, the kid was a soft talker, often quiet. "Whoa!" Zack suddenly loosened his grip and slid Cloud down and stepped backward in surrendering gesture, "I didn't mean to!"

As he saw Cloud's face, his heart wrenched, seeing the blonde's face twisted up in mixture of horror and anger. Cloud was clutching to his chest really tightly as if he were shot. Suddenly, he shot to the bathroom and slammed the door shut behind him.

Reno's eyes went wider and his eyebrows shot up. "What's up with the kid?" Zack stared at the bathroom door, shaking his head; he waved Reno away, asking silently to leave the matter to him.

Reno shrugged, "K' see ya later. I hope he's okay." He soon left, closing the door quietly behind him.

The raven haired residential advisor sat on the bed, his arms resting on his knees as he watched the door, trying to figure out what had happened. He couldn't for the life of him understand at all. Slowly it dawned on him, in the short of three months, Cloud was very closed off, only allowing simple touches, keeping his own spaces, almost as if he willingly kept himself like a wallflower, invisible to everyone.

The boy never spoke of his hometown, or of his family. All he knew that Cloud wrote to his mother every week, short and simple letter, nothing detailed or anything else. At that moment, he silently vowed to himself, _I'll help you. Whatever happened to you, I'll help you no matter what._

An hour later, Cloud came out, pausing as he found Zack still sitting on his bed. "Finally about time you came out."

She scowled in response, "I though you left."

Zack shook his head, "I couldn't. I wanted to apologize for what happened. I didn't mean to." He watched the boy, trying to find any clues in the kid's face.

Cloud looked away, shrugging her shoulder and nonchalantly said, "Oh. You're forgiven." She sat at his desk, resuming her assignment.

Zack felt bothered and brushed it aside, he reached out and touched the boy's arm and felt him flinch. "Hey, I'm here, if you need anyone to talk to, talk to me. I'd like to be your friend. Trust me."

Cloud stopped her writing as she let the words swim in her head. She felt Zack stand up beside her, softly patting her back and hearing, "See you later."

Then, she was alone, single tear fell down her cheek. "Friend…"

_ End Flashback _

Cloud placed her pen down and looked up at the raven haired man. "I'm done for now. What's for dinner?" She grinned.

Zack smiled in return, "Mystery globs." They both laughed, the older man's a tenor and the blonde's youthful alto that sounded like bells to him. He watched the kid strode out of the door ahead, amazed how the laugh had affected him so much. He knew his stoic friend would be amazed and enthralled by the blonde. Making up his mind, he'll get the two to meet and they'll get along so famously. Grinning, he ran after the kid.

They both reached to the Mess Hall, Cloud chatting animatedly about her reports and classes. Zack was slightly surprised to find that Cloud was almost finished with all of his assignment that he had gotten few days ago.

"When are you getting the final exams?" He asked as they both entered the building and taking their place in the long lines to grab their dinners.

Cloud pursed her lips as she thought, "They wanted me to wait and take it with everyone else, but what am I going to do until then?"

Zack snapped out of his own wandering though, when he had saw Cloud pouting for a moment there, he was suddenly reminded of his girlfriend pouting, finding the picture cute and pretty which was a bit strange since Cloud was a boy, no a man now since he's in the ShinRa Military. "Oh, I'll talk to Sephiroth about that. He'll do something and you can take it when you want to."

Cloud stopped as she held the tray to the lunch-lady, who plopped something orange on her tray, the mystery meat. "Sephiroth?" Her eyes went wide. "He's the one who… who told all the teachers to let me get ahead?"

Zack nodded and nudged the kid along when few other Soldiers complained for the holdups. "Yeah, after you told me before about not being able to get ahead, I went to him. He's my friend and you're luckily, he was interested in your progress and pulled some tricks out of his sleeves…"

Cloud's cheek went red as she showed her identification card to the woman at the end of the line and walked away, mumbling, "Pretty sure threatened the teachers for their lives."

Zack, had heard the muttering laughed outright, earning few confused stares as he followed the blonde along, finding their table. "Sephiroth's like that. Don't you worry, you should be glad he was able to do that for you. He hardly ever gives anyone a moment of time, even me. I'd have to annoy him until he stops his workaholic for five minutes to listen to me."

Cloud looked up at him in amazement as they sat down at a table that was recently cleared away, "And you're still alive?"

Zack chucked as he chased the green glob around the tray, "You believed that rumors?"

Cloud shrugged as she bit into the orange mysterious goop and found it to be decently edible macaroni and cheese. "Mystery meat, my arse." She earned laughs from around her. "The rumors are not that hard to believe, with his reputations."

"You're right. Hey Reno!" Zack waved to the red-head he spotted across the room, "We got some rooms here."

Reno waved back and came over with couple of his friends, a dark skinned bald man with serious face and a short woman with cropped blond hair.

"Sit." Zack gestured to the space next to him and Cloud. "What's new?"

Reno grinned, "Won some basketball tournament, three on three. Elena's team crushed the women barrack seven-three."

"Crushed, as in winning the game or flattening their face on the pavement?" Zack asked as he flicked a green ball across the table.

Rude gave a small smile as he answered, "Both."

Elena slapped him on the shoulder, "Come on, that's not true!"

"What about Smith getting bloody nose when you threw the ball at her face?" Reno asked, chuckling at the memory.

Elena rolled her eyes. "She got in the way; I was trying to pass the ball to Spiegel!"

"Right," Reno nodded sarcastically as he munched on the orange glob.

Cloud shyly watched the banter between the four friends and silently ate her dinner, listening to the conversation that went from basketball to upcoming tag football and soon treaded into subject of dating territory.

"What's up with the girl you're seeing from Slum Five?" Reno asked as he finished his drink.

Zack's face lit up at the mention of the girl he had been dating for a while now. "Oh, she's great! She's asking me to order some flowers from overseas so she'd grow them in her garden."

"Yeah, that garden of her is real great, how did she keep it all so green though the wintertime?"

Zack slyly grinned as he leaned forward. "We all know wintertime here's real harsh, right?" In Midgar, wintertime brought rare snow but the wind get really biting cold and chilly temperature drops dangerously low during the night time with chilling needle rains. "I gave her some old barrier Materia that kept the garden thriving. It works wonder!"

Elena gasped, "That's not allowed! Giving issued Materia to outsider!"

Zack waved his hand at her, "Nah, I wrote up report that the Materia cracked and didn't work anymore, got another one, gave her the old one. So no one suspected. Simple loophole, don't ever do that. Let me know first." He wagged his finger at his friends.

Cloud quietly added her own opinion, "I am sure the General knew."

Zack whipped his head, surprised to find Cloud still there; usually he'd leave by now. "Oh, yeah. He knew, didn't care as long it wasn't the important ones."

Cloud gave a small smile and soon it disappeared as Reno asked, "So, you got someone you're writing home or seeing around here in Midgar?" The blonde shook her head in discomfort. "No, no one."

Elena saw the discomfort in the youth and decided to change the subject, turning to Zack, "So, about this girl, is she good, the one?"

Zack turned to her and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, she's real sweet and wonderful. There's just something about her that I can't just figure out what's so special about her, she even tells me she hear the Planet. At first I though she was nuts but I guess it's a gift of hers."

"Hear the Planet?" Reno asked, pushing his half empty tray away from him.

"Don't really know much about it. She says she hear crying, like if it's in pain." He watched Cloud from the corner of his eyes, finding that Cloud went quiet again and distracted.

Cloud's mind wheedled out of gear as she scanned the Mess Hall, the place slowly dissipating as time wore on. Her eyes watching random people and then she laid them upon the far end where the exit is. The blue orbs went wide as she recognized someone.

Zack nodded and listened on as the trio chatted off about Elena's dating some guy she met recently and Rude showing some jealousy toward the guy. But he was really watching Cloud and noticed the sudden change in the kid's face, wide eyed and gaped mouth. He turned his head to see what Cloud was looking at and it wasn't hard to figure out because Sephiroth, in all of his black and silver glory stood at the exit, talking to somebody in Class Two, appearing to be admonishing the poor solider who looked ready to wet his pants.

Zack's eyebrows rose. _Sephiroth, eh?_ He looked back at the blonde and saw the familiar look he had seen on all of the young cadets and recruits, the idol-worshipping look. However, he saw something else, a deeper level of admiration and respect in the blue eyes. "Would you like to meet Sephiroth sometime soon?" He quietly asked Cloud.

Cloud's cheeks went red and Zack noticed, "Uhm, no."

Turning back to find Sephiroth still there, but the person he was talking to gone. The General was looking about the Mess Hall and their eyes met. Sephiroth gave a nod toward him, Zack waved back in response. Cloud's eyes widened as he watched the whole silent exchange, now finally believing that the General and Zack were actually friends.

The General's bright jade eyes shifted and fell upon the blonde next to Zack. A recollection and respect flickered for a moment before becoming iced jade without emotions.

Cloud felt like she lost senses of all time and froze as their eyes met. The green eyes seemingly to entrance her, hypnotize her until Sephiroth broke away and walked though the exit and was gone.

Zack didn't miss the exchange, grinning. "He'd like to meet you; after all, he's doing a lot of favors for you through Academics." He rose and took his tray to put it away, knowing Cloud would follow him, "Want to spar Kendo now?"

Cloud nodded as she followed Zack, placing the tray in the rack and fell in steps with the taller man who was leading toward the gymnasium. "Why are you teaching me swordplay, I mean, I don't get to do that until Second Year."

Zack smiled at her, "You're real good and it's not going to hurt if you learn earlier, after all, you may move ahead faster in Military like you do in Academics. After all, you have better skills in Kendo than any newbies I have ever seen." ShinRa Military trains their recruits in many combating skills and Kendo was one of the options, though Zack and Sephiroth was one of the most excellent ones in Kendo and Zack taught Kendo to the beginners.

Cloud smiled, "Thanks. I like swordplay better than anything else."

"You do have talent for it. Want to hear a secret?" Zack saw Cloud nodding and leaned closer to whisper, "Sephiroth is so bad with guns, he couldn't even hit target."

Cloud's eyes went wide as saucer, "Really?"

Zack had to laugh at this, finding the innocent expression very amusing. "Yes. There you go; Sephiroth isn't perfect as anyone though he is."

"I knew that." Cloud huffed. "No one can be perfect."

Zack smiled as he had a dazed far away look in his eyes as he thought of someone else, "No one is until you meet someone you think is perfect and that person is for you."

Cloud frowned as she looked up at her commander, "What do you mean?"

Zack shook his head, "Ah, you'll understand someday."

"Oh." They entered the gym and steered down the hall to the locker to change their clothes; Cloud had grabbed her gi and retreated to a bathroom stall, changing her clothes while Zack did his changing. Zack at first though Cloud was simply shy and tried to coax the blonde to change only to find the kid utterly embarrassed and shameful, so he left it alone and gotten used to it when Cloud change his clothes in the stall. At least the kid was very quick on changing his clothes. They both soon stepped out of the locker and headed to the armory, dressed in similar gi of white and blue ShinRa issued obi, their feet bare.

They grabbed their choice of bokkens, wooden sword, often shaped like nodachi or katana. Then they grabbed their preferred swords, where ShinRa provided range of several of swords for the personnel to choose from. Zack always went for the katana and broadsword that was same as his sword hanging in their room. Cloud stood before the sword racks, trying to choose which sword she wanted to use for the sparring. She had been taught with several swords that she could lift and handle. Her eyes moved to the four footed nodachi, straight bladed sword that was slightly larger. The blade was battered with use but well cared for. She grabbed it and soon they found an empty dojo to spar.

Zack had introduced Cloud to swords when Reno introduced several of smaller weapons and guns, such as sais and shuriken. Cloud soon discovered she liked swords better than anything else and Zack and she fell into routine to spar three times a week at this time of the hours, usually after dinner until curfew time.

Zack and Cloud remained silent, going though ritual since they opted to do kendo that night and did some form of exercising to stretch their muscles and loosen up before sparring.

The dojo was filled with only noises from their bokkens clashing and smashing each other, and upon the fast moving bodies. Zack had a better advantage over Cloud with his Mako-enchanted strength and speed but Cloud was holding on her own very well, using her smaller form as advantage. Though, Zack always held back, allowing Cloud to build up on her own.

Zack smiled slightly as Cloud defended herself and he got through, smacking the bokken rather smartly on her upper arm, knowing she would have bruises later from that. "Good, you're gaining." He moved and attacked Cloud once again. At this rate, Cloud would become a very good Second Class Soldier like him, perhaps, a First Class Solider not too far in the future.

After an hour of sparring with the bokkens, they moved to use the nodachi and katana, their sparring soon became more like dance, slashing and clashing with skilled precisions. Zack found he enjoyed sparring with Cloud, knowing that Cloud knew how to mirror and quickly learn every move he made with little errors. He enjoyed teaching Cloud physical training one on one though he was a physical teacher for the Class Fives and Fours and a Kendo master for beginners.

Finally after their sparring dance, they stopped and rested, Cloud breathing hard, sweating while Zack had broken some sweat but not much due to the Mako in his system.

"You're doing well. Feel like taking up tougher partners sometime soon?" Zack asked as he handed the bottle of water to Cloud.

The blonde shrugged, "I don't know. What do you think?"

"Keep this up, improve, you can take on Sephiroth in couple of years. I know I'm trying to get there soon."

Cloud blushed slightly and laughed. "Let's see you beat him first."

"We'll see. Want to try Buster Sword?" Zack gestured to the broadsword sitting against the wall, waiting to be used.

Cloud eyed the sword, its blade surface unlike any metals, sheen under the light, giving off the twisted vein impression, seemingly to glow more bluish rather than grey, it's being made out of mythril. At first, she thought it would be very heavy but then with the training, she had found she could lift it with little problem.

"I guess," she moved to grip the handle and lift the sword, silencing the grunt that tried to escape her lips, the sword was heavy for her but after finding the right grip, the weight seemed to lighten.

Zack smiled with pride as Cloud moved into stance, parrying an imaginary foe with the sword, thrusting, parry, defend and attack, his lithe body twisting in graceful movement. For good quarter of hour, he watched and commented here and there, fixing errors that the youth made.

At the end of quarter hour, Cloud stopped, breathing heavy again, moving the sword back to where it once was, and cleaning the blade and hilt off the sweats that had gotten on it. Wiping her brow, her golden hair damp and darkened, she turned to his mentor, "I guess I'll get back to the dorm."

"Sure, next time, same sword?" Zack asked as Cloud moved about, cleaning up and moving to the door. The blonde nodded and bid a quiet good bye and disappeared.

"That's Cloud Strife you've been telling me about?" A baritone voice asked from the shadow of the dojo.

Zack started, turning his head to the location of the voice, "General Sephiroth."

The said man stepped into the room, dressed in black kendo clothes, even his feet were bare too, which was a rare sight for anyone except Zack. His face showed clear scowl upon the formalities of his name, "Cut the formalities, so that's your little roommate?"

Zack couldn't help to chuckle, "Yeah, that's him. Cute little thing?"

Green eyes rolled, "Good swordplay skills he has. He got strange fighting stance, familiar too."

"I know, I can't really place it. It's different."

"It's Nibel Fighting stance, a very old kind, almost ancient. Oddly enough, from what I've read about that, usually, it's the female who carry such skills, not the male. "

Zack's eyes went wide, "You mean he's using the Ancient stance. And what's up with the female part?"

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed as he eyed the sword and the nodachi that was left in the dojo. "I don't believe he just simply picked up the skills when he came here, he must have learned some before, perhaps his mother. You say he's from where?" The General asked.

"Nibelheim."

The silver haired man's eyes narrowed in dislike. "Nibelheim… there's an old reactor there." He moved into stance, his bokken, black and shining, almost long as his legendary Masamune.

Zack moved into stance, facing off the General, "Yes the Nibel Mountain Reactor, high up in the mountain. I'm not sure if you've been there."

"Not recently, I admit I don't remember. Have you?" They moved slowly, moving into steps of parrying play by play.

Zack's wrists moved deftly as his bokken clacked softly against the black one. "Once in a while, it's a quiet town. They don't like it when ShinRa comes around. Usually they all hide away in their homes until we leave."

"Yes."

"Seems it makes Cloud much more mysterious about his background, eh?" Zack commented as they moved into faster routines, their bokkens now clashing more loudly.

Sephiroth nodded. "Since you first told me about him and his desire to move on his own pace though academics, I found it very interesting. No one could have done that, not even any kids his age unless they had prior experience with Mako."

"Mako, it's always the blasted thing." Zack muttered in distaste as if the thing were poisonous, even it is.

"But witnessing his improvement with swordplay and several other combat skills, I'm starting to suspect there has to be something that lies in his background that is the cause of all of this. After all, it is unusual."

Zack sighed as they officially entered the real sparring, an all out combat. Moving into attack as he swung his bokken toward Sephiroth only to be pushed back by the General's own defense, "He's emotionally fragile; I'd hate to see anything bad happen to the kid."

"Care much for him? That's unusual for you." Strike and defend.

"Hey, he's a special case." Parry and thrust.

"Granted." Opening to the opponent's neck, move to final blow only to be deflected back with surprise defense, "You're building up limit break."

"So are you."

Surprised, the General realized that Zack was right; he was already reaching his first level of limit break and found that his opponent is reaching the third level. "Ah, you're holding yourself back."

"I meant to. I'm trying to break to my fourth one."

"What type is it?"

"Omnislash."

"That's high level for Class One." Sephiroth replied as he moved into trance to release his first level break while Zack already initiated the beginning of the fourth level break, the Omnislash.

The room flashed with brilliant colors and designs of light reflected off the shoji walls and suddenly, they both clashed with their level breaks at furious speed, their bokkens clashing and attacking in graceful but dangerous movements.

Finally, they slowed down and stepped back, their limit breaks dying down. Sephiroth showed a rare smile, "Welcome to Class One. You've made it."

Zack's eyes widened as his jaw dropped, "You're serious?"

"You managed to defeat me." He held up his bokken to show it was clearly broken to the nub and pointing to his neck where a ugly forming bruise appeared across the side of his neck, if using real blade, Sephiroth's head would had been gone halfway.

"Oh crap!"

"My thought exactly and ow, that really hurt." Sephiroth chuckled as he chucked remain of his black bokken, rubbing his neck.

"Ah, it'd be gone in couple of hours."

"True. See me tomorrow for," rolling his eyes as he waved his hand, his face pinched in distaste of what he's going to say next, "paperwork, you start soon, don't worry, it won't interfere with your schedules. The rest is up to you." He meant for Zack to decide what he would do, since now he's officially Class One, which means he could get his own apartment, his preference of duties and missions and a whole lot of other things.

Zack nodded. "Thanks, man." He took a drink from the bottle and handed it to the General. They both studied the dojo to find it a mess, destroyed floor with gashes and splintered woods; the wall was much in the same conditions. "Think they'll get mad?" He asked.

Sephiroth emitted low bass chuckles, "I'll tell them that the monster rampaged in here. Don't worry. It's worth it." He tossed the empty water bottle back to the raven haired man. "It was getting rather lonely in the Elite." He smirked.

Zack shook his head as he caught the bottle and stashed it in a bag, knowing that the General like to take chances to annoy the Presidents and the others, always getting away with it every time. "Why don't you spar with him someday?"

Sephiroth turned to Zack, "Maybe, level him up a bit more and I'll see about it. It'd be interesting change of pace."

"He's not good enough now?"

"He's almost good enough, but I think he would do greatly if he keeps up. Try to train him more with Broadswords, seems he has the knack for it."

"Think so?"

"Yes, with that mysterious origin of his, I think he was actually taught to handle such weapons; after all, the buster sword was designed from Nibelheim. Go deal with the kid, he just came back and had been watching us."

Zack's eyes went wide with horror.

"No, he didn't hear us." Sephiroth replied. "He always watches us spar every time."

Zack gasped, "You never told me!"

Sephiroth's lips crooked up in a half grin, "I don't mind. I guess that's the other reason why he improved quickly." He left then without such dramatic flare except for his black hakama swirling about his ankles and silver hair swishing.

Zack sighed as he shook his head, hefting the bag over his shoulder and gathering the swords to return to the armory.

In the shadow where the dojo connected to another one on the far end, Cloud rose from the floor. She had accidentally found out that Zack usually spar with Sephiroth after she left one night coming back to get something she forgot and opted to stay hidden and watch the two spars. She took this chance to study the two older men's stance and forms. Since then, Cloud's admiration toward the General changed and became deeper, increasing respect and impression. She loved to watch him walk, talk and move, finding everything about the man perfect. No one could mimic him at all for his presence alone was godly and intimidating.

She hurriedly got back to the dorm; her other two roommates were already asleep. She quietly took a quick shower and climbed into bed, letting her exhaustion lull her to sleep.

As she started to lose consciousness, something hit her in the face and she batted it away to find a rolled up stock. Looking up in the darkness, she saw the faint glow of Zack's Mako eyes peering down from the top bunk. Her normal eyes adjusted to the darkness quickly and scowled at the older man, "Hey, I'm trying to sleep here."

Zack made a light whispering laugh, "Hey,"

"What?"

"Enjoy watching Sephiroth and me spar?" Cloud froze then. "He said that you always watched us spar."

"How…"

Zack shrugged, his black mane moving over the side of the bed. "He always knows something. I didn't know until tonight when he told me."

Paused silence lingered before Cloud squeaked, "Uh, sorry?"

"Don't worry. He said he doesn't mind, I don't either."

"Really?"

"You're getting a lot of lucky break with him. He usually wouldn't go out of his way for anyone, and usually preferred his sparring session private."

Cloud shifted, "Really, I didn't mean to."

Zack climbed down from his bunk and sat beside Cloud. The boy moved to the side, making room. "Well, I know you always get every chance to watch him. You're not the only one who admires him."

Cloud's gaze shifted to her blanket and started to twirl odd patterns on the rough cloth with her finger. "Oh."

Zack frowned slightly, "Care to tell me why?" His tone wasn't scolding but curious. He leaned down to lie on his side, his head supported by propped elbow. He studied the boy, seeing the golden outlines of the spiky hair from the moonbeam that snuck its way into the room from the window by the desks. His eyes traced down to study the face, the fine arched nose and small full lips. The boy was just fifteen but he looked more like a twelve years old in some situations, making him appear more fragile and delicate. Sometime, like now, in serious manner, he looked older and wiser with serious thoughts written all over his face. He often wondered which parents he had gotten his baby blue eyes that seems to change shades with different emotions, bright cerulean blue when happy and deep stormy indigo when angry or slate gray when sad.

Her eyes were azure and her face blank right now, a mask hiding emotions. After a long silence, Cloud sighed, "Don't know why."

"No? Usually from those who admires him has reasons." Cloud shifted to her side, facing Zack with questionable look on her face. "Oh, most wanted to become like him. Some, usually girls has crush on him. Uhm, want to be like him because he's strong, got all the fame and he's is just that."

"What about you?" That quiet question surprised him.

"Hm. When I first met him long ago, I was rude and challenged him to some fight. I didn't know of the Great General Sephiroth as he is now back then when I joined up. He laughed in my face and thwarted me at the challenge."

Cloud smiled at that, "So, you guys became friends."

"You could say that. I never had seen him talk to anyone else like he does with me. Or let alone bother with anybody. He doesn't talk much about himself."

"Kind of a guy that keeps to himself?"

Zack nodded in agreement, "You could say that, but…" He became silent, musing.

Cloud sat up and rested her chin on her drawn up knees. "But what?"

The raven haired lieutenant sat up and poked her nose, "You're like him."

Cloud's eyes widened, "Eh?"

"Keeping to yourself. Heck, in the time I've known you, you don't let anyone know you or even touch you. He's the same way."

"Oh." Cloud murmured dazed.

"Hey kid, you okay?" Zack asked worriedly.

Cloud blinked and gave a small smile, "Yeah, I'm fine, am tired."

"All right, go to bed." With a pat on the head, Zack climbed back to the top bunk and curled into his blanket, facing the wall. He muses about the two, Cloud and Sephiroth; they were a lot a like in many ways, yet opposite as well. Sephiroth was a quiet one that seems to lurk in the shadow at night while Cloud was like the sun, shining yet shy, hiding behind the clouds every chances. He knew then, they had to meet and get to know each other, they'd hit off famously, only if that were possible.

He pondered a bit longer, wondering about Cloud's stalking Sephiroth, well, he couldn't really call that stalking, just more like studying and watching. He understood it wasn't really an obsession like any others had; even the awe admiration or crushes were not exactly in the category. It was different and unique, more of a respect and bonding from the distance, even Sephiroth response to the blonde. It had surprised him that the General didn't object but encouraged it. Usually, if it were anybody else, he would put an end to it quickly, also implying some unnecessary force of fears.

Sephiroth rarely smiles at all, but around Zack, he would smile a bit, show some sides that he kept hidden from the worlds, exposing his mischievous streak and dark humors. But tonight, he had seen that the General was also amused and interested with Cloud's display of skills with the swords and even hidden presences.

There was something that Sephiroth had said tonight that was nagging him. The fighting stance that Cloud had displayed, as Sephiroth had told him was stance that women of Nibel used. He had heard such thing, only in myth, the legend of the Valkyries. He shook his head and decided to look into it some other time.

Zack conclude that there was something between the two. Letting the thoughts slide, he allowed sleep take over.

Below him, Cloud was also lost in her own musing. She recalled back to when he watched Sephiroth disappeared into the shadow after sparring with Zack, at that moment, she understood what Zack were talking about earlier that day.

"_Yes. There you go; Sephiroth isn't perfect as anyone though he is."_

"_I knew that. No one can be perfect."_

"_No one is until you meet someone you think is perfect and that person is for you."_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_Ah, you'll understand someday."_

She hadn't prepared to understand so soon. Sephiroth, in her eyes, with flaws is perfect to her. And she knew why now she had been observing him; her feeling had developed for the unattainable man and it scared her. She squashed the feeling down, deciding that it wasn't worth the risk for her life.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	3. S1:3: Nibelung

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Three: Nibelung

_Nibelungs \Ni"belungs\, n. pl.; sing. Nibelung._

_In German mythology, the children of the mist, a race of_

_dwarfs or demonic beings, the original possessors of the_

_famous hoard and ring won by Siegfrid; also, the Burgundian_

_kings in the Nibelungenlied._

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

General Sephiroth sat in his office, drumming his fingers on the desk. He had long finished all of his works and was staring absentminded to the screen of the computer that sat on the far corner of his desk. The screen displayed stats of the cadets and soldiers. He had already written up reports for those who would be promoted by the next year and it was another boring desk job he had completed.

Not many were promoted to Class Two, neither any to Class One. Suddenly, the drumming of his fingers stopped and soon, sound of the keyboard clacked fast and the computer blipped few times before the screen displayed a blond haired cadet profile with 'his' portrait.

Sephiroth leaned forward to read the report of the cadet that he often heard about from his friend. Several times, Zack would make an arrangement for the kid and him to meet, to be introduced but every single time, he would be pulled away to go on some kind of urgent mission or was piled up with paperwork that he couldn't appear to meet the kid. At first, he wasn't interested in meeting the young cadet, but after the night in the dojo, he decided, he wanted to meet him. The boy was a curious one, even one who knew the Nibel Fighting Stance.

It had been two years since he first heard about the boy, requesting to fly solo though his classes at his own speed. The kid was a constant main topic of Zack's when he came in to work with him few times a week and during their private sparring sessions. Zack had grown quiet attached to the blonde and remained in the dormitory though he was promoted to Class One. Zack had told him one time, "I rather to keep him under my wing until he feels free to soar on his own. He needs some guidance and I want to be there."

Impressed with Zack's loyalty to the blonde, he could see the progress that Cloud made was excellent and fast. According to the orange words on black screen, Cloud Strife had completed first and second year of Academic education in one year and in the second year, he flew though and now was nearly complete with fifth year. He already got his bachelor in Mako Science and was working on his Masters.

According to Zack, Cloud had completed his physical training and was excelled in martial arts, kendo and warfare strategy. He frowned as he read down the report and learned that Cloud was working as a guard posted in the ShinRa Headquarter, a low rank for such skilled and highly advanced cadet.

"Why is he working a lowly job? He deserve better." Sephiroth scowled as he scrolled down the screen and an eyebrow rose, "Class Three, Level One Sergeant. He should already be in Class Two by now, why is he not?" As he asked to no one, the door opened and Zack strolled in, humming.

"Hey General, what's up?" Zack asked as he sat down in the chair opposing Sephiroth.

"Why is Strife in Class Three and working as Guard on fourth level of ShinRa Headquarter?" Sephiroth asked, even he knew he was the one who oversee the promotions. He quickly worked on the computer, pulling up past files.

Zack's eyes widened as he leaned to look at the screen on the desk, "No idea, you're serious?"

"It says all here." Sephiroth pointed to the computer, "Didn't he tell you?" He returned to the screen and started reading some more, his frown became deeper as he went on.

"No, all I know he's busy all the time and not under my legion anymore. He's working under Lieutenant Stifer's legions."

"Lieutenant Stifer!?" Sephiroth nearly bellowed in astonishment, "That idiot? He's not going to go anywhere if he stay under Stifer's order!" Sephiroth sighed and returned to the computer, clicking away at the keyboard. "It's a no wonder; Strife's name never appeared on for the promotion list. I'm going to change that and put him under your legion and I want you to personally train him for Class One."

"You think he should be in Class One?"

"Yes. He should be. I can't do much unless he passes the tests to Class Two first. But he will have to be under your legion." Sephiroth said as he kept working on the computer, changing data and transferring Cloud's files.

Zack slumped in his chair and flipped though the files he had brought with him, "He's graduating in few weeks for his Master. He said he wasn't sure if he would get the Doctorate. If he does, he'll have to work under Dr. Hojo for apprenticeship since he's the only one who's getting doctorate in Mako Science. I wonder why he chose that field."

"Has he got any Mako Treatment yet? It didn't say here on the record." Sephiroth asked, still focused on the computer.

Zack pursed his lips as he tapped his chin, "I don't know of any. I only see him half of the time now. I would have known if he got sick lately. No, I don't think so."

"Find out why he's majoring in Mako Science. I think it had to do something about his past and his being from Nibelheim. There is no record of his family or anything on the file, let alone the ShinRa database."

Zack nodded as he closed the folder and placed it in the completed assignment basket on Sephiroth's desk. "He never talks about his past, all I know he has a surviving mother in Nibelheim and is the only family member he has. Other than that he has some problem with other recruits here on the compound. Reno tells me that the gang that gives him troubles is also from the same hometown. There's some past history between Cloud and the gang."

Sephiroth nodded as he pushed himself away from the desk and faced Zack. "Cloud is being transferred to your legion and sign up for your own apartment soon as possible because it will be down to you two at the barrack in few weeks. Your other roommates are transferring to other legions then too. I believe, one of them is going for Turks, am I right?"

"Yeah, Reno. Been training under Tseng lately."

"Tseng? That's a very high place in Turks."

"Something like that. When are you going to be free? I'd like to introduce you to Cloud very much."

The silver haired man waved his hand, "I'm busy. The only time would be the Ball, I have to attend."

Zack smiled, "The Ball, good excuse to drag him there. He skipped in the last two years."

"I noticed." Sephiroth rose from his chair and moved to the shelves that lined his office walls, full of scrolls and books. He pulled a book out and turned to Zack, "I'm finished for the day. I have to go see Dr. Hojo for an appointment."

Zack wrinkled his nose, "Can't get out of it?"

"No or he will send the entire Military upon my ass."

The raven haired man chuckled as he got up to follow Sephiroth out of the office. "What you got there?" He gestured to the book in Sephiroth's hand.

"Oh, I've been meaning to read this book for a while. It's Mythology of Nibel Mountain."

Zack took the book and read the title, "_Valkyries of Nibelung_. Looks good, too bad, those women are myths. Be nice to meet one, hears they're real beautiful." Sephiroth nodded mentally added, _Like a certain person._ Then he shook his head.

They parted from the building where Sephiroth's office was, Zack heading toward the Knoll, a high grassy park that located near the library and the classes building. He knew he would find Reno and the others there since it was lunch time. Sephiroth went toward the garage of the Compound to get his vehicle so he'd drive into Midgar, to the Headquarter where Doctor Hojo's lab was. All the other recruits get their Mako Treatment at the Fortress Compound Medic Wing unless they were needed to be seen by Dr. Hojo.

Zack found Reno sitting on the grass with Rude and Elena. Cloud were no where to be seen. "Hey guys. Where's Spikey?"

Reno shook his head as he mumbled around a sandwich, "Dunno, he said he was going to be at the library today."

"All right, what's the grub on the menu today?" The raven haired man sat down.

Elena scowled, "Mystery Meat, liver. That's why we have this." She tossed him a sandwich of peanut butter and jelly she had made.

"Thanks, you're a lifesaver."

"I know." Elena laughed and ate her own sandwich while Reno and Rude argue quietly about some sort sports.

Zack muses as he slowly ate the sticky sweet sandwich. _Valkyries of Nibelung? That's right; Sephiroth had wanted to look into it since that night. It's an old, old mythology relating to Nibelheim. Why would it be related to Cloud? _Suddenly, like a ball that hit his head just now, the light went on. "Ow…" He tossed the ball to a group of Cadets that was playing tag ball. _Nibelheim! Cloud's from there… wait, what does this has to do with Cloud, I don't get it. He's a guy… _He frowned, feeling frustrated that the moment of revelation was pointless.

Reno nudged him in the rib, "Look, there's Cloud." They looked over to the path that winded though the small park of Knoll and found Cloud walking down the path, holding several books in his hand, reading one with another. "There he goes again, getting deep in the school works."

"Yeah, he's working on his Master." Zack said offhand.

Gasps came from the three and they chorused in amazement, "Master!"

Zack laughed at them, "Amazing, eh?"

"How old is he?" Rude asked quietly, watching the blonde steer clear of couple other Cadets. "Seventeen," Zack answered, recalling it had been two years since Cloud came into their lives.

Reno frowned as he bit into the last of his sandwich, "He even got the book…"

Zack whipped his head to the red-head, "What book?"

Before Reno could answer, three men, bigger than Cloud stopped him, blocking his path. Cloud looked up and closed the book in one hand, her face stoic. The middle man spoke something and Cloud response nonchalantly. Zack rose from the grass, recognizing the three men to be one of the gang that caused trouble with Cloud.

Before Zack reached them, he saw the middle man step forward in a threateningly manner and Cloud stepped backward. He saw Cloud flinch slightly as the man mentioned something crude, the other two laughed like hyenas. Cloud nearly stumbled backward and the three roared in cruel laughers. Zack saw Cloud's face twist into anger and the first man balled up his fists, taking a hinted stance that he would swing soon.

Diving into rescue with a cheerful façade, "Hey Cloud!" and all four heads turned to him. The three men backed up and composted their appearance to innocents. Cloud's anger slowly melted as she watched Zack approach her.

The leader, as Zack recognized to be second class Sergeant Lockhart, smiled, "Hey Donovan, was trying to offer Strife some help with those books."

Zack narrowed his eyes dangerously at the man, causing him to flinch before composting back into cheerful face, "Oh, thanks for trying to help. I think I can take it from here since I needed to talk to Cadet Strife." Then the three left without much commotions.

Cloud huffed as she shifted to hold the books better. Zack reached out and grabbed couples, "Never listen, don't they?"

"No." The blonde scowled, not meeting Zack's eyes.

"You know you can report them."

"No."

"That's breaking regulations, you know that."

"I said, no. I don't care, I can handle them." Zack scowled, "There is something going on and obviously they're bothering you. I will report them for you."

Cloud seethed as she grabbed the books from Zack, "Since when did you become my mother?" She snapped and stormed away.

Zack rubbed the back of his neck as he watched Cloud walk away. "Gee… I've never." He shuddered as he was suddenly reminded of Sephiroth exploding once before and it was a scary sight.

"Me either." He turned to find Reno beside him.

"You know the book I was trying to tell you about. It's a box of chocolate and you were holding it."

"What?" Zack asked confused.

Reno chuckled and they both returned to where they were sitting on the grass. "For some reason, every month, he would go out with that book for a week every day somewhere and come back with it."

Zack blinked, finding this whole thing pointless. "So, he likes to read. Just leave him alone."

Reno waved his hand, "Wait, it's a fake book, a box. He goes out and buy chocolate, eat them, then go out again the next day. It last about a week every month. I've been watching him!"

Zack rolled his eyes, "So if he has a chocolate fetish. Stop stalking him! Leave him alone, he had a hard time as it is."

Reno smirked, "Blame physiology class, I had to pick a subject to study and write up a report," he waved his arms in panic as he saw Zack scowling at him, "no, no, I put him as anonymous! The teacher never knew who!"

Elena waved with a cookie in her hand, commenting, "You know, it would be so simple if Cloud's a woman, I'd write it down as PMS. But no, he's a guy, so it's something weird and we couldn't figure it out." Then she found that the cookie had disappeared only to appear inside Reno's mouth and scowled at him.

Zack buried his head into his hands and groaned, "You guys… I don't know what's worse, that Nibelheim gang or you."

Rude quietly chuckled, "At least we don't mean him harm."

The raven haired First Class shook his finger at the three, reprimanding them, "Stop this and find someone else to pester on."

"Maybe we'll pester you soon!" Reno called after Zack as he left them.

Zack's prediction was right, he found Cloud in their room, sitting at the desk as usual, his nose in the book. Nothing else was on the desk for once. It was something new; usually Cloud had some research, essay or assignments to do. "What are you doing?"

"Reading." The blonde replied, not breaking away from the book.

"Reading what?" Zack asked as he sank to the bed, propping his boots on the end. He craned his neck to see what Cloud was reading and read the spine, "Cinderella?"

Cloud's cheeks pinked and closed the book, placing it down on the desk. "Yeah. Its one of my favorite story. Found it in the library, a version I have not read yet."

Zack laughed and crossed his hands under his head. "Speaking of Ball, are you going this year?"

"No," was a sudden reply.

The older man threw his hands up in the air in frustrations, "Man! The last two years, you didn't even make an appearance! Well, as your superior, I am commanding you to go!" Then he paused, staring at Cloud, and then he glanced over to the book and back at the blonde. The sudden pain hit his head where the ball had hit him earlier.

Cloud stared at Zack, "You're not my superior," she deadpanned. Suddenly he stared in puzzling horror when Zack laughed, "What?"

"You know…" Zack said, smirking. "Regulations… you've broken enough of it." He stood up and paced the room. Cloud stared in horror, unsure what to think. "You defied my order earlier… Now, I've just realized something." He turned back to Cloud, pinning the youth in his chair with his gaze, "If you confess, I'll overlook all of the regulations and take care of you here at ShinRa."

Cloud stared blankly back at Zack. "Confess what?"

Zack took a step closer, causing Cloud to lean back in her chair. "You're good, too good." He stepped back and sighed, "When you are ready, I'll be here. Go to the ball, one way or another." He turned to Cloud's trunk and pulled out the dress uniform. "Wear this… or whatever you choose. The longer you keep this secret, the more people will find out and you'll be in trouble. Tell me, and I'll help you. You're too good to be kicked out of the Academy or the Solider."

Cloud stared at Zack, her face pale. "Yes, sir."

Zack nodded. "You're being transferred out of Lt. Stifer's Legion to mine as we speak. The General made the order."

She gaped, "What the?"

"After graduation, after the Ball, you're officially Second Class, going to undergo training for First Class soon as possible. Yeah, General's orders too, just don't let that out yet. I'd like to see Stifer piss around about that. He's been dying to get to Class One for eternity."

Cloud scowled again and crossed her arms on his chest, looking away, "I don't want to."

"If you love that book, Cinderella, then you got to go to the ball!"

"What does Cinderella has to do with this?" She shot back.

"She went to the ball, so you should too. Maybe you'll find your Prince or whatever" Zack said, his hand on the book beside Cloud.

Cloud rolled her blue eyes, hiding her fear, "I'm not interested!"

Zack grinned as he saw Cloud flushed. "Ooh, about a certain someone…"

"No! No, no, no, no! I am not hearing this!" The older man laughed at Cloud covering her ears, "All right. Just go."

"I still do not want to go to the stupid ball."

"You're going and that's final." Zack sternly commanded and he sighed softly, "Whatever way you want to… I am sure no one will know who you are." He turned and left the room.

Cloud sighed again in defeat, knowing the older man would drag him no matter if she screamed and kicked as much she could.

Cloud returned to the book and started again where she had left off. Zack knew and wouldn't do anything until she confessed. Perhaps he was right, she could go to the ball, but as herself, and no one would know who she was. She opened the book and glanced at the picture, where Cinderella was in her beautiful gown. Ironically, Cinderella had blond hair and blue eyes in the story, which was rare for anyone to have such genetically make-up. She made her decision to go to the mall within the city this weekend to pick up something for the ball.

Zack leaned against the wall in the hallway after he left the room. He was shocked. It had made sense all along. Cloud wasn't a boy; but rather a female and she wouldn't come forward. He knew Cloud would face serious court martial if it ever gets out and expulsion from the Academy and ShinRa with black mark on her name.

He knew Cloud was so much like Sephiroth in many ways, yet so much different. He had wanted them both to meet, as he hoped, they'd hit off as friends, but now, it didn't seem likely. He cared very much for Cloud and worried for her future. Sephiroth was also getting too close to the truth even without meeting Cloud. He wondered what would happen if Sephiroth ever find out and shook his head, he will cross the bridge when it comes to that and hoped Cloud would come to him soon before anyone else find out.

Shaking his head as he walked away from the door, exiting the building, "A box of chocolate… Geesh." He looked to the sky and smiled, "Saturday, I will personally see to it that you go to the ball."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

At the Headquarter deep in Midgar, Sephiroth tried to make himself comfortable on the old dental chair while he was being injected with green glowing substance of Mako and reading the book of _Valkyries of Nibelung_. Feeling a bit lightheaded as he usually felt every time he received the treatment, he read on. _'Nibelheim was said to be the home of the Nibelung long ago, sitting at the base of Mountain Nibel, guarding the gateway to the mountain. The village was once full of Nibelung, the people of Nibel, or as they were called, Children of Mist. _

_The Nibelung was born of the Ancient race of the Gaia, before the races of the Cetra and the Calamities of the Sky. They were not known to the two races, which raged war against each other for five centuries. The Nibelung escaped the War and made their home in Nibel, guarding the heart of the Planet. They were the chosen children of Gaia and blessed by her, the true children of the planet._

_Nearly all of Nibelungs were women, very few were men. They called themselves Valkyries, vowing to protect the Planet from any harm, protecting from any those who threatens the Planet. They all appear to be beautiful and desirable women with long golden hair, fair skin and blue eyes. Some would have different colorings but they all have common traits; they are born with their parent's skills and abilities and whatever they learned are added to them, each generation stronger than the last. Every woman always bore a daughter, almost rarely any son. _

_The very first male to be born to the Nibelung was the god of the Nibel Mountain, Odin, the son of Alexander the Judge, the true son of Gaia and brother of the first Valkyries, Jenova. Over the time, more males were born and in the recorded history of Nibelung, their names was; Michael, Gabirel, Raziel, Uriel, Ramiel, Sariel, Metatron, Jophiel, Anael, Jeduhiel, Simael, Haniel, and Luciael. In total of fifteen men proudly called themselves to be sons of Valkyries. The sixteenth remained unnamed, for he is the prophesied one.'_

Sephiroth's eyebrow rose as he read on. _I know two of them happen to be rare Summon Materia, Odin and Alexander, the Judge. What about the rest, that's thirteen left of them all…Could they be?_ He blinked as the nurse came to him and placed another bag of green substance. "Sorry sir, the Doctor ordered extra doses. Please do let us know if you are feeling anything out of ordinary."

Sephiroth gave her an icy glare and she quickly left him alone. He returned to reading. _Too much a coincidence… This Strife kid is from Nibelheim, he has yellow hair and blue eyes, and he just simply couldn't be one of those Valkyries sons. They're a myth, then again, there's one more unnamed one._

"Reading Mythology, eh?"

Sephiroth looked up to the oily voice that interrupted his reading and found, "Doctor Hojo."

The man with oily voice entered the room, peering at the bag that fed into Sephiroth's veins, "How is it coming?" He tapped the bag and turned to the man sitting before him.

"The book or the treatment?"

"Either." Doctor Hojo brushed the straying oily black hair back.

Sephiroth stoically stared at the man, "Book's interesting. Treatment's fine."

"Magic… foolish thing." The skinny man pushed the book upward to read the spine, "Valkyries. They don't exist."

Sephiroth stared at the man silently.

"Even the Cetra, Calamities of the Sky, whatever they are. They're all foolish. You shouldn't waste your time on these. Pointless, worthless."

"I'll read whatever I want, Doctor Hojo." He ground the man's name with harshness, knowing the skinny oily man would get the hint and leave him alone.

"You're free to go after this bag." Dr. Hojo told the General before leaving the room.

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and returned to reading.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	4. S1:4: ShinRa Ball

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Four: ShinRa Ball

_A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;_

Ecclesiastes 3:4, The Holy Bible

Reno found Zack in the dojo, finishing up with his beginner class of Kendo. He stood at the doorway; waiting as the cadets pass by him to head toward the showers. Zack greeted him with a wave and went about cleaning up the room.

"Hey, what bring you here?" Zack asked as he gathered up his equipment to put away in the locker room. "You don't come here unless you needed to talk to me."

Reno rubbed the back of his neck and sighed, "You're always right. I just need to talk to ya about Cloud. I found out some things."

"What things?" Zack asked with concern in his voice as they reached the locker room and went to put the equipment away before heading toward the open shower area. He did not want Reno to investigate any farther because if the redhead ever find out, it could mean trouble for Cloud. Reno stood behind the low wall that separated the showers to the lockers area.

"I had some contacts find out why the Nibelheim gang bothers with Cloud." Reno smirked slightly as he saw Zack roll his eyes as he washed his hair. The red-head had a lot of contacts throughout the compound and usually knows everything about everyone, providing to be useful to inform his closest friend, Rufus ShinRa about everything going on. It usually helps the young vice-president-to-be to become popular in the future. Sometime, it was a dirty work, most of the time; it was useful to gain popularity and control.

Zack realized, the information he had on Cloud was pure luck that he had came upon, figuring out Cloud's secret and he knew no one else has enough information he has, if anyone were to investigate on Cloud, they would never come up with the Valkyries unless they cross reference Cloud's color make-up. "What did you find out?" He asked as he rinsed his hair.

"The gang mentioned that it was something they did for a long time since they all were young. It was a simple childhood bullying but the leader had a deeper grudge because of his sister getting hurt at one point and somewhere along the line, they all blamed Cloud for it. I don't know the whole story, they wouldn't say any more. They even said that Cloud's a freak."

"A freak? How?" Zack asked as he stepped out of the shower area, drying up as he headed toward his locker. "How can Cloud be a freak? Sure, he's very smart and adaptable."

"It's part of that." Reno pointed out as he sat down. He had also thought Cloud was strange, just zooming along through his education and being able to pick up and advance in any combats being taught to him but he also had respect for Cloud being very modest and just as who he is. He liked the kid very much and worried slightly from time to time when troubles occur. "There's something else, my contact said that Nibelheim had a long history, being the town based from the age old legends of the Nibelung and no one in century for a long time had the appearance of something relating to the myth. I don't know what it is."

Zack whipped around, his eyes wide, "I do." He sighed; maybe he could evade Reno from the subject, since the redhead was a bit too close to home on the facts.

Reno's bright red eyebrows shot up, "You do? Tell me."

The raven haired man sat down next to the younger man, tugging on his stocks, "Nibelheim's myths and legends revolve around Nibelung Valkyries. Something like that but everyone knows this."

"Valkyries, you mean, those goddess-like women that fights and protect Mountain Nibel?"

"Yes, you know the legends. It's always been taught in History anyway. Remember what they looked like?"

"Like any Goddess should look like, pale, golden haired and absolutely beautiful with eyes like sky… if I remember correctly from the history book."

"Right. Look at Cloud."

Reno paused as he connected the appearance of the Valkyries to Cloud and his eyes went saucer-like, "Ooh. Cloud does look like them. But they're just a myth, why should they pick on him?"

"Truthfully, no reasons. Was there anything else your contact said?" Zack sighed inwardly glad that Reno only believed them to be a myth.

"Cloud's mother came to town a long time ago, obviously an outsider with a man from ShinRa. He died in an accident with the Reactor up in the mountain and Cloud was born some time later. The whole town didn't like her and was afraid of her for some reason."

"Sound interesting. I am going to bring this up to General Sephiroth about this. He'll like to know of this. Just stop looking too much into Cloud's background, leave it to me and General Sephiroth, that's an order."

Reno gasped, "General Sephiroth? But that's not worth his time to be bothered about it. I am sure it's just a simple thing."

Zack shook his head as he stood up, strapping his belt on. "No it is not, like you said about the Nibelheim Gang, it is something to be handled by us. He is very interesting with Cloud's progress and he has a plan for him. Leave it be."

"Yes, sir." Reno stood to follow Zack out of the locker room and across the campus toward their dormitory building. "He really is concerned about the kid?"

"I don't know," Zack shrugged, "I'm moving out of the dorm and to my own apartment. I have order from the General to house Cloud too and train him to prepare for Class One."

"Shit! I know you got in Class One sometime ago but Cloud too?"

"Yeah, it'll be a while but Cloud is going to get ready for Class Two tests soon. He's pretty good, isn't he?"

Reno tugged on his ponytail as he thought, "Yeah, too damn good. He got some skills. I guess you won the bet after all for real."

Zack smiled, "Yeah. I've been trying to get General Sephiroth and Cloud to meet. I think they'll hit it right off, the man need friends."

"So does the kid. I'm also moving out after the Ball. I'm finally in the Turks Divisions. Rude and I are going to room together. Elena's going to catch up and join in couple of years. We're helping her out to train faster, she may be good in sport, but when it comes to combat, she's downright a klutz."

Zack nodded as he took it all in. "I am sure you guys will do fine. I think you all would do great in Soldiers but I can't push you all once you made your choice. So, got any date for the ball?"

Reno shook his head, "I wanted to ask Elena but she already got a date." He sighed and entered the building.

"Who?" Zack asked, following the red-head up to their floor. "I was pretty sure she'll end up going with either you or Rude, seeing that you all are like peas in pod."

Reno chuckled, "its Tseng." He grinned wider as he heard choking gasps from Zack. "I swear! I have no clue how that had happened. Tseng seemed to be a type that would never date anyone and Elena did have a crush on him for a while."

Zack chuckled. "Better luck next time for you, eh?" Reno nodded, "I guess."

They both found Cloud in their bedroom, already reading and studying. The blonde was humming something soft and sweet, also unfamiliar to both men but at the same time familiar since they had heard it many time over the last two years.

Zack leaned over to Reno, "Any other thoughts?"

Reno stared at the kid, listening to the soft humming which had calming power. "Nope, better luck if you ask him what's up with his family and his hometown."

"I guess." Zack turned back to the blonde, moving to flop down on the bed beside the desk. "Hey Cloud! You're long finished with all the Academics."

Cloud stopped humming and looked up with a smile on her lips, "Oh. I'm just looking though some Doctorate requirement and trying to decide if I should go for it or not."

Zack sat up so fast that he forgot that he was on the bottom bunk and banged his head, "Ow! Shut up!" Reno and Cloud had cracked up at him. "Why Doctorate? With your major, you won't be able to get any time in Soldiers, we need you!"

Cloud smiled, "Just looking. I am just about finish reading up here and I don't really think so. I'd have to be an apprentice to some doctors in the same field and there's only one." She made a distasteful face.

"Doctor Hojo, yeah. He makes everyone cringe." Zack muttered as he flopped back down on the bed rubbing his head.

Cloud nodded, "Yeah. I really like being in Solider, its more fun."

Zack laughed. "Thought so. You have the talent and skills for it. Who know, you could be the next General!"

Cloud stared at the raven haired man, complementing before saying, "I don't think so. It's more likely you would be a general before I do."

Zack shrugged, "We'll dream on, right?"

Reno shook his head at the two and stood up, "Well, I just remember that I needed to be elsewhere." He reached the door and turned to Zack and mouthed silently, "Find out more and let me know."

Zack shook his head, watching Reno leave. He turned to his side watching Cloud clear up the desk, "I'm curious, why you picked this major, Mako Science?"

Cloud looked back at him and pursed her lips as she thought, "I guess because I liked the subject?"

Zack shook his head smiling, "That can't be it. It's one of the most boringest and hardest subject. There got to be something else."

Cloud leaned back in his chair as she crossed her legs on the top of the desk. "I don't really know. My father was a scientist for ShinRa a long time ago. He was a Mako Scientist."

"Really, was he around during the Wutai War?" Zack asked, sitting up to sit back against the wall.

Cloud shook his head, "I don't think so. He died just around the time the War started. In a Reactor accident up in Nibel Mountain."

"Wow, that's terrible. So you and your mom had been on your own since then?"

"Yeah. We lived near the path up to the mountain away from the town. Close to the old Manor there."

"Old Manor? That must be the ShinRa Mansion."

"Yeah, that's it. I've always been told to never go there. It's too creepy but someday, I'd like to see what's in there." Cloud murmured as she gazed out of the window in front of her desk. "I have a feeling that something is there."

"Something is there all right; it's where Hojo always goes from time to time. I don't know if he had been there lately."

"I dunno, but I am not asking any time soon." They both chuckled together as their conversation trailed off toward their future plans of Cloud's training for Class Two and One.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Saturday approached faster than anyone expected, to some, the week had crawled painfully slowly. But as for Cloud, she had no idea it was already Saturday and was already glued to the desk as usual, surrounded with papers and books. She was working on his final Master assignment and couple of the papers was some sample assignment for Doctorate that she was considering of persuading yet.

Cloud was startled as the door slammed open and turned wide eyed gasping to find an angry looking superior standing in the doorway glaring at her dressed in sharp formal uniform of the Class One with a vicious shiny sheathed katana at his hip. It took him a whole few seconds to realize it was Zack. Then the light went on in her head.

"To the shower now!" The sharp command cut though the air and Cloud flinched and stood up, saluting Zack as she was required to do instinctively when confronting an commanding officer then she made a beeline to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Zack shook his head and smirked as he sauntered into the room, propping open the trunk with his shiny boot and pulled out the issued uniform for Cloud and wiped away imaginary dust from the suit. He then took the black spit-shined boots from the side of the trunk and went over to the door, hearing the shower turn off and rustling around in the bathroom, he knew then Cloud had finished her record timed showering. He looked back to the trunk and saw a white box and picked it up, he took a peek inside and he realized what it was and nodded.

He called to the door, "Cloud. I would like you to come out and I'd like to talk to you."

Cloud's head popped out from the door, keeping her body hidden in the bathroom. "Zack?"

"Come out." He said his voice soft and commanding. He went to the bedroom door and closed it, locking it. "I know."

Cloud sighed in resignation and stepped out, the towel wrapped around her body, covering her chest. Zack stared in surprise, even though he tried his hardest to conceal the surprise. Cloud looked very different, without her chest being bounded and her legs hidden, she looked every bit a woman, a beautiful one at that.

She glanced down at her feet, her hair wet and hanging down around her face. "Am I going to be expelled?" She asked.

"In fact, no. I've figured it out the last time we spoke about this. No one else knows… And with what's happening after the Ball, I don't think anyone would know." He picked the white box, "I see where you're planning to go with this. You could go as my date…"

Cloud looked up, in surprise, "Really?"

"Yeah, Officers can bring in outsiders as a date." He handed the box to her and smiled, giving her a nod. She took it and retreated back in to the bathroom.

Staring at the door, Zack recalled something that had happened some time ago. Cloud always had dressed in private, never showered with other or anything of the likes. Cloud liked her privacy very much that was proven at one time when Reno accidentally walked into the bathroom at one time, thinking Phil was in there taking shower. All Reno and Zack got was an earful of Cloud's shriek and the red-head had scrambled right out of the bathroom with ringing ears and gotten the door slammed shut into his face.

Reno had mentioned that he never saw anything due to the foggy small bathroom. Even he wondered few times how Cloud could scream that loud that the mirror actually had cracked and had been ever since. He understood now and chuckled at the memory.

He moved away from the door and pulled out an issued formal sword that was assigned to every Third Class Soldiers, a short wakizashi. All First Class gets the long katana instead and was used for most formal occasion such as this. The preferred weapons and issued weapons are not brought to such occasions unless required by duty. He laid it on the bed next to the issued uniform, "Pity it won't be used."

Almost nearly two full minutes since Cloud had went into the bathroom; she came out in beautiful simple ball gown in pale blue and her hair still damply mussed up, hanging down around her face. She smiled shyly at him, looking beautiful and glowing.

He stared at her for a while, getting used to the fact that she was actually a female. Then he went behind Cloud and worked to pull her short hair into simple tie that she finished off as a bun, few strands hanging into her face. He returned to the front and saw that she looked unlike the male Cloud he had known for a long time.

"How do I look?" She asked as she slipped on her white slippers and then pulled on white elbow-length gloves.

"Beautiful." He said simply. "In all the time I've known you, I had felt brotherly toward you and now, it's much more, you are my soul-sister and I will not let anything happen to you." He reached forward and hugged her, surprised that she allowed him and returned the embrace.

She smiled at him as they parted after a long while, "thank you, Zack. Just for tonight, right?" She asked, referring to herself.

"Just tonight, be yourself."

"So, are we done?" She asked as she pulled on the thin shawl over her bare shoulders.

"No." Zack said as he pulled out a small pin from his pocket. "This was to be on your dress uniform." He said as he picked up the jacket from the bed and placed the pin on the jacket, joining the ShinRa Logo pin with two pins that indicated she was Class Three, making a half circle around the logo. The third pin showed that she is to be Class Two. She gasped as she saw this.

Zack smiled as he brushed the imaginary dust from the shoulder of Cloud's jacket, "Well, as your superior officer, I don't think it'd hurt to let you know that following Monday, you're a Class Two Soldier. Here's the pin," He reached out and pinned another pin that circles around the diamond logo pin, making almost complete circle. "Too bad, you wouldn't be able to show off that you're in Class Two." He then placed the jacket on the bed.

Cloud's eyes went wide, "Really?" She looked at her jacket collar and smiled, "Thanks. I am sure it doesn't matter for now."

"Don't thank me. It's all the General's credits that he got you promoted. You deserved it." Zack turned abruptly and walked to the door and held his elbow out for Cloud to take. She smiled and linked her arm around his and they both left the room.

Zack and Cloud made their way across the compound toward the garage, then hopped into a jeep and disappeared toward ShinRa Headquarter in the heart of Midgar by taking the connected underground tunnel.

As they reached the Headquarter, they both silently made their way to the elevator and went up to the third floor of the tall building where the Auditorium was located. Cloud watched out of the glass wall of the elevator that overlooked Midgar. The elevator stopped on the second level as few others joined them and she quickly made a peek at Zack, noting his uniform. The Class One formal uniforms were a lot similar to her dress uniform but the jacket was cut longer that reached Zack's mid thigh and his collar insignia had four pins encircling the diamond, making a whole circle, symbol of the First Class, the Elite.

Finally, the elevator stopped and announced they had reached the designated floor. The doors opened to reveal a large ballroom that glittered in dazzling galore. Cloud gaped as she took in the sight. Almost entire Soldiers, Cadets and troopers were there, including the Naval and Air Force personnel. Cloud spied some Turks mingling among the crowds, even some employees under the ShinRa Company and government. Nearly all women were dressed up in their finest; some wore the issued women uniform, but most wore varied ball gowns or evening dresses.

Her blue eyes scanned the room and she realized she didn't find someone she was expecting to appear tonight. The General was no where to be found. Suddenly shaken out of her stupor, she looked up to find Zack smiling down at her, "Hey, welcome to the ShinRa Winter Ball. One thing, what should I call you? Clearly, I can't call you Cloud."

"My name is Cloud Sorano Strife; I suppose you can call me Sorano for tonight." She said, taking his offered arm and they stepped out of the elevator.

"Oh gee…" Cloud muttered as she kept taking in the details of the room and every one. Having never seen such events or sight growing up, she was starting to regret not attending in the last two years.

Zack laughed as he found Cloud being too cute, looking so young and naive. "Come on, let's go and see if any one will be willing to dance with us! I am sure some of the guys will want to dance with you."

Cloud, having half heard him, nodded as she followed the older man though the crowd. She half listened to Zack explaining and going on about the tradition of the Ball that occurred every year, all she caught somewhere there was something to do with the Ring of Dance, she shrugged it off as she gazed about her taking in the scenery. She saw a lot of women chose the same color theme for their dresses, in red and gold; the color of ShinRa. She felt a bit out of place and noticed that almost everyone was staring at her as she passes them by.

Zack noticed Cloud watching a group of women huddling together, gossiping and staring at her, "You're like Cinderella to them, beautiful and mysterious."

Cloud shook her head madly as he caught Zack grinning suggestively. "No! I'm not going to find my prince tonight. I'm your date, remember?"

The older man turned and caught sight of someone he recognized across the room. Cloud stood on her toes to see over the crowd since she was head shorter than the other man. She suddenly dropped back on her heels as she caught who was across the room. It was General Sephiroth and knew Zack had wanted to introduce the two of them together lately.

Zack paused and turned to find Cloud's expression almost akin to horror and surprise. He smirked, "I think you're wrong. I've found your prince." He chuckled softly as Cloud turn very red. "Will you like to dance with your prince?"

As Zack expected, the pink tinge reddened full blast. Cloud sputtered and fumbled a bit with her gloves, "No!" She suddenly turned heels and stalked toward the buffet table.

The raven haired man shook his head smiling and turned to wade though the crowd to reach the General where he stood. General Sephiroth stood alone with lots of space about him, radiating the sense that he wanted to be left alone by the scowl on his face. He looked every bit intimidating in his formal uniform, which wasn't very different from his usual leather outfit he always wore. His formals were usually black, with dark grey turtleneck crew underneath the long trench-like jacket, though everything else looked about the same except he wore no shoulder guards and at his hip was the six footed Masamune, rarely sheathed in its shiny black scabbard.

Sephiroth showed slight sign of recognition and a nod inclined invitation for Zack to come close. He was sipping at the tall flute of champagne.

"General Sephiroth." Zack formally saluted and fell into relaxed stance as Sephiroth nodded once again with a stoic reply of, "Zack." And he knew he had the permission to speak causally.

Zack brushed aside the cold blank stare, knowing Sephiroth always acted such around public and is seething inside, hating social events that the President ShinRa drags him to. Grinning, "Having fun yet?"

Sephiroth turned slightly and glared at him, "Am I?"

"I don't know. Your style of fun is somewhat a mystery for me."

A slight smile turned up the corner of the pale haired man, "My idea of fun is to massacre this room."

Zack's eyes widened, "Just wait until I leave with few choices of people I'd like to save from your bloodthirsty sword." He eyed the oversized sword at the General's hip.

Slight chuckles, "Mm, you said you're dragging the kid here. I don't see him anywhere."

Rolling his eyes, "He is not showing up. But I brought a date, my little sister…" He looked to the table where the blonde would be and cursed, "Damn, she's gone again."

Still sipping at the champagne, Sephiroth's eyebrow rose slightly. "Little sister? I thought you were the only child and from Gongaga."

Zack's frowning face melted into a full blast grin, "You're right. She's a good friend of mine and I feel like she's my little sister. I thought she'd have fun tonight and you'll like her. She's a bit short, shy and pretty, with blond hair and blue eyes. I don't think there's anyone else like that."

"I suppose not." Sephiroth's brows furrowed slightly after hearing what the girl looked like, it had to be a coincidence after all.

"So, you're going to be involved in the Ring of Dance?" Zack saw the disgusted glare from the other man and waved his hands in surrender, "I guess not."

"General Sephiroth! You are going to be in that Ring of Dance soon!" Both men turned to find President ShinRa coming toward them with determined face and cruel mischievous glint in his eyes. Both had groaned inwardly, disliking the man and his devious schemes to humiliate his best men.

"President ShinRa, I don't…" Sephiroth started and was interrupted with the hand shot in his face by the President. He growled slightly, glaring holes into the offended limb.

"You are going to dance, that's final, or I'll pull your rank."

"Yes sir." Sephiroth tilted his head downward to the 'bossman' in defeat.

"Ooh…" Zack muttered, looking away.

Sephiroth placed his glass flute down on a passing tray when a servant walked by and turned to walk away, his hand rose and smacked the back of Zack's head as he departed.

"Oww!" Zack whined as he rubbed his head, watching the General unintentionally parting the crowd like Moses did with the Red Sea. He gave a half grin and searched for a certain short blond haired youth and found her surrounded by groups of young female cadets chatting nonstop. She looked like she was drowning and is in need of rescue. "Sorano, there you are!" He called out to the youth and awarded the women his winning smile, "Excuse me, beautiful ladies, if you would mind, I need Sorano."

Cloud sighed in relief as she allowed Zack pull her out of the crowd of giggling females and though the bigger crowd, "Zack… thanks." She whispered as they maneuvered toward the center of the room. She noticed that a lot of people was gathering for something and saw the General among the midst, though standing alone. Suddenly, she realized something was off; most of the Soldiers surrounding her had no weapons, even the General himself.

Zack paused and snatched the short sword off his belt, "Let's put this aside for now."

"What's going on?" Then she was twirled around by Zack and stopped some place with couple of Soldiers besides her lining up to form some line.

Zack smiled, "There. Didn't you know, you're going to be part of the 'Ring of Dance'?" And he saw her confused face, "All right, here is this traditional dance…" He quickly filled in the details as Cloud listened this time. The dance consisted of two large circles of people lined up faced each other. Everyone would be holding hands side by side and when the music start, the circles would go around, the outer ring would go left while the middle ring would go right, falling in simple but tempo increasing steps. Once the music stop, the ring of circles stops then and whoever you're facing is your dance partner for the next song. It wouldn't matter if it were man or women, all for the fun of the game.

The whole charade lasted six songs, three dances. The last one would be the slowest one and the most romantic. A lot of Soldiers usually poked fun when they ended up dancing with their comrades, usually when it comes to who's leading.

"Zack…" Cloud started to whine and her eyes darted around to find exit.

Zack still had a grip on the youth, shaking his head. "Come on, it's fun. Maybe you'll meet the prince of your dreams!"

Cloud looked horrified as the two men beside him took her hands, smiling at her while assuring that it's going to be fun. Zack had taken off and took his place in the ring. She looked up to find another woman in front of her giving her a wink, mouthing it would be fun. Groaning inwardly, she mentally swore to get Zack back for this. Soon, the music started, "Come on, it's easy, just follow my steps." The man to her right said and pulled her along.

As the music went on, the rings moved while everyone fell into rhythmic steps. The tempo became faster as the circles went faster until everything was flying before Cloud's eyes. She started to feel the thrill and laughed softly as she flew on. She could hear the other people laughing and shrieking in thrills of the game. Suddenly, the music slowed down and she realized she was also slowing down as well until she stopped at the silence.

The silence wasn't long when some laugher roared and shriek erupted. A few seconds of comments throwing around with insults and good hearted jokes, Cloud looked about, seeing everyone had their own partners, some of them were same sex partners. Then she heard someone besides her whispering something about the General finally being included the dance and had a pretty girl instead of a comrade and being lucky. She snickered at the though and turned to see who her partner was.

"Oh…" She gaped as she saw who her partner was.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	5. S1:5: ShinRa Ball II

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Five: ShinRa Ball II

_You may conquer with the sword,  
but you are conquered by a kiss._

Daniel Heinsius (1580-1655)

After he left Zack behind rubbing his sore head, Sephiroth made his way to the center of the room where the dance would take place. Seething inwardly and plotting the President's demise, he stood in place where the lines were forming.

He felt his hands taken hold and looked to find two women on either side, gazing up at him with awe and adoration. They both wore blinding red dresses and silently he was grateful that he wore gloves.

The music began and the circles started to move. He followed the woman on his left, mimicking her steps and quickly learning the dance. He made a quick mental note to never attend any social event that would be his downfall, no matter if President ShinRa commands him.

His feet led him around the circle with the grace of a skilled dancer, though it was his grace of battle that made him a good dancer as well. He caught sight of Zack passing him and few others he recognized from his department. A certain color of Chocobo yellow caught his attention through the blur, an unusual color for a person's hair. He assumed it was some cadet that was also involved in the dance but he couldn't help to think of the Valkyries of Nibelung he had been researching up on recently.

The music ended and he heard some commotions going on around him. He dreaded the next part; to dance with your mysterious partner in front of you. He blinked once to realize his partner was pretty short, almost a head and half. He glanced down and had to mask his surprise, a woman, rather a young woman standing before him, one he had never seen before.

She looked shy and demure, with golden hair tied back in tiny bun and her eyes shone brilliant sapphire blue. The thoughts of the Valkyries came back into his mind as he stared at her. She wore simple pale blue ball gown that accented her coloring, making her look unique. This must be the 'sister' Zack was talking about.

Once her eyes met his, he felt his heart quicken and tried to squash the strange feeling that was growing inside him. She looked so unique, innocent and breathtaking in her natural glory. He could see that she wore no make-ups and her skin had soft golden glow. Her eyes were wide, drowning him into her blue depth. He nearly chuckled at her expression, because it was one of horror and shock. Then it suddenly turned into denial as she glanced around, seeking escape. He found this odd, after all, all women were dying to be close to him, let alone touch him. Her cheeks started to stain pink.

Deciding to make the first move as the music had started up, Sephiroth bowed slightly in formality as he held out his hand "Shall we?"

"Whoo!" He recognized the voice and looked up to find Zack waltzing by with a giggling attractive woman in his arms. Zack took a look at his friend, his eyes widened in shock and suddenly he winked before whisking off.

Sephiroth shook his head at his friend's antics and felt his hand being grasped softly. "Why the hell not?" The Chocobo-haired person murmured as her other hand reached up nervously to sit on his shoulder but only to fall short before his elbow due to the shortness.

Sephiroth felt a strange urge to smile and held the waist, leading the young woman to a graceful dance. He noticed her eyes were avoiding his own and decided to strike up a simple conversation, "So, as fate happens. You're the one Zack told me about, his sister?"

Cloud nodded, keeping her eyes leveled to his chest, "Yes, sir." She softly said.

Smiling softly, Sephiroth spoke "I am never one for formalities. I am sure you know my name."

"Yes, you're General Sephiroth."

"Since we're dancing and we share the same good friend, you're allowed to simply use my name without formality, and I've never been told your name."

Cloud's cheeks redden as she nodded again and replied, "Sorano."

He found her name simple and beautiful, fitting her, "Of the sky, how fitting." Amazed at how graceful Cloud followed his lead with perfection, they twisted and twirled as if they were seriously waltzing to the soft music with the grace that no one could match. Her gown swirled around their ankles, giving the illusion that they were gliding across the surface.

Feeling left out from her silent musing, "Zack had never told me about you, rather he told me a lot about his friend, Cloud Strife. Do you know him?" He was more surprised to witness the blueness of his partner's eyes.

"Yes. He is… my twin brother. He had told me you were responsible for some of his advancement. Thank you."

Sephiroth stared in surprise, to learn this was Cloud Strife's twin sister. He couldn't help but ask, "I did not know Strife has a sister. His record state he has one living family member, his mother."

She blinked and shrugged, "You could say that I am a family secret, I wouldn't be on record anywhere due to the treatment my hometown treated my mother and me." She said softly, her tone stating that she did not want to speak of it anymore. He assumed she had come along with him to Midgar from Nibelheim. Everything was falling into place, making sense. He was beginning to believe that the Valkyries myth was not really a myth, but real.

He felt wave of sadness as he watched the blueness that rivaled the sky shine with innocent and purity. No such kind of innocent belonged anywhere in the dark city of Midgar, anywhere near the ShinRa for the matter. Yet, he also felt comforted, as if simply gazing in her eyes, he felt at home, a feeling he never felt anywhere.

The music ended to his regret, he wanted to remain with her, to get to know her. He let her hand go and she quickly broke away without words and joined the already forming line of circle. Sephiroth shook his head, berating himself for letting himself slip. Mechanically, he went back to join the second part of the game and followed the dance around the circle, watching blurs of faces that passed him by. Occasionally, he would spot the Chocobo colored head. Feeling as if the eyes of Sorano had burned in his mind, he couldn't stop thinking about them. Feeling exposed, he scowled and pondered why the girl had affected him so much by merely meeting her? He knew there was something more to her than meets the eye, something great and precious.

As the dance moved to slow down before a full turn, he caught sight of Sorano in the opposition circle and thought he saw the girl smile at him.

The music ended and he felt the whole world had stopped as he met his partner for the next dance. His partner was surprised as much he was, "Sorano."

With mouth formed in an 'O', Cloud swallowed hard, "Who'd thought?"

Laughing softly, he held his hand out again after bowing slightly, "Shall I have this dance, again?"

Cloud smiled and accepted without words and they both soon danced with the same grace as the last one. She was surprised to find the stoic General opening up to her, giving her rare sight of his soft feature, his laughs and kindness. She couldn't help but feel the attraction she tried to deny run deeper.

Not too far off, Zack was dancing with a different beauty, grinning and joking. The first one had a great sense of humor, a bit too mischievous while the second one was more outgoing and talkative. He mused briefly how he was surprised that Sephiroth and Cloud happened to be dancing together in the first dance. He never though it would have happened. Maybe it was fate?

He caught silver flashes and knew it was Sephiroth dancing with someone some distance away and led his partner toward his friend across the floor. Curious to see who the General's dancing partner was, he quickly moved the pace and in no time getting closer enough to see.

He noticed that Sephiroth had danced with the perfect grace of a dancer and remembered that Cloud had danced with the same skill as if they were perfect dance partners. As he couldn't see the current partner that Sephiroth had, he looked about to find Cloud and assumed she was across the floor somewhere else.

However as he turned back to catch a glimpse of Sephiroth's obviously short partner, he nearly choked with surprise, "Cloud?"

"What about clouds?" His partner asked innocently.

Zack shook his head and smiled brilliantly at her, "Never mind." He made a note to himself to tease Cloud endlessly about her dancing with the General twice in a row.

Cloud allowed herself to be swept across the floor by the General once again. The second dance was much quieter than the last, both of them silently complementing their partner, not knowing the other was thinking the same thing. She peeked up to study the General's face up close and found the taller man quite attractive in his own way; fine narrowed nose, curved lips that seems to express a sinister look perfectly, yet could be gentle and kind when the man desired to show. The eyes were slanted, sharp with cat green eyes that were framed with black fringes of long lashes and his skin was flawless, smooth light tan skin over high cheekbones and aristocratic chin.

Getting lost once again in the icy jade eyes, she felt eerily as she stared, feeling that she would drown and be surrounded by greenness forever, yet with peaceful comforting feelings.

The song seems to end shortly for them. Sephiroth tilted his head down in a short bow, his long silver bangs cover his face from the world, only enough for Cloud to catch a genuine smile from the other man before they parted to join the ring for the last part of the game.

Cloud found herself in the line again and was shocked to find herself wanting to meet up with Sephiroth for the third dance. She brushed it aside, knowing the odds were high and looked forward to dance with somebody else, needing a break from the strange feelings she was having.

Broken out of her musing, she felt her hand being squeezed a bit too harshly and looked up to find Zack standing beside her with laugher dancing in his eyes. "What?"

Zack chuckled and gave a knowing grin, "Two times in a row… That's something."

Cloud felt like she was boiling over tonight with too much blushing, "Shut up."

"Come on! You know, there's a secret to this game, if anyone dances with the same partner three times in a row it's a destined fate!"

Cloud's head whipped back to Zack after studying the floor, "What does that have to do with me? You forget I'm supposed to be Sorano just for one night only! One night."

Zack shrugged as he laughed and tugged Cloud's hand in his grasp. Cloud wanted to wrench her hand away but couldn't since they were already starting to go around in dance steps, if she were to, the whole circle will fall apart like dominoes and that would had been a humiliating experience.

"Well, I'd have to admit this, you two dance perfectly together unlike anyone I have ever seen."

Cloud scowled, "So what if I could dance?" Not giving up, Zack laughed more and hollered his excitement as the pace became fast. The others joined in cheers that echoed in the grand ball room.

The music was more lively and rumbled with deep bass that echoed though the entire ballroom along with the beats of the stamping feet and it died so suddenly at the end, the room fell silent and the circles stopped. The lights dimmed to a low intensity to shift the mood and the soft music started, it was a long one, a slow romantic dance. Few groans and giggles whispered and the final dance started.

Cloud had groaned along with the others at the choice of the song, knowing what type it is. She looked to see who his partner was and her eyes went wide with disbelief.

Zack gaped, his mouth closing and opening as if he were trying to swallow air like a drowned fish as he stared at Cloud's partner. He tried to make a remark but could only manage to stutter. After few tries, he swallowed and smirked, "Ooh…" He chuckled and shook his head, "Third time in a row?"

Cloud and Sephiroth each gave him a dirty glare. He held up his hands in surrender and turned to find his partner for the last dance happens to be a male this time around and barked a laugh.

Holding his hand out, Zack gave a mock bow, "Hi there! I'm Zack, what's your name?" The man faulted slightly before introducing himself as he rolled his eyes.

"Rory." Soon, they waltzed off leaving Sephiroth with Cloud in a comical sauntering, laughing.

"Last dance. May I have this one?" The jaded eyed man asked, holding his hands out once again in formality.

Cloud took his hands, "I see, why not?" She allowed the taller man take the lead once again. "I think this is too weird." She said, trying her hardest to still her wildly beating heart.

Sephiroth tilted his head, "How is that so?"

"I don't know. Third time in a row… Zack said something about that."

"Ah, old superstitions. Three dances with same partner, you're both are fated to be together." His eyebrows rose slightly as he gave a roguishly smile.

"Yeah…" Cloud looked away, blushing. Somewhere in the back of her head, a voice, sounding too much like Zack commented that she was getting too comfortable with the General in a teasing way.

"You've done this before?"

Cloud blinked looking back up, "This game? No, how about you?"

Sephiroth shook his head as he smiled, "No."

"How come now?"

The smile faded and Cloud thought she'd said something wrong. "The President required me to.

Golden eyebrows rose in curiosity, "What would happen if you refused?"

Chuckling as he glanced down to the blonde, Sephiroth found himself amused as he realized the person in his arms had wormed her way through his hard demeanors but instead of feeling annoyed, he felt rather comforted. "He'll pull rank on me."

Cloud winced, "Ouch." And she smiled as they twirled in an elegant twirl.

Across some way, Zack glanced over his shoulder and found the two, talking together as if they knew each other for years. Finding the sight comforting he smiled to himself. He also noticed Cloud wasn't withdrawn as she usually was and thought it was something about the General, and he was curious to find out soon. The first dance, he remembered, they only spoke few words to one another and the second was silent. It was strange, he thought. Possibly that Sephiroth would be the one to unlock Cloud and bring her out in the open? Will Cloud let him?

Rubbing his head as he felt a headache coming on from thinking too much and turned back to laugh at a joke Rory had told him. He promised to himself, _Soon._

"Where did you learn to dance like this?" Sephiroth asked, changing subject to keep the conversation afloat. He never liked to keep a long conversation with anyone but with Sorano, he found himself wanting to talk all night with her, learn more about her and confine in her as well.

Cloud stuck her bottom lip as she thought, striking an amusing cute pose. "My mother taught me a long time ago."

He smirked, "Oh, I presume your mother is an excellent dancer."

"Yeah, I'd like to think so too."

They both twirled across the floor with perfect ease. The General glanced around and saw where he wanted to lead the unknowing blonde to. The glass French doors that lead out to the large balcony was open and he glided her over, leading her out of the ballroom and onto the balcony, and with quick move, his foot shut the door close as they passed by, closing the doors behind him, shutting the music out.

Cloud frowned slightly as they came to stop, the General still holding her as they stood together under the black starless sky. He let her go, but still holding her hand, leading her over to the edge of the balcony, he turned and sat on the ledge, watching Cloud standing before him, her hand still in his.

She complimented their joined hands, his hand were large, covering her small one, almost as if protecting her. She found comfort in this and looked up to meet his jaded gaze, the music slightly muffled floated to her ears. She withdrew her hand and moved to sit next to him on the railing, watching the dancers behind the glass in the ballroom.

Sephiroth glanced over to his side where she sat and wondered why he had brought her out onto the balcony. Sure enough, he wanted some time alone with her. His green gaze flittered to the private garden below the balcony, letting his mind wander deep in thought. He wondered why Zack had never told him of Sorano, a mysterious girl.

He recalled Sorano telling him that she was the twin sister of Cloud Strife and remembered the young solider to be about seventeen years old. She looked very young with innocence shining in her blue eyes, small upturned nose and the full kissable lips… He blinked and stopped his thoughts as he stared at the blonde's lips. Wait, did he want to kiss her? That though startled him but he soon found the idea tempting. For the first time, he realized he had an interest in a female, especially this one beside him.

Cloud closed her eyes, swaying softly to the music as she listened, feeling free to let her guard down. She suddenly felt a warm hand cupping her cheek, almost caressing. Opening her eyes, she found the green orbs staring back with something strange and as it clicked in her mind, it was tenderness. She froze, unable to break away from the gaze and touch. Somewhere in the back of her mind was screaming at her that the General was too close for comfort but the other voice stomped it down, telling her that she was curious to find out what would happen.

Confused and shocked, she blinked once to realize the tingling feelings she was feeling now was from the lips that closed over her own lips. Gasping softly, she leaned in for more as her whole body tingled with warm fire and found she wanted more. She leaned into his arms, feeling the strong arms wrapping around her as they shared deeper kiss.

Sephiroth, always had been bold, had leaned in and kissed the beauty. So many thoughts jumbled through his mind and he knew one thing was true, it was an honest feeling and he liked it as he felt warmth. As he felt Sorano lean in to the kiss, he welcomed the gestured and allowed it to become deeper. His arms reached around the small waist to bring him closer in his strong embrace.

Cloud felt like she was up in the clouds, lost to the world. The arm held her close as another hand cradled her face. She felt gentle tugging at her lower lip, searching for permission to deepen the kiss more. She gave permission and their tongue intertwined, she could taste the wine from his lips.

They slowly broke away, to breathe. He stared at her, smiling as he caressed her face. "Who are you?" He asked, whispering.

She closed her eyes and shook her head, "No one, really."

"I'd like to see you again." He said.

Her eyes opened to stare at him and she was struck with the intense sadness. "I can't." She said, breaking away from him, standing up. "I'm sorry. You will never see me again." She slowly backed away.

Sephiroth stared after her, frozen and unable to do anything. He felt as if everything crashed around him as well, leaving him confused. He watched Sorano backing away, slowly creeping backward toward the doors. She was murmuring, "I am so sorry…" Suddenly as she reached the doors, Sephiroth reached out but Sorano had turned and darted in a fast beeline toward the elevator on the other side, pushing people out of her way. Soon, the crowd swallowed her and she disappeared from his sight, leaving him standing alone, bewildered.

Zack after being rudely shoved aside glanced over to find Cloud disappearing into one of the elevators. He suddenly turned to find a path leading toward the balcony that Cloud had made and saw Sephiroth looking very lost outside. Knowing something wasn't right, he made his way to the General and felt his heart break as he found the man lost and confused, a kind of expressions and emotions he had never truly witnessed from the other man.

"Sephiroth, what happened?" He hesitatingly asked.

Sephiroth waved his hand, his shoulders drop in resignation, "I don't know." He replied absentmindedly as he started to walk around in circles on the balcony. Zack sat down on the railing where Cloud once sat.

"Hey," Zack softly said, hoping to calm his friend down, knowing there's a very slim chance he would ever get anything out from him. The look of vulnerability on Sephiroth scared the hell out of him, "I am sure something happened, can you tell me?"

Suddenly, Sephiroth's face changed as he slipped the emotionless mask on. "It's not that important." He told harshly before departing to the doors.

Zack sighed, his legs crossed. He watched Sephiroth stop, head down before turning back around. He knew the General was very confused on the inside.

Making his way back to the railing to sit beside Zack, he sighed, "I seriously do not know what happened or what I did wrong."

"How about you start in the beginning?" Zack offered carefully.

Looking up at his raven-haired comrade, Sephiroth frowned, "That's difficult." He looked back down to notice his hands. Usually they were covered with gloves all the times and he could see the number one tattooed on the back of his hand. He remembered the tingling feeling of warmth as he touched the girl's cheek. He had unknowingly taken them off to feel her smooth skin. "It's a game, right?" He looked up to gesture inside the doors.

"The dance?" Sephiroth nodded. "It's a game unless you make it into something else. By the way, how come you two were out here?"

"No idea. I brought her out here to talk and the next thing I knew, we were…"

"You were what?" Zack's tone became dead serious, afraid what really had happened.

"We were kissing…"

Zack nearly slipped backward and gripped onto the railing to regain his balance before screaming into the General's face, "You kissed her?"

Sephiroth didn't blink but stoically stared back, "She responded back."

"She…" The words died in his throat and Zack sat back down. "You just don't kiss her… Shit. You've must confused her beyond anything!"

"What do you mean?"

Zack groaned and slapped his face into his hands, realizing his mistakes. "You see, she is very shy and it takes a while to get through her and get her to trust me. Her life wasn't good before she came to Midgar." The General gave him a weird look but didn't interrupt. "But never, ever push Sorano too fast. It took me nearly a year to get her to trust me like that. Now I think I lost it again for letting her be with you. She's fragile!"

Sephiroth frowned and stood up, "How did you know her, you're too busy to have free time to go into Midgar. She told me she is this Cloud Strife's twin sister and she's from Nibelheim too. Nothing is really adding up here."

Zack looked back up, "I met her through Cloud… yes, she is from Nibelheim and life wasn't good for her, no one treated her right there. But you got to admit, she's wonderful once you get to know her. I care for her like she's my sister; I don't want to see her get hurt. I see the connection you two made… I thought it would be good for you to meet her and Cloud… I saw you in Cloud, that's why I wanted you to meet him, be his friend."

Sephiroth twirled back around glaring at Zack, "What the hell do you mean?"

Zack rolled his eyes, "You got to admit it, Sorano's great for you… and if you've met Cloud, you would understand."

"No. You don't know it. Cloud doesn't have a life like mine. There's no way he could be like me. And Sorano couldn't…"

Zack shrugged, "I didn't mean that way. He's like you in personality. Oh never mind. I'm trying to find out what happened in his past so I'd…"

Sephiroth's anger diminished quickly as he caught what Zack was trying to say, "So, you'd change him and he wouldn't end up having a life like mine; cold and desolate."

Zack stared at him, "You said it yourself. But you know that's not true. You have friends."

"Name five."

"Uhh…. Well, you do have a friend."

"Yeah, you and you're the only one."

"Can't blame me for trying to help you have more?"

"I don't know." He sighed as he sat down again next to Zack. "She and I were getting along fine, it would have worked. Would it?"

"But you forgot to stop."

"I'll apologize when I see her next time… Shit, she said I'll never see her again."

Zack sighed as he watched his friend's head drop, "I'll talk to Cloud and see. Was the kiss good?"

Sephiroth smiled a bit, "It's like," Looking up to the faint stars above, "being lost in enchanted space."

Zack's eyes widened, "That good. That got to mean something."

"I wouldn't deny it. Well, maybe to everyone, but not to her."

"I'll try to see if she'll see you again. I don't know how to deal with her now." He stood up and regarded his friend with a wave, "I'll go and find her. See you later."

"Sure, bye." Sephiroth watched his only friend leaves to wander back through the crowd and disappear into the elevator.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	6. S1:6: Sephiroth

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Six: Sephiroth

_The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, _

_I will divide the spoil; my lust shall be satisfied _

_upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand _

_shall destroy them. _  
Exodus 15:9, The Holy Bible

Who said General Sephiroth was always stoic and a killing machine created by the ShinRa? Pretty much everyone assumed something along the line and it was partially true. The parts that wasn't true was because he was a warm blooded person with hints of emotions albeit his ability to cover them up very well.

Right now, inside the building of the ShinRa Headquarter deep in the heart of Midgar, Sephiroth was feeling frustrated, irritated and very much annoyed, which was pretty common for him when he deals with the whiny and bossy ShinRa President. But this time, the only difference, there was no whiny/bossy ShinRa President's order or anything that made him feel that way; it was the fruitless search though the library of the ShinRa Headquarter. To top it all, he just knew that whatever he was looking for was in the top secret library located somewhere on the higher levels of ShinRa building and he had no passes to get up there.

"Paranoid bastards," He muttered under his breath as he stomped out of the quiet library, causing few other soldiers backing off in quivers. "What could they not deny me any passes up to the personal library while I have every other access to the databases in the entire ShinRa?"

"You'd think they'd be hiding something even from you." He nearly jumped but composted his image before turning to find Zack beside him, grinning like a cat that caught a canary. "What the heck possessed you to be here, a day after the ball? Everyone else is sleeping in!"

The silver haired man snorted slightly, attempting to ignore Zack, "Nothing that would be your business. Why are you here?"

Zack kept smirking as he reached up to Sephiroth's ear, knowing he was the only one who was allowed to touch the General without fear. "What is that behind your ear?" He pulled out a pass card, "you see, I called your condo, you weren't home. So, I called around a bit, asked where they've seen you last and where you were heading, and concluded you'd be here."

The General stared at the card in his face, reading the tiny lettering and coding, it was a card to grant him access to the library he wanted to search. He wondered for a moment there how he was denied and Zack, who was a rank lower than him were given the access and realized Zack must had somehow stolen it.

Zack's violet eyes shone with mirth as he saw hint of confusion on his silver haired friend's face, "Oh, it's wonderful to know the right people. You know my ex-roommate, Reno the red head?" He saw Sephiroth nod slightly, glaring at him, "He's all buddy-buddy with lil' Rufy."

"Rufus ShinRa… I should've known." Sephiroth sighed as he rolled his eyes and grabbed the card. Zack followed him back to the library and entered, watching the General literally send the two guards pissing in their pants with his patented glare.

"Anyway, what are you doing here anyway?"

"I had a dream last night and I am positively sure it was a memory."

Zack nearly bumped into Sephiroth's back as he stopped before another door, unguarded and Sephiroth swiped the pass card on the side of the door. "Dream… Oh, you need password too, it's A.V.O.N.E.J. I don't know what gibberish this is."

Sephiroth nodded as he punched the password, "It's backward for Jenova, Dr.Hojo's project. It makes sense; this is all where he is hiding his documents and information. I am not allowed to be here because I am part of the project."

"Part, what do you mean?" Zack asked as they entered a small room lined with bookcases along the wall, a computer and a desk lay on the far end of the wall, turned off.

Sephiroth glanced around, taking in the room and muttered under his breath, "I'm the experiment. He thinks if I knew anything, I'd go insane." He rolled his eyes and waved the thought off.

Zack's eyes went wide, "No way! That's just…" He shuddered, "Whatever you have to find, I'll help you look for it."

Sephiroth gave a small grateful smirk and pointed to the first bookcase, "Start there, then, I am sure you have nothing to do for a while."

Rolling his eyes, Zack went to the first bookshelf, "All right, whatever. My though on Hojo just added another nastiness notch." He pulled out a binder and flipped though them.

Sephiroth started on the other side of the wall, flipping though the binder. His mind straying toward the topic of memories, he realized that his memories started just before the Great War.

It was about seventeen, eighteen years ago, he recalled, he was young, just about eleven, going on twelve, he was smaller and shorter. He was already mako-enchanted and already advanced to Class One.

He remembered standing in line, along with other Class One Elites, there were about ten of them. All of the men were bigger and taller, much like he was now.

"Can't believe they let a scrawny kid with us," One whispered to another.

"Sh, you've seen him. I wouldn't dare to cross him, he's some sort of experiment of Dr. Hojo. A freak. Whatever the crazy doctor create, you don't want to mess with it."

"Still, a kid?"

A young Sephiroth ignored the remark, feeling no emotions, standing tall as he could, waiting for order from his superior, Heidegger. The said man walked back and forth in front of them, stroking his brown beard, forehead creased as one hand rested on his back.

"The Second and Third class is failing in the war. We are to deploy soon." He started as he stopped before them, his broad chest squared. The Class One Elite stood stock still like statues, staring to a point over Heidegger's head. "Leon, I want you to lead this team, all of you are going. Here is the file, get ready to depart at twenty three hundred hours." He handed the thin folder to the older Class One, a stocky man with shocking pale blond hair and slanted glowing reddish eyes and turned to leave the barrack.

Leon opened the folder as the others fell in relaxing stance. He flipped though the paper, there were only three pages, he looked up to the others, "We are to go in and take out the leader. Destroy obstacles, take no prisoners."

"Hey, Sephiroth," Zack called, shaking the silver haired out of his reveries, "You've gone though half of the bookcases here, anything?"

Sephiroth looked around and realized Zack was right, he had went though half of the bookcases in the room and was holding a different binder in his hands, "Right," he blinked and sighed, "Nothing, it's all mumbo jumbo on the Soldier Project, on how the experiment succeeded or failed. Records of the Wutai War and reports, nothing special. All of the Jenova Project is not even here. There's a whole bookshelf of empty binders, I think he left the documents at the Mansion in Nibelheim." He put the binder back on the shelf with more force than necessary.

"I don't get it, if they didn't want you in here, and there's nothing here to hide from you." Zack closed the binder he was reading and turned around, "All I read was about this Dr.Gast's project, it's all on this shelf," he pointed to the green binders on one shelf to his right, "Something about the Promised Land, his discoveries of the myth, legends, how it relate to the planet." He glanced down to the binder he was holding, "Wait a minutes," He flipped the pages and his eyes went wide, "Hey! This must be what you're looking for! Gast found few artifacts relating to the Valkyries!"

Sephiroth quickly took the book and read it, "Yes, this Gast had the artifacts hidden," He frowned, "it didn't say where." He looked up, "I think I know where I should look."

Zack leaned against the bookcase; arms crossed his chest and asked, "One thing, why are you so fascinated with the Valkyries?"

Sephiroth blinked as he looked up to his friend, "Oh. I forgot to mention. Here," He took a binder off the shelf next to him and handed it to Zack, "I've already know this, this entire binder is my file."

The raven-haired man took the binder and flipped it open to read, "Sure it is, it's all about you. You're born in Nibelheim?" He looked up in shock, "Really?"

Sephiroth nodded, "My mother was Doctor Lucrecia Brown, one of the doctors that worked with Hojo. She worked with Dr. Gast on the Valkyries research. I want to know why she was researching into this project. They were at Nibelheim for a different project. It was around the time they started on the Soldier Project. I'd like to know why she was on the project for the Valkyries. It didn't say who my father was, only he was a Turk."

"A Turk… whoa, you're defiantly born into ShinRa."

Sephiroth growled low, "According to them, they own me. I never had a childhood. For most of my childhood was spent in the lab with Hojo then I was taught, trained and sent off on missions growing up."

"Think we can find your father's name on the database?" Zack suggested as he glanced to the computer.

Sephiroth nodded as he sat down before the computer, switching it on, "I suppose, all of the Turks are listed on the database with their profile."

Zack leaned down to watch over his friend's shoulder and poked the metal shoulder guard, "Why do you wear this at the office all the time?" He saw the silver haired shrugged as he clacked away on the keyboard, pulling up the Turk files.

"Here," The General had narrowed down the Turk names to when they were in service about a year before he was born.

"Suppose we look for their feature to match yours? The files say that Lucrecia Brown has brown hair and brown eyes. Sure thing you didn't get your feature from her."

"Silver hair and green eyes?" Sephiroth said as he typed on the keyboard, the result came back with none matched. "No match."

"Try silver hair. Maybe skip generation."

The result came back, none matched.

"Green eyes, then."

The result came back, five possible matches. The names were Kimo Kitaro, Ani Mikhail, Dane Osbourne, Soren Valdemar and Vincent Valentine.

"Okay… eeyh," Zack pointed to the years each were born, "They're all old, how can a pretty woman like Lucrecia bump with one of them… and one was a female."

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and clicked on the keyboard, "I neglected to narrow on gender as well." The screen showed four names instead of five, Ani Mikhail's name had disappeared. "Now, the only possible candidate if we keep in the age rage close to Lucrecia Brown would be Vincent Valentine." He clicked on the name and the profile showed up, showing a dark haired, pale faced man with shining green eyes that peeked though his short shaggy hair, looking ever mysterious.

"Handsome," Zack commented as he studied the profile. "We all know he was the Legendary Turk. Look, he died just before you were born." He pointed to the profile. "Let's see if he were in Nibelheim around the time."

More clacking on the keyboard and the computer screen showed Vincent Valentine's mission records as well his vacation pass. "He was in Nibelheim, but Lucrecia was about seven months pregnant. He was in Wutai around the time you were conceived."

"Yes, it doesn't make any senses. My file says the father was a Turk. There are none that matched, given the time and place around the conception."

Zack stood back up and rubbed his forehead, "I don't get it either, he's the only one that has the possibility."

Sephiroth stood up as well and placed the binders back in their rightful place. "I need to make a trip to Gast's place in the north sometime soon. I believe he has more information. As for my background, it's at the Nibelheim Manor. I will have to see if I have any mission trip sometime soon for both." He paused as his thought strayed away. "Gast's place. I remember when I was there… Hojo really trashed the place… he was after a child there."

Zack's eyes widened, "Really, what happened?"

Sephiroth shook his head, "I don't remember much of my past before the Wutai War. I do remember taking the baby, a girl and once we got to Midgar, she disappeared. Anyway, I'll check into the future mission trips." He stood up and walked away from the computer.

"I want to go too!" Zack said as he followed the taller man out of the small library.

"Have you noticed that from now on, you will attend to ever mission with me? You're Class One."

Zack grinned, "Oh, right, duh me!"

"How is your apartment setting in?" Sephiroth asked as they both exited the building and climbed in the ShinRa jeep, "When are you moving in?"

"Monday, I got one with two bedrooms, I tried to find one with two bathrooms as well but they're all taken. But the good thing is I am one floor below you!"

The General stared out on the road as he drove, "No loud music, please."

"Don't worry, only when you're not home."

"Did you talk to Cloud about Sorano?"

Zack went quiet.

"Not good?"

"No." Zack recalled the conversation with Cloud, and she had told him to forget it and never to mention it again. Desperate to change the subject, "You never told me, how did you become a General?"

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed as he turned the wheel sharply, throwing the jeep around the corner. "The Wutai War, ten of us went; I was the only one who came back," his voice cold.

"Damn. Sorry, I don't mean to bring that up." Zack knew the General was angry, but he was unsure if it were about Sorano or the past he had accidentally brought up.

"No, it's okay. I am not proud of what I did oversea. It was one of the big missions I was sent to. I was around eleven years old when I was deployed to Wutai, we got there…"

Sephiroth's mind swirled with memories, he recalled as the boat had docked on the sandy shore. It was nighttime, the sky lit in random with orange burst from the fire explosion. There were blue, green and occasionally red flashes swirls that darted though the horizon and he knew it was the Materia stones being used. Red flashes mean the summons were being used, they were desperate.

The Wutai had outnumbered the ShinRa's army. The Elites quickly got off the boat and silently made their way to the shore and to the battleground, they were all dressed in dark uniforms, gray dull armors since the shines would reflect and reveal their location. Each had their weapons.

Sephiroth remained in the back, wearing black uniform that clung to his body like cat suit. He wore no armors and held four footed katana in his hand; it was made of mythril, sharp as well. His waist length black hair tied up in high ponytail. If anyone gave him a quick glance, they would've mistaken him one of the Wutaian because of his feature.

"Team Red, go to the right, Team Blue, go to the left, Green will come with me. Sephiroth, you stay behind, if anyone come, no prisoner, destroy obstacle." Leon commanded quietly.

Sephiroth gave a nod and stood there, holding his sword ready. He watched the nine other Elites split in three and headed where the commander told them. Leon was given title of General for the war. Heidegger had said that he would be General for the entire ShinRa army once he returns from the war.

Sephiroth stood at the beach until dawn cracked in the sky. Smokes filled the air with putrid stenches. He watched the massive red dragon sweep down from the sky, Bahamut, one of the summons creatures.

The dragon plummeted to the ground and disappeared in red sparks. It was defeated. Suddenly, the sun peeked over the horizon, silence filled the air. The explosion stilled, shouting died to nothing. He frowned slightly; he gripped his sword as he took a step forward.

Silence filled the air, he decided to investigate. He silently strode across the beach and into the jungle of the island. He glanced around, bodies of the soldiers laid here and there among the Wutaian warriors. As he went deeper in the jungle, more bodies grew in mass. He knew he was getting closer to the battleground.

The jungle cleared to an open ground. Bodies scattered everywhere. His narrowed eyes searched and found the only ones standing were the Wutaian. He felt a tug on his ankle and looked down.

It was General Leon. He was barely alive, a sword protruding out of his chest. "No prisoners. Destroy obstacle." He sputtered and closed his eyes, his breath final.

Sephiroth looked back to the field; all of the Wutaian were there, staring at him since he was on the top of the hill, standing out obvious against the lightening sky. His sword glistened as his eyes glowed.

His body switched mode, emotions shut down, and he went automatic. He charged down silently, his sword held high and ready, he was in berserker mode.

The Wutaian came charging at him, screaming, weapons brandishing.

Small compared to them, he mowed though them, hundreds of them, slashing non-stop. The only thing on his mind; no prisoners, destroy obstacles. They were the obstacles. One goal, kill the leader.

Kill the leader.

Just under twenty minutes, he had maimed two hundred of men, the rest had retreated. A figure stood on the other side of the field, sword ready.

It was the leader, Sephiroth registered. He stalked slowly to the other person.

"Stop there. We surrender." The man dropped his sword and held his hands up. He was in his thirty, wearing the armor of the Wutaian.

Sephiroth said nothing as he continued to walk to the man, only stopping ten yards away. "Surrender?"

"Yes."

"The word does not comply. Mission: kill the leader."

The other man's eyes went wide as he realized what the boy were saying, "You're a monster." He whispered as his hand rotated to activate the small red stone in his hand, a summon Materia.

"Neo Bahamut!" The man shouted and shot the stone to the sky, red flare beamed. The sky exploded and a gigantic dragon swept down to attack Sephiroth.

Sephiroth stared up at the dragon who were plummeting toward him. Then, he took a flying leap upward to meet the silver dragon. His sword clashed upon the dragon's face, disrupting its attack. The dragon clawed and snapped at the boy as he twisted and turned in the air with skillful grace of an acrobat.

He started to glow bright and his sword grew longer to its six feet glory. Unknown to him, his ponytail came free and his hair turned from ebony black to ghost white, his body stretched and grew larger. With burst of light, he slew the dragon with powerful blast, his sword sweeping down in arch as the light followed. The dragon exploded, sending out super-nova like burst across the sky.

Before Sephiroth landed, he threw the sword to the man, sending it clean into his chest, causing him to kneel.

"I said, we surrender…" The man coughed as he fell to his knees, holding onto the sword that stuck in his chest. "You're a monster… a freak. Who are you?"

Sephiroth's head cocked to the side and blinked, "Sephiroth," his voice cold and emotionless. He glanced around and saw the bloody battleground, something clicked in his mind, his locked down emotions surged though and he looked back to the man kneeling before him. The man fell over the side and closed his eyes.

He reached down and took out the shining black sword, now six feet long, "Masamune." He named it and left, the wind blew though his newly silver white hair.

"What was that limit break?" Zack asked in awe, clearly appalled from the story as they parked in the parking lot near the campus library.

The General turned his head, his eyes showing slight sorrow, "Super-Nova. It's my final limit break. Very powerful and dangerous, if I had lost control, I would have wiped out the entire island. I believe, much more with controlled power from the planet, the entire planet could be obliterated with this limit break."

"So, that's when you became a General?"

"In a way, I returned alone, I've defeated Wutai but the ShinRa decided it wasn't worth to bother them anymore. The war ended badly, all of our soldiers killed, nearly all of theirs. The Elites fell to one, me. They said I came back changed, like I grew several years overnight. My body was like eighteen years old. That's when they decided to grant me the title. I trained and grew up."

"Man." Zack shook his head, "no wonder why they're afraid of you."

"You're the only one I've told this. I've never told the ShinRa what had happened at the battleground, so keep quiet. I am not proud of who I am."

Sephiroth said as he turned to head to one of the building.

"Yeah," Zack said quietly, amazed that Sephiroth trusted him a little more. He knew that Sephiroth needed someone in his life. Damned to the regulation and protocols, he plan to try to get Cloud to change her mind, after all, she also needed someone like Sephiroth in her life, to protect her. He turned and headed to his dorm so he'd finish packing up and check on Cloud. Maybe he would get the kid to eat some bites for lunch.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	7. S1:7: Cloud's Secret

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Seven: Cloud's Secret

_Some friends may ruin you. But a real friend will be more loyal than a brother._

Proverb 18:24, The Holy Bible

Zack sighed as he stumbled into Sephiroth's office with boxes of paperwork given to him from Heidegger. Muttering things about the old coot of a bear, who happen to be his boss, Heidegger, and made though the room, careful to not bump into anything since his vision were blocked by the boxes in his arms.

"Whew." He thumped the boxes down on the floor next to the large desk and looked up to find Sephiroth already deep into paperwork, one of his eyebrow rose, "Sephiroth?" He asked quietly, knowing to not be so loud if the man is working.

The silver-haired man waved his hand as he kept reading and marking the papers, "Hi to you too."

"More paperwork?"

"Not really, more of researches." Sephiroth said as he finally looked up.

"Researches?" The raven haired asked, picking a random paper and glanced on it, "oh man. What are you doing? These are on Gast's project, the Valkyries project. You took those out of the library that you were not allowed in."

"Yeah, they haven't noticed, I don't think they really care at this point." Sephiroth nodded as he pushed few papers around, searching for a particular paper and found it, "I decided to see what Gast had to say and found boxes on his work in the basement of the ShinRa building. They never bother to throw out paperwork from old staffs. Gast left behind these papers and it wasn't very hard to decipher his codes."

Zack became utterly confused as he slumped in a chair in front of Sephiroth's desk and asked, "Codes?"

Sephiroth gave a grin, "Take a look at this paper, and tell me, do you see the codes?"

Zack took the paper and studied it for a while, frowning, "Not really."

"It's so simple, any idiot can see it! Read the first line, some of the words are capitalized for no reasons; it is in his handwriting. At first I though it was a habit of his and after few letters, it formed words."

Tilting his head to read again, Zack mouthed few letters together and his eyes went wide, "Oh man! So what did you get so far?"

Sephiroth handed the paper he was working on to the other man, "Locations and names of things. He hid few things in some places relating to the Valkyries. Turns out the things are hidden here in Midgar somewhere. There are couples here in Midgar, the rest; I assume is at his old place at Icicle inn." He scrambled the papers across the desk and pulled a sheet and glanced at it. "Few other things, Gast never found are in the Tome. He even mentioned that an valuable object, I suspect a rare Materia is left with a child around the time he died."

Zack's eyes widened, "A child? Wouldn't she be an adult by now? Is there a way we can find her?" He saw Sephiroth shake his head and he shrugged, "Worth a try. So, Midgar, Tome, Library. That's one around here?" Zack asked as he pointed on the paper.

The General stood up, nodding as he paced his office, "There's over dozen of library here in Midgar."

Zack grinned, "Maybe it is already in your office." He stood up and went over to his shelf and took out a book that looked almost ancient, there were ancient writing upon the face, 'Nibelung'. "I've been noticing this book for a while. Have you read this one?"

Sephiroth had a look of bewilderment, "No. It came with the office. This office used to belong to… General Leon, for a short time. I recall now that he was a good friend of Dr. Gast!"

"It was under your nose the entire time! Maybe it was fate!" Zack grinned, nearly cracking his face in half as he handed the tome to the General. "You know, Heidegger is going to suspect that you're falling behind in your paperwork and the rest of ShinRa will find out and investigate."

Sephiroth gave a scowl, "Get out of here."

Zack laughed as he left the office, leaving the General to read his tome, perhaps catch up with his paperwork. He shook his head, after meeting Sorano, the General had become quiet obsessed with researching the Valkyries. He prayed that the General will not make connection between Cloud and Sorano, being one person. He believed it was true that there was something about Cloud's past connecting with the Valkyries.

Several days later, in the apartment, Zack hung up on the phone, scowling. Cloud looked out of her bedroom door, having heard the older man slam the phone. "What's eating you?"

Zack waved his hand, shaking his head, "something. I need to find an old desk, it had moved out of the office a while ago and they couldn't find the desk."

"Why would you need an old desk, you already got a nice one in your room under all the mess you have there." Cloud emerged from her room.

"I don't care about the desk, it just happen that desk have something that is important that I need."

"Oh. Well, there's a warehouse with old office stuff. A while ago, I was assigned to guard the warehouse. I have no idea why they would want guards for old stuffs. It's not far from here."

"Really, take me there."

"Now?"

"If you can."

"All right." Cloud went back into her room and grabbed her sneakers. "It's only a couple of blocks walk from here. I still got the card for the warehouse; they issued us the card so we'd walk around in it, to check up. I just haven't turned it in yet."

"I swear its fate…" Zack muttered as he followed the blonde out of the apartment.

They had moved into the new apartment and settled nicely. Zack had the bigger bedroom while Cloud took the smaller one, happy to have her own room. The bathroom stood in between their bedrooms and they both agreed that one of them would lock both doors when in the bathroom to avoid any conflict.

Cloud didn't speak of the incident on the night of the ball. Zack knew better to not bring up the subject until she was ready. It seemed that she wasn't ready any sooner. She had shut herself out, isolated herself most of the time. Only to come out to eat, do whatever she had to do, saying few words to Zack or anybody. She had retreated in her shell.

It irked Zack big time. He figured he would have to treat and coax Cloud out of her shell the same way he did when they first met. He hoped it would take shorter time this time around, not another whole year. He just didn't have time anymore. Their schedules had changed and it was a bit harder for them to train together like they used to. He finally understood how Sephiroth felt, being Elite demanded a lot of your time and he didn't like that.

They both walked to the warehouse in silent. As they reached to the warehouse, Cloud waved to the other guards, and they nodded, letting her pass as they recognized her. She swiped the card on the side of the door and the beep informed them that they could enter.

The warehouse was huge. It was hanger building full of stuffs lined in rows of shelves. The items were categorized and neatly packed in different sized boxes.

Cloud led him to the other end, "Here, desks." She pointed to mountains of desks before them.

"Oh crap." Zack muttered as he looked at the mountain of desks, piled high, almost halfway to the ceiling, stacked on top of each other, "That looks dangerous."

"No, I've climbed on it; none of them are wobbly, just stacked solid together."

Zack nearly whined, "Now I got to look at each desk. Man! Why couldn't they just leave it in the office!"

"Which desk are you looking for?" Cloud asked as she walked around the desks to the wall and pulled down a clipboard that was hanging there.

"Dr.Gast's old desk."

"Each desk is numbered with serial number. Dr.Gast?" Cloud flipped the paper and tapped the clipboard, "Got it, eight seven four five nine zero one zero seven three."

Zack's shoulders drooped, "Now, we would have to look for the desk with that numbers!"

Cloud laughed, "No. Look," She pointed around the corner and Zack followed around to find another pile of desks behind the first one, "Each one of them have their own clipboard and there are just about thirty desks in each. You're lucky; this one is due to be burned next week."

Zack's jaw dropped. "You're kidding me?"

"No. They burn stuffs here every week, ShinRa got so much junks that they couldn't stuff everything here." Cloud placed the clipboard back on the hook and went to the first pile of desks, glancing around under the desks for the numbers, "eight, four, seven… seven… three, ah, here it is."

Zack sighed in relief and muttered to the ceiling, "I swear… fate."

Cloud turned back to the taller man, "The desks are usually cleared out before they were stocked here…"

"Lemme at the desk," Zack stepped up to the desk and started to look around every inch, under, sides, drawers and until he flipped the pencil drawer over and grinned in victory, "Here it is."

Cloud leaned over for closer look, "What is it?" She watched Zack peel back brown plastic tape from the bottom of the drawer to reveal couple of small disks stuck to the tape.

"I am sort of on a scavenger hunt for Sephiroth. There are few things hidden around and this is the second things. I though it was going to be hard but so far, it had been very, very easy. I'm telling you, its fate that's leading us to these things."

"Oh." Cloud murmured as she followed Zack out of the hanger and back to the apartment.

Zack noticed the tone in Cloud's voice after he had mentioned Sephiroth. It didn't sound hurt or concerned, more of I-don't-care tone. It gave another notch of irkness for him, "Cloud," Zack pause a bit to let the youth catch up, "Talk to me."

Cloud turned her azure eyes to the taller man, "About what?"

"Come on, I'm your friend, something is bothering you." The blonde gave a shrug and shook her head, "All right, in your own time."

Cloud stopped, "Zack, look. I came here to get a better life. I thought I would become a doctor and that is it. But, I liked Soldiers better. It took me a lot of risk to simply stay in Soldiers, if they find out, I would be court-martialed, kicked out or whatever and I have to go back to that damn town. Just let me keep my life as it is now. I can't see Sephiroth anymore, not as Cloud or Sorano. I know you want me to become Elite, but I rather stay as Class Two."

Zack frowned as he stared down to the youth, "Court-martialed. I don't give a damn about you breaking regulation or protocol the moment I saw you dance with him the first time around. I knew it in my heart you and he are made for each other. I know the man; he would do the same for you. Do you realize, I am also breaking the regulation too, for you." He sighed, "Why didn't you want to go back to your hometown?"

Cloud looked away, studying the pavement, "I didn't have a good childhood. I was rejected, even as a male. Here, everyone is different and they have to accept each other. In my town, I am a freak; my mother said that they fear me because of who I am and they never knew that I was really an girl entire time."

"You're a normal person; I don't see what make you a freak." Zack commented, tilting his head to study the girl before him, "I mean, sure, you're smart and talented, you should be admired for that than be rejected for."

Cloud gave a small smile, "It's not that. My parents came from Midgar, here, yes. You see, I don't know exactly why, the only thing my mother ever said to me that they fear me because they fear of the Nibelung. I have no idea why would a myth scare them."

"Nibelung…" Zack whispered as he watched her walk back to the dorm. His eyes went wide, "Oh crap. You're really a Valkyrie… Sephiroth is right. I knew it!" He turned and ran across the compound to his jeep and hopped in, he flipped his cell phone and pressed speed dial.

The jeep roared in the night on the empty street, Zack cradling the phone with his shoulder as he drove, "Sephiroth! I got the disks, there are two of them. Also, I had a talk with Cloud, I found out something. I'm coming to your office." Then he hung up, pulling into the parking lot garage below the ShinRa building.

He ran in, brandishing his card to the security, not even pausing for them and made his way up to Sephiroth's office.

"Zack, that was quick." The General looked up from his desk; he was already deep in new piles of papers, couple of boxes empty beside his desk. "What is it?"

"Here are the disks," The raven-haired man handed the small disks to his friend and sat down in the chair, "Cloud told me something tonight, as a friend. I mean, a friend. He has some secret that could have him court-martialed. I am telling you as a friend, off duty, just don't drill him."

Sephiroth frowned and nodded, "Get on with it."

"Anyway, he said his hometown consider him a freak for some reason, and all he know that it had to do with the Nibelung mythology. He acted like it was a stupid thing." Zack realized he was giving Sephiroth a huge hint to connect Cloud and Sorano together to Sephiroth and at the moment, he doesn't care.

"Nibelung, he said that?"

"Yes."

"Hm, it is a mythology but I am starting to think it is not. All right, I have to catch up with my work; we'll go over the disks later. Go, get out and get some rest, we have a mission in couple of days. Don't worry, I'll leave Cloud alone. I have a feeling you know what his secret is and you could be also court-martialed too."

"Yes. Thank you and good night." Zack stood up and gave a sloppy salute.

Sephiroth and Zack went on their mission trip, which lasted about a week long and they weren't too happy about it. They had returned back to Midgar and went back to their work, the workload had doubled and they just almost didn't have any time to do any more research, to find out what was on the disks, or find the last items that wasn't in Midgar. They were just too busy.

After two more weeks, things started to settle again, back in their usual routine and they just simply wanted to use their free time to relax, not even bothering to go back to Sephiroth's Valkyries research as he called it. He had hidden the tome, the disks and his reports in Zack's apartment, under his bed.

The project was almost forgotten since Zack wasn't a neat and organized person; his room looked something like a junkyard cross with a pig-sty. He was just lucky it was only his room that was a mess because Cloud kept the rest of the apartment clean.

It was just another day of routine; Zack came home late at night, dropping his duffel bag on the floor by the door, took off his boots and set it in a box on the other side of the door for shoes. Shoes were simply not allowed to tread across the carpets, Cloud's rule.

He headed to his room and searched around for clean clothes and found a pair of boxer and sweat pants and headed to shower. Habit had set deep in any Soldiers; they shower quickly, no matter if they had the leisure to remain long. It was under four minutes that Zack had cleaned, dried, dressed and combed his long tress into a plait and he stood in the doorway to the blonde's room, watching the other occupant read and write reports at the same time.

Zack mused as he simply stood there, as he always does, just watching. He had grown fond of the youth, felt responsible to take care of her. He felt a strong bond between them, like a sibling bond. Much the same kind of bond he has with Sephiroth. He knew the General was starting to feel strongly for her, over the trip they had taken, Sephiroth had been having dreams, calling out to her, saying her name. He knew Sephiroth was desperate and upset about what had happened between him and her. He had questioned the General and the silver-haired denied and Zack just left it alone, to leave it for another time to deal with.

Cloud had declined to train with Zack in the last three weeks, burying in the last of her school work, trying to complete her master degree and preparing for the final exams. She even declined to go to the dining hall lately. Reno and the others had been asking about her, having not seen her in a while. Reno was disappointed to not be able to study his favorite subject.

Zack knew Cloud had withdrawn herself totally from the society and was almost shutting him out as well. They had talked much less since that night at the warehouse. Cloud was keeping herself busy to avoid any more encounters with Sephiroth or the situation at all.

He recalled that night of the ball, he had come home and found Cloud in bed, her gown folded and neatly put away, hidden on the bottom of the trunk, out of sight, to be forgotten. Cloud wasn't asleep but staring at the wall. He had tried to talk to her but was given cold shoulder. Ever since, the cerulean eyes grew darker each day, the color almost resembled navy blue now. He knew it was serious since the eyes usually showed emotions. With Cloud, the shades shifts like mood stone.

Sephiroth wasn't much better either. He had plunged into his work so deeply. He just almost didn't have time for anything. Zack could tell that the General was beating himself with remorse. Even he was avoiding the subject on Cloud lately.

Frowning, he quietly murmured to himself, "That's it. This has gone too far…" He pushed himself off the doorframe and entered the room, "Hey Cloud."

The blonde raised her hand to acknowledge the officer's presence and kept on working.

"Not going to say a word yet?" Zack asked, his tone lacked any humors.

"So?" Cloud raised her head finally and glared, "I'm busy."

"It's late." Zack sat down on the bed, his arms hanging limp on his knees, "We haven't spar lately. Want to for a bit, we can do it on the grass outside." He grabbed the bokken that was leaning against the desk and inspecting it, "Collecting dust. Don't want you to get rusty." He softly said.

The blond head shook, "No, thank you."

"Come on! It had been a few weeks since we sparred. I miss our time together."

Cloud stood up suddenly and gathered few books quickly. "Sorry, have to return the books back to the library tonight."

The raven haired man mentally counted to ten, trying to control his suppressed anger. Then, he opened his eyes to find her gone from the room, he exhaled deeply and his eyes fell upon the desk, it was the tome. "Oh crap." He stood and picked up the tome on the desk, he flipped the pages until he came to a bookmarked one, a slip of Class Four identification card, it was Cloud's.

"She found the book. That's why she is like this." Zack said to no one in the room and read the part where it was bookmarked, it was on the legend of the prophecy, stating that a Nibelung child would be born and appear in the town, promising the destruction to atone the town's sin. He frowned, "Destruction of Nibelheim?" He asked and read the next page to find verses of songs.

"Seraphim, seraphim…" He whispered as he read it and something clicked, it was the song that Cloud had hummed so often. It was in the same tune to the verses. He slammed the book shut and quickly went into his room and dove to the floor to pull out the box he had hidden there; he took out the other things and shoved it in an empty duffel bag with the tome. It was time to confront and put the matter to order, he doesn't care if it would take for him to be court-martialed, and it was his friends that mattered the most to him.

He went back into the bathroom and pawed at his dirty pants to find his cell phone; he found it and flipped it open, speed-dialing and listening, waiting.

Four rings later and the voice answered, "What is it, Zack?"

He sighed, "Sephiroth! Cloud found the tome; he read nearly all of it. He's at the library, find him and bring him back here! He's withdrawing, cold to everyone and I have a feeling that he knows something and it doesn't look good. We got to solve this right now before it gets out of hand. I'll tell you this; Cloud is part of the legacy in the tome."

"All right, I will go and find him and talk to him."

"You do that now!"

Sephiroth sounded like he rolled his eyes on the other end, "All right, which library?"

"The campus one."

"Thanks." And a click sounded as the line went dead.

Zack returned to his room and flopped down on the bed, closing his eyes for some shut eyes, the cell phone still in his hand.

Sephiroth stood from his desk and clicked his computer off. He had nearly finished all of the paperwork, only the small pile was left. He glanced to the clock on the wall, its glowing green digital number shone in the dim room, it was late.

The library was going to close pretty soon. He grabbed his Masamune and headed out of the office.

The jeep went slow on the road as Sephiroth's mind wandered to the tome; he had read the entire tome several times over. It appeared simply as a tome on mythology but he could tell there were hints in the book. Hints of what would come in the future. There were some part he could understand; the first one would be the destruction of the little town of Nibelheim. He knew in the history, the town had not been destroyed, so it had yet to come.

The other part that baffled him, there are two more Nibelung children around the time of Nibelheim's destruction. They both will witness it and go though some kind of suffering. According to the tome, one would be male and another would be female, they both would rule the planet, becoming the foretold legendary King and Queen.

How can they take rule of the planet when everyone already had governments and rulers? And the world were divided, there was just no way everyone would unite in peace the way things are. The Wutai and ShinRa are enemies and it would take much more to bring peace between the two of them. He just couldn't understand, the way the world was now, it's just impossible.

His jeep came to stop at the parking lot on the campus and he got out, strolling across the lawn, making short cut to the library, he could see the lights still on. As he arrived, the woman inside had already turned out the lights and was preparing to lock the door.

"I am looking for someone; I was told he was here. Cloud Strife."

The woman gasped and looked up to the General, shocked that he would speak to her, "Oh, uhm, he was here, he dropped off the books and he left this way not too long ago, I believe." She pointed to her right.

Sephiroth nodded his thank and went into the direction she pointed, noticing it didn't lead back to the apartment. It leads back to the ShinRa building which was couple miles away. Why would Cloud go there? Every other building that lay in between the ShinRa and the Library was closed and locked. He assumed he might take a walk around the campus, he might as well search for him on foot, and he couldn't be far.

Cloud gave the librarian a smile as she gave her the books and bid her a farewell. As she stepped out in the cool night, she looked up to the moonless sky, wondering what she should do, she just didn't want to go back to the apartment and face Zack just yet. She knew he would wait for her and start drilling her once she returned.

Deciding to take a long path around the campus, heading toward the ShinRa building a couple miles away, the path were like a maze, with buildings in between and back. It was a large campus, since it was combined with the fort for ShinRa Army training ground.

She headed that way and strolled, glancing around, dim light provided by the street lights glowing oddly yellowish green, it was Mako powered light. The light illuminated the street softly with shadows lurking in every corner and crevices.

Unknown to the stalkers behind her, she kept going, deciding to take turn though a narrow path between buildings. She passed a dark alley and gave a small yelp as rough hand clamped over her mouth and roughly pulled her back into the dark alley. It was so dark but she could tell there were five of them. The light was very little, providing from the top of the building five stories high.

She was being held tightly against a taller person, her arms pinned behind her back painfully and a large hand over her mouth.

"Well, well, isn't that little Cloudy, far from home, alone and unguarded?" Cloud recognized the voice, belonging to the thug who gave her hard time in her hometown and during the last few years at the Academy. They were always looking for opportunities to pick on her and each time, it always seemed Zack, Reno or Rude would be there to rescue her, unintentionally or intentionally.

"Now, there is no one to come and save your little arse. What is with you and those Turks and Class One?" The thug spat and moved around, the light shone, revealing his face.

Cloud, with training of Class Two and One, she kept very still, she so much desired to whimper but decided against it. It hurts every time his captor would twist her arms higher against her back.

"Little twerp…" The leader chided and gave a blow to her stomach. Cloud buckled and winced as her shoulders joints gave sharp pang along with her stomach.

Cloud found herself pushed roughly to the ground, five of the thugs surrounding her. Her knees and hands had scraped against the pavement, tearing the skins off. Trying to scamper away but a sudden blow to her ribs from a boot halted her. She felt the ribs crack. Then blows of kicking and punching fell upon her, she winced and squeezed her eyes close, trying to coil back but it was so painful upon each blow.

"He hasn't cried." One of the thugs told the leader.

"Idiot, he was trained not to. More fun for us!" He chuckled and grabbed the blond spike, pulling Cloud up on her knees. "Finally, you come around alone and we get our payback."

Cloud's eyes glazed over in pain. Her breath came in ragged and she realized her lungs had been pierced by her broken ribs. She knew she couldn't stand because her leg bones had fractures. She wondered idly how a person could get broken bones so fast in few minutes. Those thugs must have been powered up and she looked up to the leader and saw that they were Mako powered, how could she forget! Those green tinted eyes, a sure sign they were injected with Mako recently, it was so faint but their strength had been multiplied several times over. It was side effect that usually happened after the injections and usually slowly wears off over the time until the next injection.

Punches and kicks rained upon her body as she struggled to not cry out. She was being tossed around like a rag doll, without control, they were too fast, too harsh and too strong. She did what she learned, let it on and shut the mental pain out, wait until it is over and remerge mentally.

The leader, he knew was a fancier of the girl back in their hometown, Tifa Lockhart, the girl who gotten hurt when they were younger and the blame fell on Cloud. Two of the thugs were a brother and a cousin of the girl.

Cloud recalled she only wanted to be a friend with this girl because she was the only one who was friendly to her. When she got hurt, it was all an accident, Cloud had been there to witness the old bridge snap to send the girl to the canyon below. But the boys had blamed Cloud for cutting the bridge loose.

Sephiroth walked alongside the building and paused, glancing around, trying to decide if Cloud had taken a turn or not. It was a maze around here and almost impossible to find the kid. His eyes fell upon the tall ShinRa building before him; it loomed over the wall of the campus ground in the center of Midgar. It looked foreboding just standing under the massive plate that blocked the sun and the moon out for the city.

He could see the large balcony that rested on the low level of the building. He recalled that night, memories stirred. He shook his head, feeling regret rising up in his chest, making it tighten. He kept going straight, unsure where he was heading.

The tossing and beating had stopped. Cloud lay on the ground, struggling to breathe as she moved her hands to her chest. It was a miracle that her arms didn't break at all. Perhaps a finger or two, she just didn't care, she just wanted this to be over with.

"Hey, why don't we have fun with him?" One of the guys suggested with a sick grin.

The leader smirked and swept his hand in arch as if he were welcoming the idea. "Maybe he is good as his pretty face is." He leaned down and gripped Cloud's jaw harshly.

Cloud, after hearing the two, something snapped inside her and she opened her mouth to scream. The two thugs grabbed him, holding onto her pants, ready to pull or rip them off. A bloodcurdling scream ripped from her throat and suddenly died as she passed out, going limp.

Sephiroth stopped as he heard the voices down the narrow walk between the buildings; he knew there was an alley just right in the center off to the right. Something was going on, something or someone was being beaten up.

His chest tightened once again as he gripped his Masamune, preparing to draw it. Suddenly a scream rang, sending cold chill down his spine. He ran to the alley, his sword drawn, its metal shone in the faint light.

Arriving into the alley, he saw several Soldiers huddled around someone, "Hey!" A hint of spiked blond head lay on the ground and his heart skipped a beat.

The largest of the five looked up and shouted, "Let's scam! It's the General!"

Sephiroth didn't stop them; he let them pass him by. He knew he would get their names and ranks later and have them suspended. He sheathed his sword back and crouched to the person on the ground, he hoped it wasn't Cloud.

As he picked the person gently, surprised to find the person so light, he saw the face, scraped and bruised, the face of Cloud and Sorano blurred together, confusing him for a moment. "Oh, Cloud!" he whispered as he picked her up in his arms, cradling her close.

Exiting the alley, he glanced around, wondering where to go and his condo was the only thing that he could think of. He quickly made his way though the maze of the buildings, making shortcuts as he crossed the grass and entered his apartment building.

He got on the elevator and pressed his floor number, the top. He was the only one who lived on the top, his entire condo was the size of the building, and hence he owned the entire floor. The button on the elevator was specialized to recognize his fingerprints, granting him access to the condo.

Zack had woken up and realized he should go out and search for Cloud in case Sephiroth couldn't find her. He slipped his sneakers on and stepped out into the hallway and headed to the elevator. Pressing the down button, he waited, whistling as he fiddled with the phone in his pocket. He watched the number blink on the top of the elevator, indicating which floor it was on. It was on the top floor.

"Huh… That's Sephiroth's floor." And he suddenly realized Sephiroth was home. Ditching the idea to go out and find Cloud, he jumped into the elevator as it opened and swiped his card on the screen above the buttons and pressed the top floor number.

Sephiroth had entered his condo and pushed the bedroom door open with his feet and placed Cloud down on his massive bed. He pulled his gloves off quickly as he could and felt for a pulse. It came and went, Cloud's lifeline was degenerating.

Fumbling with his sword, he popped out a Cure two Materia and whispered to start weaving the spell, hoping hard to recover the blonde. Greenish glow surrounded the two.

He didn't hear Zack enter his condo as he held the small stone in his hand and another on Cloud's chest, his eyes were closed as he murmured the spell over and over, trying to heal Cloud's broken body.

Zack had entered the condo, finding the door open and lights still off. Something was wrong, and he knew that. He went to the bedroom and found Sephiroth kneeling on the side of his bed, trying to heal the person in his bed. He gasped as he realized it was Cloud.

The spell subdued and the room went dark again. Sephiroth sighed in relief as he felt strong heartbeat thrummed against his hand. The Materia stone rolled out of his hand and he slumped back on his heels.

"Sephiroth…" Zack whispered from the door.

The General looked up and reached to the lamp on the nightstand, switching it on. "I found him in the alley, he was being beaten up."

Zack swallowed hard as he joined his friend on the floor beside the bed. "No…" His violet eyes took in Cloud on the bed, her clothes torn and scraped, bloodied.

Sephiroth took the small hand into his large one, "I am going to make those who did this pay…" He swore under his breath. "They nearly killed him." He shifted and moved to take the shirt off, seeing it was ripped beyond semblance of a shirt.

Zack reached out to stop, "Wait…" But Sephiroth had already ripped the shirt open.

Sephiroth saw Cloud's chest bandaged, binding her chest. "What's this?" He took the black and blue torn up shirt, wet with blood away and tossed it aside in the trash can nearby. He looked up to Zack who looked resigned, sitting back with his hands on his lap. "You know something…" He looked back to Cloud and begins to pull the boots off and slipped the stocks off. He saw Cloud's feet, small and dainty, not something you'd find on a male.

Zack sighed, "Cloud is…" He stopped as Sephiroth held his hand up. He watched as the General moved to slip the pants off which was also ripped to shred as well. Cloud then laid there on the bed, her body stripped bare except for the white bandage covering her chest and the panty.

Sephiroth stood up staring at Cloud, then to Zack. "I see… Cloud is Sorano."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	8. S1:8: Revelation

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Eight: Revelation

_Then the Lord God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone; I will make him a helper suitable for him"_

Genesis 2:18, The Holy Bible

_Zack sighed, "Cloud is…" He stopped as Sephiroth held his hand up. He watched as the General moved to slip the pants off which was also ripped to shred as well. Cloud then laid there on the bed, her body stripped bare except for the white bandage covering her chest and the panty. _

_Sephiroth stood up staring at Cloud, then to Zack. "I see… Cloud is Sorano."_

Sephiroth glared at Zack, "Or am I wrong? What trickery is this?"

Zack tried his hardest to not show fear; he knew he was literally knee-knocking on the inside, for he had never seen anger on Sephiroth's face directed toward him. "Cloud and Sorano is one and same." He replied with soft tone.

Sephiroth turned to gaze at Cloud lying on his bed, sleeping deeply and peacefully, healing as well. He couldn't believe what had happened and all the things that had transpired in the past two years were falling into place, making total sense to him. "Is it fate?" He asked, "The day I learn of him… her, the progress she made in academic, and her advancement in Soldiers… the Nibel Fighting Stance… Valkyries… I thought Cloud Strife was the Valkyries son that was foretold in the tome, but she is not, rather she is the last daughter."

Zack looked up in surprise, "The last one?" He stood up from where he had knelt before. "I found out of her secret couple weeks before the Ball. I gave her a choice to confess before anyone else finds out." He looked away, in shame. "I also told her that if she had told me, I would protect her from any punishment she would receive from the government… I am aware that I am also putting myself at risk. But after I saw you two at the ball, I didn't care anymore, I made it to my mission to bring you two together."

Sephiroth frowned, turning to Zack. "Why would you do that? You know I do not have time for anyone, the ShinRa owns me."

Zack shrugged as he turned to the door, "I don't know. I believe from the depth of my heart, you two deserve each other." He closed his eyes and bowed his head, "I kind of figured out that she is the Valkyries. But it never occurs to me that she is the last one, the last daughter in the tome… She knew the whole time… she doesn't want to go back to Nibelheim..."

It dawned upon Sephiroth and he glanced back to Cloud, "The destruction of the town… damn."

"You said it, big guy." Zack murmured.

"Think she is?" Sephiroth asked with doubt.

"Got to be. Uhm, I gotta get her clothes… you… do whatever you have to do, man. Be back!" The raven haired man quickly exited the room, leaving the bewildered General alone with sleeping Cloud.

"Right…" Sephiroth murmured and went to his dresser, searching around for something to dress Cloud in. He found a shirt and went into the bathroom to grab wet and dry towelettes. He returned and knelt before the bed and stared at her, his breath shaky.

"Who would think…" He exhaled a deep breath and started to cut the bandage, removing it from Cloud's body, revealing her feminine body, her small but perfect buxom chest staring up at him. He shook his head as he went on to work cleaning her skin of the dirt, grimes and blood, careful to not tread into forbidden territory. Then he finally dressed her in his shirt and laid her under the cover of his bed, leaving her to sleep. He found that he liked how she looked in his shirt.

As he entered the living room, Zack had returned, grinning with stack of clothes in his hands, "Got her cleaned up?"

Sephiroth gave him a scathing glare, "Mind out of the gutter. I have better honor than that." He grabbed the clothes and placed it in the bedroom on the nightstand and returned to the living room.

"Dang… what are we gonna do?" Zack mumbled as he plopped down on the couch, his legs spread out before him.

Sephiroth nodded as he quietly took his armor and jacket off. "Nibelung, Valkyries… I am positive she is the last one."

Zack stood up and started to pace around the room, muttering curses under his breath.

Sephiroth sat down in his comfortable chair, rubbing his temples, "Zack… shut up and sit down!" He growled as he felt irritation coming on.

Zack stopped his muttering and sat down, "Reno was the only one who was almost on target about her. I mean, she always dress in the bathroom, shower alone, her taste of books she read and oh yes, chocolate fetish. I had to stop him from finding out."

The General gave him a puzzling look, "Chocolate fetish?"

The other man shrugged, "Each month, for a week, she'd go out and get chocolate every day. Hid them in a box that looks like a book. I never knew until recently."

"How did you find this out?"

"Reno, his psychology project, he chose Cloud. No, he put down anonymous." Zack started to laugh, softly, careful to not wake Cloud in the next room, "Women and their time of the month. She's always snappy during the time." He turned to Sephiroth and wagged his finger at him, "It's a no wonder why she would let you kiss her…"

"She was willing. Until she ran away."

"No, anyone would be willing to let you kiss them."

Sephiroth gave him a disgusted look, "Even you?"

Zack shrugged his shoulders, "Only if you are a good kisser. Hell no!" He saw the General grin as he stood up and went to his desk on the other side of the living room. "Watcha doing?"

"Pulling up files on Cloud. I wonder how anyone could overlook her gender."

"We've done that thousands of times."

"I know. There is something we overlooked." Sephiroth pointed to the screen as Zack came over and peered over his shoulder, "There. Medical files, there's no report."

"Hey, her birthday is three months after enrollment. I remember that day; she said that she turned fifteen. I didn't even think of that, she lied her age to get in early."

Sephiroth gave a rueful grin and clicked on few more links, "Medical files never reported she ever went in for required check ups. They never bothered either. It was odd to me that she was the only class two that did not receive any Mako treatment. Now I understand. The protocol with the clinic and doctors are rather lousy here."

"I remember that too. She told me she was afraid of needles."

"Hey, even I am afraid of needles." Sephiroth admitted and Zack chuckled. "Shut up."

They both glanced over to the door, noticing the girl tossing and turning in her sleep, obvious she was in a nightmare.

"Let's get some sleep." Sephiroth stood up and walked across the other side of the condo and opened the door next to the bar that separated the kitchen.

"You're welcome to stay and sleep on the couch. I'm taking the guest room."

"Sure. See you in the morning." Zack stretched and went over to the couch, giving a long yawn and plopped down on the couch.

The General turned back around, "Do you like her?"

Zack propped himself on his elbows to get a better look at his friend, "What do you mean? Like, like her?" He saw his friend nod, "I told you, I think of her as my little sister, nothing more. Do you like her?"

The memory of the night of the ball came back in his mind; Sephiroth gazed to the window, not seeing anything but. "It's not confusing anymore. It's real clear that I do have interest in her. I do not have experience with women, she's the first."

Zack gave a soft smile, "and I hope the last." With that his head fell back down and he closed his eyes.

Sephiroth shook his head and murmured to himself, "But there is issue about the last son as well. She is betrothed to him… whoever he is." He then retreated into the guest room. It was a large bedroom with simple bed, dresser and night stands, nothing much. No decoration or anything. He just never though he would ever use this bedroom and this just happened to be the first time he would ever use this room.

He slipped into the bed, pulling the sheet over his bare torso and rested his head on his arms, "Yeah, I think I am in love…" He whispered to no one and closed his eyes to let rest overtake him.

Morning rose and the sunlight streamed its golden ray into the condo, Zack still remained asleep, his body spread all over the couch, looking every bit uncomfortable but he was snoring lightly.

As an early riser, Sephiroth was already up, dressed in a simple black slack and graying silver shirt with buttons, he left the two on the top undone. He stood before the computer, a hot mug of coffee in his hand. He had left the computer on, Cloud profile still showed on the screen.

Her head shot image took half of the screen, he studied her profile; her smooth pale skin that was hinted sun kissed, wild golden blond hair that defied gravity. Her eyes shone brilliant sapphire coloring, with depth of innocents.

Realizing, as he stared, she had a type of beauty that attracted him as she had done so the first night he met her. "Does it like akin to loving?" He asked himself as he sipped his coffee, wondering if his likeness to her blue eyes meant that he loved her blue eyes. He remembered how he had been attracted to the innocent that shone in the orbs and how there were sorrow that underlined beneath the innocent.

Not one to experience emotions, a small pang of sadness swelled and he made a silent vow to himself from the depth of his heart, he would remove the sorrowfulness from her innocent and make her truly happy, only if she let him.

Turning of his computer, he went to the kitchen and started to make breakfast. The hour wore on as Zack still slept and he finished with cooking breakfast, he set out plates on the countertop, full of sausages, bacons, eggs, flapjacks and cups of juices and milk. He set one aside for Cloud on a tray and went about cleaning up the kitchen.

When he was finished, he stood by the sink, sighing, wondering when his friend would ever wake up. He complemented different plans of how to wake the raven haired… a smirk grew on his lip as he drank his coffee. Flip him off the couch or yank him over the side by the feet…

He glanced to the bedroom door and saw the blonde tossing slightly, her face contorted in grimace. Nightmare seemed to be horrible and he couldn't blame her because of what had happened the night before. The only way she could get out of it was to get though it and wake herself up.

Returning to plan to wake Zack up, he mused until a loud piercing scream rang though the condo. He stiffened, his hand gripped the mug and it cracked, spilling hot liquid on his hand. He saw from the corner of his eye that Zack had jumped several feet in the air from the couch with a yelp and landed hard on his back, touchdown to the ground.

"Oh…" Zack muttered as the screaming stop.

Sephiroth turned his head to see Cloud sitting upright, her eyes open and pale, glazed over. Then she went back to sleep, falling back down on the mattress, her eyes closing. He made his way over to the room and checked, finding her sleeping peacefully. At least the nightmare appeared to be over. Sighing, he closed the bedroom door and returned to the kitchen to clean up the mess he made by the sink.

Zack mumbled as he lay on the floor rubbing his face. Deciding it was time to get up; he pushed himself up and cursed as his head hit the coffee table there. "If she screams like that one more time, I'd have a coronary attack." He stood rubbing his head as he glared holes into the table.

The General smiled slightly, remembering stories of Cloud in her dormitory days with Zack, the cracked mirror in the bathroom. "She's fine for now… She might wake up soon. Breakfast," he gestured to the plates on the counter and Zack had came over, already setting himself on the bar stool.

"Are you sure you're not a chef?" Zack murmured as he wolfed down his breakfast while Sephiroth went a slower pace. "You're a damn good cook."

Feeling like they were being watched, the General turned his head to find the door ajar with blue eyes peeking at them. They locked gaze for few seconds and the door closed once again.

She was awake.

He shook his head slightly and finished the last of his breakfast and rose to bring breakfast to her. He took the tray and made his way to the bedroom.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud rolled over and buried her head into the pillow, taking a deep breath and woke up. Confused as she sat up in the bed, finding herself in a king sized bed with white and gray sheets. Realizing she was in an unfamiliar room, she glanced around and found herself in a massive bedroom.

She inhaled, smelling the scent of gentle ocean breeze that lingered in the air and saw a small object that puffed the scent on the nightstand and rolled her eyes. Studying the room, she found it was discreetly decorated; the only thing that decorated the pale slate blue wall was a huge sword holder above the bed.

The bed was in the middle of the room with two nightstands on each end, the long dresser stood on the wall across from the bed. A door was just couple feet away from the dresser; she assumed that led to the other room of the place she is in.

She gasped as she found the bin next to the nightstand, white bandage, bloodied along with dark blue rag that looked like her shirt and navy slack. She reached up and felt her chest, realizing she was free from the bandage. She stood and saw she was in a different shirt, a male buttoned up shirt that fell down to her knee.

A tall black boots stood between the dresser and the door. It was so tall that it almost reached to her waist as she had gotten up and reached to the door. Tall boots and oversized shirt, bland massive bedroom, she figured it all belong to a tall male, and there was only one person that could fit the description, she opened the door a bit and peeked though, confirming her theory.

She was in Sephiroth's condo. She watched the said man and Zack eating at the countertop that divided the kitchen from the living room.

Her eyes locked with the green eyes, staring at each other for few moments before she drew back and closed the door. Turning around, she caught sight of the bin once again and realized it was her torn up clothes. Her chest clenched as she returned to the bed, realizing her nightmare was real.

Like tidal wave, emotions swept though her and she broke down on the bed, crying silently, shaking. She knew she was done for, the entire ShinRa knew of her secret, feeling as if her whole future had tossed out of the window. She sniffed, rubbing her face and stared at her knees. The General knew, he was going to have her court-martialed and Zack, oh, her only friend, he was involved as well.

Feeling remorse, she hugged her knees to her chest, tears streaming down her face. How can she return home to Nibelheim, shunned as the people would find out that she was a deceiver and a failure?

As Sephiroth headed to the door, Zack had bounded out of his chair and beat him to the door, opening it for him. They both entered to find her in bed, awake, her face wet and her eyes puffy. Zack quietly dragged a chair from the corner to set it near the bed and sat down in it. He rested his arms on his knees, hands clasped in between.

The General set the tray down next to Cloud and sat on the corner of the bed, feeling it was the only place he would sit and make her feel comfortable with the distance.

She took the tray and set it on her crossed legs and started to eat slowly, picking at the food first. Once she had the taste of the food in her mouth, she begun to eat at hungry man's rate.

The men watched her eat at a starved man rate. They waited until she was finished, drowning the last of the orange juice and the milk. Sephiroth took the tray and placed it on the dresser. He knew it was a natural process for a person who had gone though a hard ordeal to be hungry, with Cloud's case after nearly dying and being cured with the Materia several times over, she was bound to be very hungry. It showed signs that she is willing to fight and move on.

Zack broke the silent, "I suppose you want to know how you got here?" She looked up to him with blank look then went back to staring at her feet with her knees drawn up to her chin. He took it as a yes and continued, "I send him out to look for you last night after you left. I asked him to find you and bring you back; we all needed to talk about something..." Zack glanced to his friend, "I didn't tell him, he found out."

She looked up to the General, finding not a cold mask on his face but a genuine softness and concern. He nodded slightly. Tilting her head down, letting her unruly bang cover here eyes.

"He found you in the alleyway, unconscious…" Zack saw her flinched slightly, "Almost dead. He brought you back here and used Cure two on you several times until you were able to hold on your own." He bowed his head, sighing deeply, "He went to remove your clothes to clean you, I tried to stop him but he wouldn't let me. He was surprised..." He looked up to find her staring at him, pale and shaking, her eyes wet with tears.

"If this would make you feel any better, we will keep it between the three of us." Cloud turned to the General, shocked as he said. Tears suddenly spilled from her eyes and she quietly sniffed. Sephiroth felt at loss of what to do and glanced to Zack for help. "I don't think the issue of having you and Zack expelled is the matter, it's much more and I'm also kind of involved. It's going to stay between three of us until we decide what to do later."

Zack gestured to him to hold her. He moved slowly, waiting for Cloud's rejection and got none and took the petite woman into his arms, setting her on his lap, she clutched onto him like a lifeline and cried into his shirt.

The raven haired man smiled as he stood up and left the room quietly, leaving the two alone, "I have errands to do today, will you be okay here?"

Sephiroth felt her nod in his shirt and he nodded in reply. Zack left.

"You're safe now, I promise that." Sephiroth murmured into Cloud's hair as he leaned his head on hers. He was surprised to find her gravity defying hair soft without any use to hold it up. He relished in the feel of holding the woman in his arms, feeling the new feeling for the first time ever, he realized it was the feeling of compassion, the desire to protect and give security. He had thought he would never see her again and here she was, in his arms, holding on to him like he was the only lifeline for her.

She had quieted down and stayed in his arms, feeling safe and warm for the first time in long time. She felt that she could trust this man and Zack more now, now that they knew of her secret and didn't reject her. She felt as if the burden of the world was taken off her shoulder.

He felt her relax in his arms and said, "You can talk to me…" He rubbed her shoulders, trying to ease her slight shaking.

Her blue eyes, ever so clear like the sky with the depth of the sapphire met with his greens, "Thank you…" She whispered and rested her head on his shoulder, relaxing.

Sephiroth sighed and looked down to his shirt, ruined with tearstain and wrinkles but he didn't care. He felt it was worth the sacrifice to get to hold her and comfort her. He marveled how she felt in his arms, so small and delicate, so different from the Cloud he knew. He knew this person is a strong and stubborn with the softness and innocent masked. He already regretted losing every chance to meet with her before the ball as Zack had arranged. He figured the result would have been the same as the night of the ball.

He stared at her, her blue eyes were already so addicting, feeling drawn and connected to her already. He knew he would see more of the blue eyes close and personal more often.

"I am sorry…" She started softly as she detached herself from him.

He let her go, confused at her words, "Why are you sorry about?"

Her chocobo blond hair shook, "I don't know. I've always hid my gender for almost all of my life…"

"Can you tell me about it?" Sephiroth asked as he moved and leaned against the headboard of his bed, Cloud climbed to sit close to him, nesting herself on his side, resting her head on his chest, feeling very secure to be close to him. He smiled softly at the action and rubbed her back.

"I think it was when I was around three years old, I heard my father arguing with my mother. He wanted a son, but my mother couldn't have any more children. She cried about it, saying something about being in her family that the women can't have more than one child and only bore daughter, my father did not understand."

"From that day on, I tried to be a son that my father never had. He died shortly after, in a freak accident in a Mako Reactor somewhere, I am pretty sure now it was Gongaga, since it was the only Reactor that got destroyed. My mother and I moved to Nibelheim, everyone though I was a boy and my mother wanted me to remain that way, she said that the people feared us, one was enough, and they didn't need another one."

Sephiroth nodded, "Yeah, it is in a way. You would have been treated off worse if they knew you were a girl, because of the Nibelung Valkyries." He felt Cloud nodding in agreement, "You know about that too…"

"Sorry, I got into Zack's things and found the book on it. The tome belonged to my people. My mother told me about it and it was lost to us for a little bit over a century."

"It's all right, I asked Zack to hold onto the things, I am researching on the Valkyries on my off time, mainly because I think you have something to do with them."

Cloud pushed herself away to look at him, "Yes. I am a Valkyries. Even my mother never told me, she had eluded the truth from me for a long time. She had told me little bit but after reading the tome, I know why she didn't tell me the whole truth. I am the last one."

Sephiroth smiled, "That is the answer I've been looking for to prove my theory." He took hold of her shoulders and gripped her in a bear hug, "You are really a Valkyrie. It's real..."

Cloud blinked as she was released from the hug and watched Sephiroth leave the bedroom and return with the tome in his hand, "Do you know the myth of the Valkyries?"

The blond shook her head, "Not really, mother never really tells me anything. The tome wasn't clear enough."

"She probably was waiting for the right time. I suppose it is the right time now," Sephiroth said as he settled back on the bed again, the book in his hand, open. "According to the myth, the Valkyries is old as the planet…"

"_In ancient time, when Gaia felt she needed to have children, she and Ouranos gave birth to a daughter, Megamiki. She became the first Valkyrie and from there Gaia had many more daughters, unlike Megamiki, mortal daughters, creating the first race, the Valkyries. Then, she created giant protectors that lived deep in the earth, ice and water, to protect her daughter and her sisters. They were very special and Gaia kept them hidden and protected. _

_The first people came to Gaia, the race of Cetera. Gaia found them to be kind and loving people and allowed them to live on her planet. The Cetera had a special relationship with Gaia, they had the ability to call forth the power when needed and they never abused such ability. The ability was of different elements and they used them to create their environment upon Gaea._

_The Valkyries was unknown to the Cetera because they remained in the Nibel Mountain, protecting the planet with their own power, only venturing forth when they were needed. _

_The Valkyries women were beautiful and desirable, much like the first daughter, Megamiki, however they were not immortal. It was the order of Mother Gaia that they would reproduce with the Cetera, to bind and create the people of Gaea, to keep the race thriving._

_They appeared unique, with blond hair, pale skin and blue eyes, different from the others. They could only produce a child each if they would mate. The daughters born of them would appear like their mothers, with added element from their fathers, strength and intelligent improved than the first. It would be so for generations, each stronger than the last._

_When the Cetera started to disappear, the Valkyries decided to investigate, few left their home in the mountain. The Cetera started to dwindle in numbers and the Valkyries who went never returned, they decided to send few more. It wasn't until the third time they discovered an alien specie had been responsible for their disappearance._

_This specie was a loner, specially a soul that traveled on a falling star, a meteorite; it had called itself the Calamity of the Sky. It was looking for a host, a body, it attacked the Cetera one by one however the body of the Cetera couldn't withstand the foreign soul, dying quickly and it had to attack another until it found a body that could withstand it. _

_It was Megamiki's daughter, Jenova who went out and discovered. She came upon the city of the Cetera and found the aftermath of a massacre. Only one lived, wounded. Jenova tried to comfort a dying woman, trying to find out why the Cetera were dying off. As the woman touched her arm, the soul took housing in her body, biding its time. _

_It wasn't long when it took her mind, thus destroying the rest of the Cetera that inhabited the rest of the planet, saying that she had to clean the planet for her people and allow only the Valkyries and the humans to flourish on the planet, preparing them for the harvest._

_However, once she returned to the Nibel Mountain, the Valkyries suspected something were wrong. They tried to interrogate her but she denied at first then they tried again, she threw in rage and lashed out on them, killing nearly all of them. Few escaped from the Mountain._

_She was the only one left in the mountain, alone. She didn't care as she waited and bided her time. _

_The Valkyries came back, with the Sons of Valkyries. They wanted to kill Jenova, and take back their home. However, Jenova put up with a fight, the rest of the Valkyries were either killed or wounded badly. It wasn't until Alexander the Judge, her own twin brother beheaded Jenova from behind. _

_The Sons of Valkyries took her body and hid it elsewhere, her head was hidden deep in the Nibel Mountain, unsure what to do with it because it still housed the alien soul. However, Jenova was pregnant at the time and they had removed the child from the body before hiding it. It was a baby girl, she appeared not of the Valkyries, she had brown haired and brown eyed. The Sons of Valkyries decided to hide her and raise her as one of them._

_The child did grow up, immortal, with the soul of Jenova reborn, not of the alien soul._

_The rest of the Valkyries scatted though the planet lost their rightful place in the Nibel Mountain and disappeared."_

Cloud shivered, "What a story. I suppose my mother and I am the descendant of one of the Valkyries that were outcast from the Nibel Mountain."

Sephiroth nodded, staring at the tome frowning, "Jenova… I've heard the name before. Dr.Hojo's secret project was the Jenova Project. It makes me wonder what he found."

Cocking her head to the side as she took the tome from the book, "What about this legend?" She flipped the page and held the book to Sephiroth for him to read, "Holy and Meteor…"

"This is the same legend as the Wutaian's. The Wutaian had their name, Megamiki and Madoshi. I believe this Megamiki is the same one as the first Valkyrie, Megamiki. In the tale, it told of their tragic love, how they were taken apart and Madoshi became angry, sending destruction upon the planet but only in the end, wounding the planet. In the end of the tale, Megamiki and Madoshi were banned and they bided their time, waiting for their daughter and son to redeem them. It is very similar to what it was told here in the tome. However, I'm not sure how the end will happen, after all, they need their daughter and son to free them to allow them reunite." He frowned as he glanced at the tome. "Their daughter and son, they were Jenova and Alexander the Judge, it doesn't make any senses, Jenova is dead, in a sense and Alexander the Judge, if I'm correct, also became banished, becoming a summon materia."

"Suppose…" Cloud took the tome and flipped the pages, "The rock that brought the alien soul, did Madoshi do this? Because he was named Meteor here in the story."

Sephiroth nodded, "I think you are right."

"It's terrible, they can't be together. They love each other." She murmured as she lay down next to Sephiroth and yawned. "Am I going to be expelled?" She asked idly.

Sephiroth shook his head, "No, I will make sure of that, you continue to do the same, dress as a man, go on about your life and all that, Zack and I will always be there for you, we will make sure nothing will happen to you ever."

"Thanks."

"You're almost finishing with your master, right?" She nodded and Sephiroth closed the tome, placing it on the nightstand. "I admire you." He saw her disbelieving look and chuckled, "I mean, I admire your strength and endurance in the Academy and Soldiers training. No female could get through the challenge you did, which is why there is a division for the female. Even you went ahead and completed your four years in two."

She shook her head, "No, six years program in three."

"My point exactly, you're a Valkyrie and that gave you benefit. You will soon be training for Class One soon; you're the youngest and the smallest for Class Two. That is why I admire you."

She gave a shy smile and snuggled into the pillow, she saw his lips curved in soft smile that she liked.

"I better get ready for work, are you going to be okay? I can have Zack call in for you." He stood and went to his dresser, pulling out leather pants and some few other accessories for his uniform.

She sat up and sighed, "No, I better get ready too. I got afternoon class."

"Are you sure?" Sephiroth turned, giving her concerned look, "I mean you went though an ordeal and you might want some rest."

She waved him off, "Nah, I'll be fine, after all, I am Class Two Soldier and I shouldn't be slacking."

He chuckled at her. "Bathroom is this way; your clothes are on the nightstand." He gestured to the door and to the nightstand. He watched her get up shakily, taking her clothes and headed to the bathroom.

As soon he finished dressed in the guest room, he stood in the living room, giving his long silver hair a quick brush as he waited for Cloud. She appeared in the doorway, rubbing her now flat chest, looking every bit a Class Two Soldier and a male. He realized that he will from now on know her by her eyes, the soft cerulean blue that draws his soul.

She made her way to his side and gave him a shy smile, "I'm done. I suppose I should go down to my apartment and grab my book and sword for the day."

He nodded and placed his hand on the doorknob and turned back to her, "Say, which one is your name, Cloud or Sorano?" He asked.

She gave a small laugh, "My name is Cloud Sorano Strife. Cloud being my name, Sorano is my Valkyrie name and Strife is my father's surname. It's tradition of the Valkyries as I have read in the book. If I am to have a daughter, I will give her a Valkyrie name to suit her personality."

He nodded as he opened the door and held it for her. She stopped before exiting and stood on her tiptoe, giving him a chaste kiss on the corner of his lip.

He stood there stock still as she went into the elevator and waved good byes. He stared at the elevator doors closing and smirked. He knew he was in love for sure now and Zack was right, damn the ShinRa.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	9. S1:9: Song of Seraphim

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Nine: Song of Seraphim

_I call to remembrance my song in the night: I commune with mine own heart: and my spirit made diligent search._

Psalms 77:6, The Holy Bible

Sephiroth stood in the large gymnasiums in his black sweat and black tan top, with black sneakers, watching Zack and Cloud facing each other. Zack had his buster sword while Cloud had something similar but smaller. He studied their stance as they waited for him to give the signal so they'd start fighting.

Zack stood up out of his stance, throwing the massive sword onto his shoulder, another hand at hip, "Cloud, I've seen you do that stance all the time, why are you doing it?"

Sephiroth huffed in exasperation and went to Zack's side and whispered, "Zack…"

"What?" Zack turned to the taller man as Cloud relaxed from her stance.

She mimicked the raven-hair's action by holding her sword onto her shoulder, letting it droop behind her, "I always do that, you never complained before."

"Think carefully," Sephiroth poked a finger at Zack's forehead, "Nibel Fighting Stance. There is one common with his stance among the others here in the gym…"

Zack knew it was time for him to use his brain; he searched around the gym, trying to see what Sephiroth was trying to tell him. It took him a few minutes before Sephiroth sighed.

"What gender is Cloud?" He asked his voice quiet.

"Female… Oh! I see now, sorry Cloud!"

The General chuckled, "A woman's body weights are different than men's, so they stand in a different stance where the balance center differently. Higher for men and lower for women, the Nibel Fighting Stance was designed for women only to handle larger weapon like the Buster Sword," he returned to where he was standing and gestured his hand for them to continue. "We will have to work on that if we do not want others to notice."

Zack flustered and returned to his stance while Cloud did the same. "Well, at least you were dumb enough to not notice…" She muttered and Zack gave her a dark look as Sephiroth waved his hand signaling for them to fight.

It had been few days since that night; the two men included Cloud in their schedules, taking their training sessions to train her as well for the Elite. Cloud gladly accepted the change and took the chances to get to know Sephiroth more personally, regretting in the past she missed out the chances to meet him earlier.

The two sparred, clashing their swords against each other. Cloud had been picking up her pace, starting with a smaller broadsword as the General asked her to. Over the course of few training sessions in the few days, she had moved up quickly and was using bigger broadsword. The current one was a size smaller than Zack's Buster sword and she was almost ready to handle Zack's Buster.

Sephiroth mused as he watched the two spars, moving out of the way as they got closer to him. He wore a small smile, watching every move Cloud made, watching how she recovered her mistakes quickly, and turning it into Zack's mistakes. He concluded that Cloud was good, very skilled and at the top of Class Two, almost good as Zack, who wasn't very far behind Sephiroth. He realized then that they were the only three people in the entire ShinRa Army that was top best. He figured, if Cloud were to put up against the weathered Soldiers, she would had defeated them easily. She was holding her own up against Zack, considering that he was strengthened with Mako. Cloud is very strong, for a woman.

He wondered as he knew he had Mako treatment, giving him super strength and speed as well endurance and healing ability. However, his was far beyond any Soliders he had known in his entire life, even the former Elites in the past. He assumed it was because he was given the treatment from birth while the others started to get them in Class three and increasing as they advance. He suspected it was something else that gave him the ability to be compatible to pure Mako while the rest were given distilled Mako and at much lower amount.

He had known Zack since he was a teenager, for nearly twelve years. Zack had worked his way up the system from the beginning to the top over the long years. Zack had a better endurance for the Mako in his body than any other Soldiers and he suspected Zack might would be administered pure Mako any time soon if Hojo decides so. He did not like the concept of Mako enchanted strength for anyone but he could not do anything about it because the ShinRa made a law for all Soldiers to receive it. It was also addicting, if one were to withdraw from Mako, they would suffer horrible withdrawal and die. There was no way out.

He did not want Cloud to receive any injection. Her strength was natural and unique. He had broken into the system and cancelled every appointment that Cloud would have in the future. He hoped Dr. Hojo wouldn't notice, buying him time to find another way to introduce her to Elite without taking Mako. He knew there were very little chances she would be able to get in without Mako but it was nearly impossible. He had been thinking in the past few nights since his discovery of Cloud's secret and came to conclusion of creating a Plan B, which would cause him to withdraw from the Military entirely, as well Cloud and Zack, making the ShinRa lose their best Soldiers and it would take extreme measure to put the Plan B in action.

He now believed the myth of the Valkyrie to be true, with Cloud as evidence and he does not want her to fall into Hojo's hands, or the ShinRa's either. But he knew he would not be able to elude her from them for long. She was unique and a very valuable asset to the government and the military. He did not want her to be subjected to life that he had. She deserved better.

"Good, good…" he commented as he held his hand up, stopping their sparring. He turned to Zack, "Can I see your Buster sword?"

Zack nodded and gave the sword, shrugging as he stepped back. Sephiroth shifted the sword from hand to hand, testing the weight and twirled it around a few time. He turned to Cloud and held an empty hand out.

Cloud gave him her sword and watched him toss the sword to Zack and handed the Buster to Cloud, "Here," He said and went to his things on the bench nearby and picked up his Masamune.

Zack and Cloud looked at each other wide eyed. "Oh, he decided it's time. Good luck, kid." He muttered and stepped back, leaving Cloud to gape at him.

The other people in the gym stopped, realizing what was going to happen. The General was challenging a Class Two Soldier. It was rare for them to see General challenge anybody, usually it was the Soldiers that challenges the General for position in Class One.

"Uh?" Cloud asked, unsure what to do and saw Sephiroth standing across from her, his Masamune ready by his side. Then he stood in his traditional stance, tilting his head, gesturing that he was ready.

"Right," Cloud took her stance, holding the massive sword, finding a hold to make it light. She adjusted her hold, getting a better grip and held it up, singling that she was also ready.

Cloud made the first move, lunging with the Buster sword, swinging it in high arch and clashed against the Masamune. Soon, they fell into furry of dance at furious speed.

Zack watched in amazement, he had sparred with Sephiroth enough to know his ability was far beyond good, but to see him going against Cloud was something entirely different. It was almost like he was watching the two dances, each completing the other steps, as if they knew what the other's next move were.

It was almost perfection in his eyes as the two clashed against each other, parry and pivoted. Almost a week ago, the General had learned of Cloud's secret and for the next two days, Sephiroth went around protecting her, calling her every other hours making sure he knew where she was, how she was faring and all that. He even made time to talk to her, getting to know her more and more.

By the third day, Cloud recovered from the ordeal and almost returned to normal, starting her sparring sessions, falling into new routine that included the three of them. Yet she still was shaken up from that night, every time she seen the five thugs around the camps, she paled and turned away or moved closer to whoever she was with, either Sephiroth or Zack, sometime Reno when he was around.

The General became an emotional support for her while Zack was as ever, the friendship support. He saw that Cloud had trusted the two of them and confided in them about almost everything. They even went out once together into the country town near Midgar, the Kalm town and ate at a small diner and gotten to know each other more without having to worry about other overhearing them.

He saw how Sephiroth looked at her, he knew that he had fallen for her and wasn't sure what to do or how to treat her. He had told him once to be himself, let her trust him and let her show the next move for him to take.

Their attitude of the late had been in positive aspect, they had lightened up, and the General almost looked like a normal human with emotions. He usually wore mask but around her, he showed his true self and he liked that. It was something else to get used to, a new prospect.

Sephiroth ended the session by sweeping the six footed sword close to her neck. She toppled backward under the weight of the Buster and fell back onto the mat. He sheathed the sword and helped her up, giving her a secret smile.

"Excellent, you should stick to wide broadsword for your choice of weapons."

Zack grinned as he clapped his hands, "You think so?"

The General gave a nod and took the Buster sword and handed it back to his friend, "Yes, he is better with wider broad swords than any other weapons I've seen him use."

Cloud tilted her head as she listened; they've agreed to use false gender in public to not arouse any suspicions. She also had continued her cross-dressing as well. It was a bit harder of late than when she first started at the Academy. She was flat but in the last year and half, she noticed she was already developing. It was harder and she had to resort to using bandage wrap.

However, she was thankful with the training for Soldiers; she had buffed up and achieved the look of the male without any problem. Sephiroth recently noted that she should watch her actions because he could identify that she subconsciously walked and talked very much like a female.

Zack suggested, "Let's hit the shower and go grab some dinner." He hoisted his sword onto his back, having it latch onto his armor and followed the General out with Cloud in tow. As they reached the private lockers that were for the Elites, Sephiroth had been using it alone for a long time and now Zack used it as well. Cloud stood outside, waiting, usually she would go into the lockers for everyone else and quickly showered and dressed.

But this time was different, Sephiroth held the door open, waiting for her to follow them in.

"What?" She asked.

"You need to clean up as well."

"I'll wait until we get back to the apartment and I will clean up there."

Sephiroth shook his head, "No, no time."

"But! It's Elites only."

He laughed a bit, "I'm inviting you in the Elites locker room. Come on in, don't worry, it's only Zack and me."

Cloud reddened several shades as she entered the locker room and found it was much cleaner and nicer than the other locker room she had been in.

Zack grinned, he was already topless and he gestured to the singles shower stall, "We won't peek, you can use that." He handed a towel and her bag with change of clothing he had grabbed earlier from the apartment.

"Thanks." She took the bag and retreated into the shower stall. Sephiroth and Zack went to wash up themselves in the open shower.

Cloud had finished and got dressed before the two men had finished. She waited in the shower stall and heard the water go off on the other side of the stall, followed by some scuffling noises, which she knew were the towel going over their bodies, drying off. The men usually took longer time to dry off since they both had waist long hair, or longer in Sephiroth's case. And since they were taller than she was, they had more part to dry.

"You guys almost done?" She heard Zack laugh.

Sephiroth replied, "Yes, you can come out."

She peered out and stepped out as well; finding Zack almost fully dressed and Sephiroth only had his pants on, working on his knee length boot. He was sitting down on the bench, tugging the boot on. His chest was bare and perfectly chiseled and she blushed slightly and averted her gaze to the room.

As soon the two men finished, they all left the locker room and the gym to find somewhere to eat other than the cafeteria food at the Mess Hall.

Reno watched the General and Zack leave the Elites locker room and he gaped as he saw Cloud follow them out as well. Something was up. Actually, something had been up for a while. Rude slumped down next to him on the floor after some basketball match with the others.

"Hey, what got your brain churning?" Rude asked as he peered at his friend.

Rude turned to the dark skinned, bald friend of his and shrugged, gesturing to the three with his head, "Dunno, was thinking about Cloud and Zack. They're with the General."

Elena, the blond female joined them, "They're getting rather chummy, three of them. What's the story?"

Reno shrugged, remembering the weekend before he had saw Sephiroth ran across the campus with Cloud in his arms. "I know Zack is familiar with the General, but Cloud? I didn't think so."

Rude rubbed the back of his head, "You said something about Cloud and the General last weekend, what happened?"

The red-head stood up, grabbing the ball and bounced it between his legs, "I saw General run back to his condo with Cloud in his arms, looked like Cloud was beaten up. I think it was the Nibelheim gangs. They were running in different direction earlier." He frowned, remembering the next day, Cloud looked fine but pale and shaking all day during classes. He remembered also that Cloud didn't say any words to anybody but to Zack or the General for few days.

Elena propped her elbow on her knee, resting her chin on her hand, "Well, now they are always together whenever they can be."

"Zack and the General are protecting Cloud." Reno commented as he swished the ball into the hoop nearby. "Well, it's not really my business."

Rude laughed, "And keeping track of how Cloud lives his life is your business?"

"Hey, I'm over that. Zack threatened to have me demoted. But as soon as I figured it out, it changed to something different."

"How so?" Elena asked, curious.

"Usually Zack and Cloud spar after the gym close, but they're sparring during the day and doing so with the General, the kid is done with Academic, he's a Class Two, sure did get promoted so fast, he nearly broke the General's records in the ShinRa."

Elena scoffed, "Didn't you hear? The only person to finish a six year program in three years was Cloud Strife."

"Right, whoa. He sure got a big brain."

Rude laughed and shook his head, "No, just more big spikes on that head of his." They all laughed together.

Reno grabbed the ball that rolled back to him, "Zack said they're training Cloud for Class One. I think they're trying to make the Elites grow, like it used to be years ago. It takes talented Soldiers to make it in Elites." The other gasped in awe.

"And Cloud is one?" Elena asked.

"Yeah, he's pretty good… I wouldn't deny that." Reno said as he tossed the ball and they returned to another game of basketball.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The General of the ShinRa army was on a mission. He strode down the busy hallway of the Hall, where Soldiers and Cadets meet to hang out, play game and all various sorts on their off time. He had never been in the Hall before and this was his first time.

He had finished his long day of work and a mission trip was coming up the weekend. He and Zack had discussed the plan for the weekend and Zack suggested something making his grand appearance in the Hall.

The hallway parted like Red Sea for Moses as usual for him, everyone stared at him, gaping at his full black and silver glory. Whispers muttered behind him.

They saw his face somber and serious, one murmured behind him as he passed, "Someone gunna get it."

He inwardly smirked and kept going. He found the large room he was looking for and stepped in. He didn't find the person he was searching and grabbed hold of a person that was near him, sending the poor guy knees knocking. He continued to look around as he asked, his hand gripping the shirt of the guy, "Where can I find Strife, Cloud?"

The room silenced and suddenly, everyone pointed in one direction, to the other large room down the hall, the den room.

He let go of the guy he had held, who dropped to the floor and went back out into the hallway, "Thank you."

As he reached the den room, he inwardly smirked again, the room noises have subdued with his entrance. It was fun at first then it was getting a bit tiresome that everyone dropped whatever they were doing just to look at him. Sure, he was the glory of the ShinRa military. He had single handed stopped the Great War, killed the biggest and the baddest dragons, took out assassins before they even reached Midgar and many other things.

He spotted Cloud and Zack with couple other men playing table game of foosball. Zack gave a triumph whoop as he made goal. Cloud stuck her tongue at him and then stopped, realizing the room had became quiet and she almost expected the siren to go off with announcement of oncoming war. She turned to see Sephiroth at the entranceway, fully dressed in his uniform, his six footed Masamune at hip as well.

"General Sephiroth, sir" Cloud saluted and bowed, since no one else was going to greet him.

The ball bounced off the table and rolled to his feet. He ignored it, "Strife, come with me." He tossed the ball to Zack and pivoted out of the room with Cloud in his wake.

She nodded as she followed him, the silence was starting to bother her, but it was something that she had gotten used to because it almost always announced that Sephiroth was in the area. As soon she left the room, the room exploded with noises, commenting and questions behind them.

"Oh, what did that kid do?"

"Whenever the General comes asking for someone, it only mean trouble!"

And few more of the same sort conversation went around until Zack laughed, waving his hands in the air, drawing attention, "Kid? Trouble? Yeah right, you forgot Strife's a Class Two and he can whip your butt for calling him a kid! Now, where is that ping pong ball?" He went down to his knees and hands, crawling on the floor, looking ridiculous.

The two walked in silent out of the building and across the campus to the Knoll. He stopped and Cloud moved to face him, looking up at him since he was a head and half taller than she was, "How is it going up there?" She giggled as he gave her a scathing look before smiling.

"It was interesting; I've never been in the Hall before."

She smiled, "I was kind of expecting for a bomb to go off or something like that. You tend to have that kind of effect in the room."

He chuckled; his cheeks tinged slightly, "I summoned you for a reason."

"Cut the formalities and loosen up!" Cloud told him, he was always too serious, but then again, she was almost serious as he was. "Oh, I've been around Zack too long now that I am sounding like him, am I?"

Sephiroth laughed out loud, causing the other passerby jump and stare at him in horror, having never heard the General laugh and quickly scattered away, feeling pity for the blonde. "I think he is getting to us. Anyway, I don't really know how to ask you this." He glanced around and found they were alone and turned back to her, "I would like for you to accompany me to dinner this Saturday night."

Cloud gave a blank look and then her cheeks pinked, "Are you, like, asking me out?"

Sephiroth nodded as his hand fiddled with the handle of the Masamune at his hip, "Well, I'd like for us to have alone time, to get to know each other better."

She smiled softly and stood on her toes, poking his nose with her finger, surprising him. "Uhm, it depends… where are we going?" She cocked her head as she studied his facial expression. He grinned at her, finding her cute standing there like that.

"I was thinking of the Gold Saucer, they have a fine restaurant there."

Her jaw dropped.

"You don't want to go there?" He asked as he misunderstood her.

She shook her head, "Oh! That sound nice, but isn't that like oversea?"

He laughed once again, "Actually, I have a mission to the Gold Saucer this weekend and you are accompany with me and Zack, with few other Class Twos. This mission is the trail run for top Class Twos. It's more of a promotion trail for you rather than anybody else."

Cloud clasped her hands, "Really, that means after the mission…"

"If you succeeded, you have a good shot for Class One." He smirked.

"But I have yet defeated you and took the tests and all that."

"That'll happen after the trail. Now, yes or no?"

She nodded and jumped up to grab him around the neck and gave him a hug, he stood there surprised and gingerly wrapped his arms around her waist. "Yes." She said as she slid back down to the ground, "It sound good, the date."

"Do you happen to own a dress?" Sephiroth asked and then slapped himself mentally for blurting out the question. He had been curious to how she would look in a dress again.

"I did… I tossed the ball gown after the ball… and I did at other time," She laughed, "when I was three."

He shook his head, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ask that question, it was dumb. It's not necessary." He waved his hand and smiled at her.

Her cheeks tinged pink, "oh, I shouldn't have hugged you, we're out in public."

He shook his head as they started back to the Hall, "No one is out here anyway. But you're slipping, be careful. You will get your letter for the mission sometime today, but I wanted to be the one to tell you first."

She smiled as she stood at the doorway of the Hall building, "Thank you for telling me."

He gave her a single nod and turned away, heading to his condo before he would return to the office for some after hour works. She watched him walk away with silly smile on her face and went into the building, unaware of odd looks she had been receiving from everyone.

Zack found her and smacked her head and whispered in her ear, "What the heck you smiling about? You looked like, oooh!" He realized and smirked, "He asked you?"

She nodded and punched him really hard on his arm, "I need to get a dress… for my mother." She said as she saw several people looking at her.

Zack rubbed his arm and nodded, "I think I know just the place. We're going this afternoon. Your mother's birthday is coming up, right?" He muttered darkly.

"I can't really… I got duties to attend to." Cloud said and thought, "Actually, I don't have any time unitl this weekend and the mission is this weekend. I will see if I can find time this afternoon."

Zack slugged his arm around Cloud's shoulders, "Don't worry, and leave it to me. I got some time."

She gave him a skeptical look and shrugged, "All right. Nothing too ritzy." And he laughed.

The afternoon came as Zack found himself in General Sephiroth's office, "I was supposed to take Cloud shopping to find a dress. Somehow, she was called away to deal with some thing about her job."

Sephiroth nodded, "Yes, I had her to go to sign up for test, talk with the job committee about transferring her credits and duties so she'd be prepared for Class One, she need to be ready for her master's tests and Class One tests also few other things…"

"Right, so. When's the date?" Zack asked, rubbing the arm that Cloud had punched him, wincing at how hard she had hit him earlier, the pain still lingered for a while.

"Gold Saucer, Saturday night."

"Ohh, good plan, during our mission trip, so I guess you're taking her to the nice restaurant there?"

The silver head nodded, "And some other entertainments. What does she like to do?"

Zack gave a rueful chuckle, "At Gold Saucer, you're going to have to find out."

"I suppose so." Sephiroth muttered as he pulled out a small CD-player and placed the small disk in it, "It's about time we hear this thing…"

Zack leaned forward, recognizing it as Dr.Gast's CDs that he had found in the desk some time ago, "That's right. I wonder what's on it."

The player gave a click and whir and suddenly a man voice came on, "Gast: Project Valkyries…" Silence came for a few moments and a sound of shuffling was heard and the voice came back on, "Right, the Valkyries, my wife and I have discovered few things about the Valkyries… My wife had researched the Tome I've discovered while I was assigned to Nibelheim with Dr.Hojo a while ago to initiate the Soldiers Project. She had unlocked the secret of the tome and found the future events yet to happen."

Zack gaped at the CD-player, "Man that was a long time ago…"

A female voice came on, sweet and kind, "The prophecy in the Tome was of the two last remaining children of the Nibelung who would change the world in the future. They are mentioned in the book as the Daughter and the Son. The boy would be born to the reincarnation of Jenova, it was very vague but it was clear that he is going to be born sometime soon. As for the Daughter, she would be born to the last Valkyrie that roamed the planet. Her mother would die in the destruction of Nibelheim that is yet to come, making her the last one. The two will come together and bring order to the planet, redeeming thousands of souls, releasing Gaia's children and retake the Cetera's ancestral home."

"That's right, Iflana, tell me more about how they will appear, what have you found?" Gast asked and the sound of shifting paper.

Iflana answered after a while, "The Son and the Daughter are both born in Nibelheim, the Son didn't stay very long, he was taken to the, as the Tome said, the Dark City and grew up there. Nothing more was said about him for a while, no hints of who he will be or anything of sort. As for the Daughter, it was mentioned she returned to Nibelheim and grew up there until she went to the Dark City on her own, where she would find the Son. Here it says that the two are described to be powerful and strong, appearing unusual to the others. Oh, that's right, I forgot the small details, the Son will have Gaia's blood as well, and we aren't too sure what that mean."

Gast's voice, "Iflana, I believe it mean Mako, the boy will have Mako in his system, seeing the Solider Project is about that."

Zack looked up at Sephiroth, "Why do I have a feeling that I know who the Son is."

Sephiroth paled. "Listen."

Iflana sighed, "Gast darling, we're not sure about that."

"It's the Soldier Project that stupid Doctor Hojo got going; I am positive. The Dark City, it must be Midgar!"

"Perhaps you're right." Iflana said and continued, "Researches on myths and legends told around the planet, one matched closely to this particular legend, the legend of Megamiki and Madoshi of Wutai. However, in the legend of Megamiki and Madoshi, it told of the two's suffering and trails as they searched for each other. Megamiki would search for long time to find him to be reunited with him. It was mainly legend on their love and loyalty toward each other. If the Daughter and the Son reunite and they will be able to set Megamiki and Madoshi free once again."

"Yes, yes… We believe the legend match the particular legend in the tome of the Son and the Daughter."

"We think so."

The CD-player whirred for some more and clicked, announcing the end.

"I already know half of those, but the part on the Son, that's new." Sephiroth sighed as he sat back in his chair.

Zack nodded, "I think… don't get me wrong, I think you're the Son."

"How?"

"You were born in Nibelheim, around the time the Soldier Project started, right?"

"Yes."

"You didn't stay there long; you came to the Dark City, hence, Midgar and grew up here, with Hojo." Zack made a distasteful face.

"Yes…"

"You're one of the most powerful people around here, truth to be said, you're like top super person we all know of and unusual."

"My mother has brown hair and brown eyes…" Sephiroth pointed out, "So that didn't make her a Valkyries."

Zack grinned and flipped the tome open and pointed to the chapter on the reincarnation of Jenova, "Here, Gast's wife say that the Son would be born to the reincarnation of Jenova and the only Valkyries to have brown hair and eyes. That's your mother, Lucrecia Brown. She worked on the Jenova Project as well with Dr.Hojo. It's not her specialty but I believe she was on the project for some reasons."

Sephiroth went quiet, musing what had been revealed.

"For all we know, Cloud is the Valkyrie, and you two found each other… in the Ring of Dance! Get it, found each other."

The General waved his hands, "All right, you've made your point." He shook his head, finding it all hard to take in.

Zack took the second disc and put it in the player, hitting play, "Might as well listen to the other one."

Gast's familiar voice came on, "We have a special guest, I've gone to my extent to find this guest and ask her to interview. We will keep her anonymous, she wish to be unnamed. However we can say that she is one of the last Valkyries left in the world."

Sephiroth and Zack shot glance at each other and leaned close to listen to the CD.

"What should we call you?" Iflana asked.

A voice came on the player, obvious a female, she sounded regal, "I have two names in my lifetime, and you can just acknowledge me as J.L."

"All right, J.L. What a beautiful baby you have there," Iflana said and a soft cooing sound came on the tape.

"Baby?" The two men asked at the same time.

"Yes, this is my son, he was just born recently. We better be quick about this. I do not want Hojo to come in and find out what we are talking about."

"Hojo…" The two men muttered together.

"Yes, it is very important that you tell us what you can."

"That's right. Yes, I am one of the last few remaining Valkyries left, I believe there are just two of us, and the other one is young, very young and orphaned. She is currently somewhere in the Dark City, safe for now."

"You believe she will bore a daughter someday." Gast asked.

"Yes. I knew there were two of us left, and when I became pregnant, I just knew one of us would have a boy and I was the first, I just knew. The pregnancy was very quick; I only carried him for three month and gave birth to him."

Zack shot Sephiroth a glance, "Three months?"

"Three months?" Iflana echoed the question.

"Yes, we Valkyries carries our children in short term pregnancy, our bodies develop faster during fetus-hood. I am so relieved Hojo bought my excuse that I had been hiding the pregnancy for the first six months. I couldn't tell him who the father was, I love him very much but I am afraid for him."

"The father, may we know who he is?" Gast asked.

"No, I wish to not foreclose. Anyway, you're meeting the Son of the Valkyries, the last one; he will bring the planet to order in the future."

"He is so adorable… But how unusual, isn't he suppose to have blond hair like other Valkyries?"

"Not really, only the daughters will appear blond haired and blue eyed, the Sons are an exception. He will grow up and his hair color will change, right now it's black but it will change when he gets older when he experiences the maximum of his power."

"What does that mean?" Gast asked.

"Well, when the Sons reach to the point of his end of adolescence, he will release his most powerful ability and at the point, his body will grow and change, fully transpiring into adulthood, often their feature change, it depends on each one of them. I can foresee the future; my son's hair color is the feature that will change for him."

"Speaking of seeing the future, is that all the Valkyries traits?"

"No. Only some of us can. I can and to tell you this, the legends here in the book will come soon. The Daughter is going to be a beautiful child; my son will love her very much, despite what they will go though."

"You say this as if something bad will happen."

"Yes, they're the Son and the Daughter, the Queen and the King. And yes, in the end, they will redeem Megamiki and Madoshi from their banishment. Yes, they will suffer, all because of Hojo."

"Hojo?"

"That's right. There is nothing I can do to stop this. I work with Hojo to make sure he doesn't release Jenova too soon." Malice was laced in J.L's voice.

"I am sorry, I must finish. My son needs his feeding."

"Thank you very much." Gast said and a click sounded the end.

"Ooooh…" Zack exhaled as he sat back, his eyes wide. "That's something… You're that Son, that's for sure. Remember Vincent Valentine, the Turk was in Nibelheim three months before you were born. It all makes sense. He was your father and that woman got to be Lucrecia Brown."

"J.L.? If the L stands for Lucrecia, what does J stand for?" Sephiroth asked and twirled his finger around a long strand of his silver hair, "I remember now, my hair was black, before the Wutai War, I just didn't think of it."

"There we go. It has to be. What do you think, your father?"  
Sephiroth glared at Zack, "Vincent Valentine, he's the only one."

"Hot dang, this is cool to find out more about your past… You love Cloud, so you two are going to change the world!"

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and flipped the tome open, another disc rolled out from the pages; he frowned and picked it up, "Another one? This looked recent."

Zack took the disc and nodded, "That must be Cloud's, and she keep using things as bookmark, her Class Four identification card is in the book too." He popped in the disk and hit play once again.

Few moment of silence and a sweet sounding voice came on. The men recognized it to be Cloud's voice with another female.

"_Estuans interius adente veritate…_" Both voices sang and Cloud took the next line in solo, "_Seraphim, Seraphim, sors speciousissimus Et omnis…_"

Together, "_Veni, veni, venias,"_

The second female's high pitched solo, "_Concessi me ascendi facias!_"

"_Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa!_" Together they sang in quick pace and Cloud took the next solo, "_Concessi me ascendi facias, Generosa!_"

"_Veni, veni, venias, Gloroisa,_"

"_Concessi me ascendi facias, Genrosa!_"

Cloud ended with long solo, drawing the last line, "_Seraaphim, seraaaphim…_" and the song dwindled to silence.

Zack exhaled as he took out the disk and glanced up to his friend, shocked to see a tear roll down his cheek. He quickly scrubbed it away and placed the player back into his desk drawer and closed the tome.

"Kind of heart-melting… What a voice." Zack murmured as he held the disk out to Sephiroth who nodded and took it and pocketed it in his jacket.

"It's the verse in the tome, I had it translated. The song speaks about asking an angel to raise whoever above. Ascending to heaven, as I believe it was about."

"Amazing, I hear her hum this song every day when she work on her homework over the years and now I hear the words, it still make my heart melt." Zack said as he stood, "Since Cloud's on duty this week and can't go shopping for a dress, want to come with?"

Sephiroth nodded, "I suppose, I have nothing else to do."

An hour later found the two dressed in their casual clothes, walking in the mall. Sephiroth in his black jean, black scuffed combat boots and gray t-shirt, he had a black baseball hat on his head with red diamond of ShinRa logo on it, his hair pulled back in high ponytail plaited. Zack wore his blue jeans, navy t-shirt and his hair the usual wild trends.

"We're going to this store and find a dress for her." Zack went over his plan, searching for a particular store.

"Do you know her size?"

"Oh crap. I guess we'll have to guess."

Sephiroth rolled his eyes as he followed Zack into a store and stopped, staring around. "It's going to be like finding a needle in a haystack." He muttered more to himself, the store was full of dresses of different kinds and sizes.

Zack grinned like a mad man, "So, what kind of dress do you like?"

Sephiroth balked at his friend, "There is no way I am doing this." He turned around and found group of women huddled at the window, staring at him. He was cornered.

The raven haired laughed and dragged Sephiroth to the side, pulling a red vinyl mini-skirt off the rack, it appeared like a mere scrap of fabric, "Hey! A mini-skirt!"

Sephiroth gave a disgusted face.

"No? I think you're right, not your type."

"What is this? Are we shopping for me or Cloud?"

"Cloud, of course, but what kind would you like to see her in?"

Sephiroth nodded as he understood and mused, watching Zack go though the rack and pulled out a black piece of dress that looked like it belonged in an S&M magazine. He gave Zack a look.

"Right, too scary. Need something mellower." He kept pulling clothes out and displaying it to Sephiroth, getting every denial. At some point, he even posed as if he were the one who's getting the dress. The General rubbed his head, feeling an oncoming headache.

Sephiroth glanced around the store, unsure which dress would suit Cloud. He was just starting to get to know her more on personal level. All he had known about her had been thrown out of the window the moment he discovered she was Sorano as well. Her personality as Cloud Strife, the Solider was just a mask that she wore every day and the real personality underneath was beginning to surface. Then something caught his eyes and he stared at it.

Zack noticed the General looking at something and followed his gaze, "Oh, now that's nice." He nodded in agreement and waved the sales-lady over, "Hey, uh, hold on." He turned and exited the store and mingled in the crowd of females and pulled one back into the store. "You're just about the right size."

The girl shrugged, silently agreeing, staring at Sephiroth in awe. Zack had the sales-lady take down the dress and had the girl to try it on, it seemed to fit and soon, they left the store with a box. They made a pit stop at the male clothes store and picked something up for Sephiroth as well.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	10. S1:10: The Gold Saucer

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Ten: The Gold Saucer

_So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them._

Genesis 1:27, The Holy Bible _KJV_

Friday came and found the trio on the road oversea. Cloud looked very green, muttering about motion-sickness. The other Class Two Soldiers moved to the other side of the truck trying to avoid her. Zack watched in amazement on how her face shifted different shades of green, never minding her sickness.

General Sephiroth turned from where he sat in the front of the truck, reaching over to hand Cloud something, "Take this." The others stared in bafflement as they witnessed the General's rare kindness.

She gave him a grateful look, knowing it was motion-sickness pill. She plopped it in her mouth and sucked on it and she started to feel a bit better yet she still felt dizzy. The rest of the Soldiers sighed in relief as they noticed she no longer looked green, much to Zack's disappointment.

They had arrived at North Corel, a town south and below Gold Saucer, it was a quiet small coal-mining town. The Soldiers stood in straight line after getting out of the truck, waiting for General Sephiroth's command.

Zack stood before them, his hands behind his back and was joined by Sephiroth. There were four Class Two Soldiers that was eligible for Class One.

"One of you will be promoted, given a year to train for Class One, the only one." Sephiroth held out a finger, "We've been reported that there are some illegal beasts on loose in Gold Saucer. We are to take out the beasts; I've been told they are dragonlings, two of them. Two of you will go with Zack and two will go with me. No favoritism is expected here. Let's go, we are to start when we reach the top."

The six of them went to the station where they would be transported to the Gold Saucer. They all boarded the car that was attached to two strong cables that went up into the sky, clouds covering what was at the other end. They rode silently, their weapons ready and they were given short draw to who will join General Sephiroth and Zack, dividing up the team into two. Cloud and another was to join with Sephiroth while the two others will go with Zack.

Before they reached the top, Sephiroth made one last announcement, "If we finish early, we can use the rest of the day to have fun. We are to meet at zero six hundred hours at the front entrance to return."

Zack smirked, "Well, that sound good. We're going to take out the beasts quickly, right men?" The rest cheered while Sephiroth remained stoic silent and Cloud nodded, still feeling groggy.

They reached to the top, though the cloud revealed a large yellowish saucer that hovered over a tall pole that came from the ground, it dazzled and blinked with lights. It was a giant amusement park combined with casino. General Sephiroth stepped out of the cab and handed the man a pass for the Soldiers.

Another man came up to them and took their bags; they had rooms reserved at the Haunted House Inn in advance, one room for the Soldiers and one for Sephiroth. Zack had declined to have his own room because he felt he should stay with Cloud in the same room with the others.

"Zack, take Irvin and Marvy, cover the north part, Strife, Erikson, we're going to cover the south part. Remember, we're here to find the beasts, no playing until mission is done."

Zack went to the stairs that led to the northern part of the Golden Saucer, grinning like a crazed man with two Class Two Soldiers in tow, wondering if their commanding officer was sane or not. It was known among the Soldiers that with higher does of Mako make one insane. But it wasn't Zack's case; he was just merely over-excited as always.

Sephiroth turned and took the stairs that led to the southern part. Cloud and Erikson whose first name was Zeke followed after him. She learned he came from far north, from around Icicle town, he appeared easygoing guy who did whatever he was told to do. She thought he would make a good Soldiers but he did not have what it would take for one to be an Elite.

They stopped at the entrance to the first two selections of the southern part; it was either Chocobo Racing or Events area. Sephiroth stood by the entranceway, waiting for the two to make their choice.

Zeke turned to Cloud, "Suppose we try Events first?"

Cloud gave a nod, shrugging, and a quick glance to the General. She remembered he had told her that he was simply there to observe their judgment, fighting skill and among few other things.

They went the Events area first, didn't find anything out of the norm, asked around quickly as they could, getting what they need to know, inspecting the damage done by the monster loose in Gold Saucer. They even uncovered how the monsters had gotten there in the first place; somehow they had hitched a ride on the Runway and gotten loose in the saucer.

"So, it was two Spencer monsters that you saw?" Cloud asked a thin guy near at the Battle Arena.

"I don't know!" The thin man whimpered, shaking.

Zeke rolled his eyes and turned around, taking in the area, "All right, who have seen the monsters?"

A guy in the crowd squeaked, "Dio."

Cloud turned around, asking, "Where can we find this Dio?"

Then a burly large man stepped in, all muscled up and looking tough as he tries. Cloud nearly snickered and coughed to cover it up, "You're Dio?" She asked with hint of mirth in her voice. From the corner of her eyes, she saw Sephiroth looking bored as he leaned on the counter, watching the scene, but she caught a hint of smirk on his lip.

The man nodded, "Yeah, that's right. Dio, they call me, the champ and owner of the Battle Arena." The man puffed, attempting to make his self look even larger. He stood before them and peered over to Sephiroth.

Sephiroth stepped up beside Cloud and Zeke, "Have you or have you not seen the monster around?" He asked, brushing the imitating stare from the large man, getting annoyed with the overstuffed ego of the man.

Dio frowned and huffed, "Sure did, two of them running though my Arena. I don't own them that are for sure because it's nothing like the one I have."

Sephiroth nodded, "Good, what kind are they?"

The massive man rubbed his chin as he pondered, "Hm, I am pretty sure they're Spencer dragons, kind of small but vicious."

Cloud added, "Two of them?"

"Yeah."

Zeke sighed, "All right, where were they last seen and headed to?"

Dio peered over to Sephiroth, finding the General wearing stoic face. "Saw them recently last night and then again today earlier. They went on over to the Chocobo Racing arena. I think they smelt them birdies."

"Thank you." Sephiroth pivoted sharply, nearly whacking the man with his sheathed Masamune. Cloud couldn't stifle a grin as she followed him.

Zeke burst out laughing as they left the area. "That man isn't as tough as he look. I am sure General could take him in his arena."

"Not worth my time." Sephiroth commented as they headed to the Chocobo Arena, "but thank you for the compliment."

As they entered the arena, smell of stable hit their noses, Cloud found the events fascinating as she passed by. "I gotta come back here and watch this." She said under her breath and refocused on her duty, "Not here…" She glanced around.

"We should ask around," Zeke suggested.

Cloud went to the first person and started to ask question but before she could, a loud shriek rang in the air, she whipped her head to find the arena in chaos, birds scattering off the track and people scrambling to get out of the place. Two medium sized Spencer dragons lurked, one had feathers clinging to its lips. She whipped her sword out, quickly removed several orbs of Materia from her pockets and plopping them into slots on her sword and armband.

Zeke held his gun ready, "I guess that's them."

"Take the other, I'll take this one." Cloud directed as she trained her eye on a bigger one.

Zeke moved, trying to distract the other one away. "Let's go!" he yelled as he saw the arena cleared out with just them and the dragons. Sephiroth was no where to be seen. He shot at the dragon and kept shooting while Cloud was occupied with the first one.

The large one lunged toward Cloud and she leapt back, slashing it. It made retreat after being scratched. From the corner of her eye, she saw the second dragon swiped at Zeke, knocking him to the wall, making him slump down unconscious.

"Oh damn…" Cloud muttered as she faced the two dragons. One was badly wounded from the bullets but still making advances on her nonetheless. She stepped back, twirling her sword, trying to find her movement. Suddenly, surge of energy grew though her body, from her feet to her head, and she felt it pulse though her sword. She jumped into the air and raised the sword above her head, bringing it down as she descended; the sword glowed as she sliced though the larger dragon. It screamed as it cleaved in half and dissipated.

Zack had arrived to the area with the two other Soldiers but Sephiroth held them back at the door, "Let Strife finish." He watched Cloud, recognizing the surge of energy, she was about to get to her first limit break. "He's getting his first limit break."

Zack relaxed and leaned against the door frame, "Well, he's doing well."

She moved around, trying to avoid the second dragon as it advanced on her slowly. It was massive, it looked like it was about to lunge any moment. Having studied on beasts, she knew this one would kill her if it ever got hold of her. New surge of energy rose inside her, she twirled the blade around a bit, letting the energy thrum though the metal, causing white and blue glow of colors twirls after wake of the blade's movement.

Suddenly, she lunged and attacked, breaking though her second limit break, destroying the monster before anybody could blink.

"Whoa…" She stood back, holding her sword loosely, she was shaking, closing her eyes to calm the beating of her heart, and she heard someone clapping. Opening her eyes, she looked up and saw Sephiroth smiling at her secretly and clapping his hands. Zack was leaning against the doorframe, also grinning. She stared at them with her mouth agape, "You had been there the whole time and didn't help?" She saw two other Soldiers behind them, they were smiling as well.

"General wouldn't let us." One said as he stepped down and went over to Zeke to retrieve him and helps him. The other nodded as he followed the first.

Zack laughed and stepped down, pulling out couple of issued energy bars, "Here, have some. You must be shaking, that's normal after you experience your first limit break." She took the bars and started to eat them. "You managed the Braver and Cross-Slash, the first level."

Zeke started to wake up and with help of the two other Soldiers. Sephiroth stepped down and crossed his arms on his chest, "We tracked down the monsters in no time. Look like we have more free time. See you all in the morning, I do not want troubles." He announced and Zack cheered, turning to the other Soldiers and started to tell them where the best place to go.

Sephiroth shook his head at Zack's antics and went to Cloud's side, "Do you want to rest up before tonight?"

Cloud shook her head, "No way, I'm still raring to go. Let me go clean up and I'll meet you."

"I think I should too, let me show you the way to our rooms, and we'll meet then." He gestured the exit and led her the way to the Haunted House Inn.

Cloud had hopped into the shower and washed, taking extra few minutes to clean up and wrapped herself in towel. She smacked her head, forgetting her clothes in the bag, which was left in the bedroom.

She poked her head out of the bathroom, looking around and found Zack standing at their bed, poking though his duffel bag, pulling several things out. "Zack?"

"Hey. Come on, don't worry, I got the door locked, everyone else won't be coming back until late tonight." He said as Cloud stepped out, confused. "Come on, here, put these on." He tossed her panty, knowing she was glaring at him.

She slipped them on under her towel and stood there. "What are you doing?"

"Helping you to get ready for your date."

"What?"

"Here," He turned around, holding a bag. "I got you something." He saw her wary look, "It's not ticking."

Cloud took the bag and opened it, she gasped as she pulled the dress out, "Oh my…"

Zack grinned, "Go on, and put it on. I won't peek." He said as he turned around.

She hastily dropped her towel and pulled the dress on, smiling and feeling the fabric, playing with the skirt. Then she called out, "Zack, I need your help here." She turned around her back to him.

"Are you sure you're decent?" Zack asked.

"Yes! It's the zipper in the back, I can't get to it." She huffed.

Zack laughed as he went over to pull the zipper up, securing the dress on her. "You like?"

"Very much, how did you know my size?"

"I guessed, you should know, Sephiroth picked this dress out."

"He did?" She turned around, swishing her skirt, feeling like a true woman once again, a pink blush appeared on her cheeks.

"You look beautiful, though we need to do something with your hair." Zack said as he went back to his bag and pulled out a brush and blue sash. He helped to pull her hair back and braided it in short braid. Several spikes still stuck out, her hair was unique and she had it kept cut short to assume male gender. It was her feature that set her apart from everyone. Tying the sash over the spike to make her hair look decent, the bow flopped at the nape of her neck. "I learned how to fix hair a bit from my girlfriend. She keeps pestering me about my own hair, saying if I wanted to keep it long, I'd have to take care of it."

"Now, you're ready… or maybe not." Zack looked down to her feet, "I forgot you shoes… Kidding," He returned to the bag and pulled out pair of pale blue snuggle shoes. "I hope it fit, I had to steal your boot one night to go to the store and get this."

"No wonder, I was looking all over for my boot and found it the next day in the living room." She muttered as she slipped on the shoes and smiled, "How do I look?"

"Absolutely beautiful and cute rolled in one. Sephiroth is going to love this; he's been dying to see you in a dress once again. He tells me that he couldn't get the picture of you that night at the ball out of his mind."

She laughed and smacked him as she passed him.

Pacing back and forth at the bottom of the staircase of the Inn, Sephiroth looked nice in his black slack and silver white buttoned shirt that was open except for two buttons at his navel; he looked nice and casual, his hair was left loose, down his back.

His friend had told him to wait there while he went up to help Cloud. He felt pang of jealousy knowing his friend was in the room with Cloud at the moment, helping her to get dressed. He squashed the emotion, knowing that Cloud was more interested in him than Zack and the other way around as well.

He looked to the clock and saw it had been an hour since they had arrived to the Inn. He pondered idly how Cloud would look in the dress he had picked out for her. He liked the dress; it was the only decent one in the entire store, it looked innocent enough to him.

"General Sephiroth," He looked up to find Zack announcing, descending to his way, "your date has arrived." He swept his arm upward to the top where Cloud stood shyly.

Sephiroth swallowed as he watched her step down the stairs, looking gorgeous in the dress, looking unfamiliar and familiar at the same time. The dress was in different shades of blue, with full double-layered skirt being of the lightest of blues and falling down just past her knees, yet still somehow showing off her long legs. The top was short puffy-like sleeve with a dark blue bodice that enchanted her form, her cleavage were slightly exposed, showing her true gender.

His eyes traveled up to her face, seeing the familiar face he had grown to known. None of the shades in her dress matched her blue eyes, which looked like they glowed. He smiled as he saw her hair, pulled back in small braid and styled with sash.

"Wow…" He whispered as he stared at the woman before him. He fumbled with the object in his hands before giving it to her.

Cloud blushed horribly as she took the chocolate rose. "Thank you."

Zack grinned at the two from the side and clapped his hands, shaking them both out of their reveries, "You two look cute together, go and have fun!"

Sephiroth offered his arm and she slipped her hand though his, letting him take the lead. They made their way to the ride that was going around the Gold Saucer, showing the dazzling glory of the place. Sephiroth sat across from Cloud, watching her look around in amazement at the view below the ride. He felt like a different person with her, not the General Sephiroth as everyone viewed him to be, but a normal man that had carefree emotions, more to be precise, happy ones.

He tried to remember if he ever felt that way and realized he had never in his life time and frowned slightly. Shaking the though, he watched her face noticing the joy and happiness that shone in her blue eyes, making it sparkles. He realized he was seeing the true core of Cloud Strife, a pretty girl that was full of innocent. He suspected the last time she was truly happy was before her father ever announced he wanted a son.

"Oh look! Chocobo racing is on! I can see all those chocobos!" She squealed in delight and tried to lean out of the window a bit more, giving Sephiroth a fright. He grabbed her by the waist quickly before she decided to lean any farther. She sat back and looked at him innocently.

"Please do not do that again…" Sephiroth admonished lightly.

She laughed, her voice sounding like a bell to his ears, "You forget, I have a strong grip, all that training from Soldiers."

He smiled in return, "It is easy to forget you were ever Soldiers in a dress…" He reached over and caressed her cheek, making it pinker. He gazed at her, wondering if this new feeling was falling in love. He blinked as they returned to the loading dock; he stood and helped her off asking, "Would you like to have dinner now?"

She nodded, "Sure." Linking her arm with his, she smiled at him.

Cloud felt perfect being next to Sephiroth, she was slightly tall for average woman, being five seven with narrow waist and muscled up due to being a Solider but being in Sephiroth's presence, he made her feel like a woman through and through.

He relished in the new feeling he was feeling, she had leaned closer, hugging his arm as he listened to her chatting about just everything she could think of. He had learned she loved chocobo and wanted to ride them. He decided, he liked having her around and wished he had a normal life and be able to openly have relationship with her rather than in secret.

They got to the restaurant located in the center of Gold Saucer, high above and rotating to see the entire amusement park, light dazzling from below. They dined at a table for two with candlelight. Sephiroth stared at the candles, wondering if he had ever ordered the romantic setting and asked the waiter, he learned he did, calling back the next day and requesting after he had reserved. He recalled never calling back; he suspected Zack was behind the plot.

They've enjoyed their dinner, shared a massive dessert and soon they were found at the Chocobo arena, the game closed but they were the only one on the track, riding the chocobos.

Cloud shouted with thrill as she zipped past Sephiroth on a golden chocobo. He had convinced the manager to let them have fun on the track. It only took the manager one look at Cloud, who had stood beside Sephiroth, looking cute with pouting lips, star shining in her eyes, and he agreed immediately.

Sephiroth though the manger was a pushover for cute and pouting women. He figured he would take the advantage for once and made a mental note to not allow Cloud to do it ever again for any other men. He felt jealous for a moment there and didn't like it, he liked the thought that Cloud was for him and only him.

They both raced on the racetrack, enjoying their time. He had found a new talent in Cloud, she was a great chocobo racer, and often, she won against him. She laughed at the end of the line, slipping off the great bird and pointed to Sephiroth, giving a little dance, "That's seven in a row! I beat the great General Sephiroth! You owe me them chocolate bars!"

He got off his bird and held his hands up in defeat, "All right, that's fourteen bars in total, right?" He laughed as she danced around him and grabbed her by the waist, pulling her close to him.

She nodded, looking up to him, blushing, "Fourteen, yes…" She laughed and poked him on the chest, "The great General Sephiroth owes me fourteen chocolate bars…" She said in sing-song voice.

He chuckled as he grabbed the offending finger and gave it a playful tug, "What is it with you and chocolate?" He asked as he led her off the track, still holding her waist.

"I like it; I never had it when I was growing up." She said.

"Really? When did you first taste them?"

Cloud gave a shrug and leaned her head on his shoulder as they strolled though the Gold Saucer, "I think I first tasted it when my father came home from work. He had a bar, just one. He gave me a bite, it was heaven and I've never tasted another like that. After I enlisted, I saw this candy store in the mall and went to it. I found the same kind of bars and bought one. I decided to not ever lose any chance I have with such delicious stuff and bough them every month to treat myself ever since. I get crazy craving for them."

"Yeah, I heard a whole box every day for a week a month." He said, smirking.

She gasped, "Where did you hear that?"

"Zack."

Gaping, she shook her head, "Zack! Oh, he's going to get it, sneaking around in my stuff!"

"It wasn't him; he found this out from an old roommate of yours… I believe Reno, wasn't it?"

"Reno?" She frowned, "Reno, never thought he'd go nosey in my stuff. Well, he's going to get an earful."

They laughed and chatted as they returned to the Inn. As they reached to the top of the stairs before their doors, Cloud paused as she looked at her bedroom door, "I can't go in there like this." The light shone from under her door and voices came from it, the rest of the Soldiers had returned for the night. There was no way she would waltz in the bedroom as she was.

"Care to join me for a drink?" Sephiroth bowed slightly, gesturing to his door. She smiled and nodded, allowing herself to be led to the other bedroom.

Zeke reached to the top of the stairs, his hands full with drinks he had gotten from the nearby café. He caught glimpse of a pretty blond woman going into the General's room.

"Hey, who's the pretty blonde that General got in his room?" He asked as he entered the Soldiers' bedroom. Soon, everyone spilled out of the room and went over to General's door, scrabbling to peek though the keyhole. They clamored over who she was, and was she pretty or hot.

Zack groaned as he stepped out of the room, "Guys, come on. He'll have your heads if he finds you here." Soon the Soldiers groaned and sulked back into the bedroom. Then he smacked his head lightly, remembering that Cloud had no way of getting back into the bedroom without exposing herself. He made a mental note to sneak her bag out of the room after the others went to bed and leave the door unlocked for her reentry.

Turning back in the room, "Hey, I think we should turn in soon, we gotta get up in few hours."

"Wow, your room is big! And you get this huge bed all to yourself!" Cloud commented as she sat on the bed and bounced a bit to see how bouncy it was.

Sephiroth poured two cups of wine and handed one to her, "I hope you had fun tonight."

She smiled as he sat down next to her and sipped the wine, "Yes, I can't remember the last time I've had so much fun."

"Me either, I truly enjoyed your company tonight…" He watched her from the side; she was already glowing from the soft light in his room, making her look all too attractive. The wine was causing her to have light pink tinge on her cheeks.

"I'd love to have my own chocobo someday." She commented idly as she leaned back on the bed, placing the cup on the nightstand and snuggled into the pillows on the bed. "Ooh, you're so funny when you swore your head off when I cut you off at one point. I've never though you could swear that colorful…" She leaned back up on her elbows, gazing at him, finding him staring back with much intensity. "What?"

He gave a soft chuckle, "You're amazing," He reached out and pulled her up close to him, "I was thinking earlier of how I could have fallen in love with you all over again tonight."

She blushed, looking at their linked hands, "When was the first time?" She asked as her fingers twined with his.

"That night, at the ball," she looked up in surprise, her mouth in form of an O. "I almost forgot; I am sorry for what I did that night." He traced her cheek with his free hand.

She nodded, "well, it was nice…" She recalled their dances together and the kiss.

He frowned, "But you ran off."

She gave a deep exhale, "I know, I didn't want to get too close to impose risk on my secret. I honestly do not want to go back to Nibelheim."

"I understand. I doubt I would let you go if you ever were caught by the ShinRa… I'd find a way to keep you around."

She blinked at him, "Really?"

"Yeah. I've never felt this way before, ever. It was new and it made me feel…" He looked away to the window and smiled softly, "human."

"You are human." Cloud said looking up to his face, frowning.

He shook his head, "I don't feel human most of the time, I'm a trained solider, a ruthless fighting machine… All of this, I've never experienced it before in my whole life, the fun, friends, this feeling of love… My life, every moment was planned and controlled by the ShinRa, to no end. I just got lucky landing myself a ten year easy job at the Academy and the Training Fortress."

"Do they know you're doing this, you're seeing a woman?" She asked as she leaned her head on his shoulder.

"No. They do not realize I'm taking advantage of them, working on loopholes to get you in Elites so you'd be closer to me. I'm tired of being a solider; I have finally just begun to dream…" He felt her head move to look up at him and he turned his head to meet her eyes and he touched her face, "Dreams of normal life, life that is not of military."

"That's a good dream." She said softly. "I'm afraid of my own dream."

"Why?"

"Nibelheim… if I am to ever return to Nibelheim… it's going to be destroyed and it will be my fault."

Sephiroth nodded, "For now, let's just enjoy what we have. We'll cross the bridge when we come to it, we share the same future." He cupped her cheek in his hand and leaned down, capturing her lips in gentle but passionate kiss.

He felt her return the kiss and they deepened the intimacy, tasting wine upon each other lips. He wrapped his arm around her waist, bringing her closer to him as her arms snaked around his neck, her hand clutching his silver mane, afraid to let go if it were just a dream.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	11. S1:11: Nibelheim

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Eleven: Nibelheim

_For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you: _Matthew 6:14, The Holy Bible

A year later found Sephiroth waking up to the shining of the sun, the light dancing on his face. He rose from his bed, stretching his arms out and yawned. He carefully sidestepped the mess in his once immaculate room. He smiled as he picked up a book on his dresser and flipped the pages. It belonged to Cloud. He glanced around and sighed, most of them mess belonged to Cloud. His clothes had been tossed around in a hurry the night before.

Cloud had stayed over pretty late after training the night before and showered in his bathroom. When Zack had called, Cloud had run about, searching for her clothes and decided to take his clothes instead and ran out.

He chuckled lightly and got dressed; soon he knocked on the door to Cloud and Zack's apartment and was greeted by Zack's bleary face. "Morning." The raven haired man muttered and pointed to the bedroom door that was closed, "Still asleep. Whatever you two were doing last night, I do not want to hear."

Sephiroth smirked, "Nothing you think we were doing. I wouldn't do that until we're official. We were just simply training last night and it ran late, we didn't have dinner, so we had dinner in my apartment."

Zack nodded as he rubbed his face and poured a cold coffee, "Like I said; I don't wanna hear it." He grimaced as he drank the coffee.

"Right." Sephiroth went to Cloud's bedroom and found her sleeping in her bed, the sun played on her hair. He had asked her to let it grow out since the first date, seeing how it would fare for her. He theorized that her spikes would droop eventually when it gets longer. His theory was half-right. Her hair had grown down to her shoulder and a bit past, pulling the wayward strands downward, however her bangs stuck out anyway, giving her a cute look.

Brushing her hair away from her sleeping face, his fingers trailed down to her cheek and he leaned down to give her a kiss. "Mmm, that's nice…" She whispered and her blue eyes opened to meet his jade eyes. "Morning…" She stretched like a cat and sat up, "What's with the uniform?" She asked as she saw him in his full uniform of black leather and silver armors.

"You forget we have mission today?" He asked and looked around to find that she haven't packed, "You have less than an hour to pack and get ready to go."

She sprang out of the bed, wide eyed, "Oh man, the mission! I'm so sorry!" She yelped as she ran around her room, throwing whatever she could find onto the bed so she'd pack them in her duffel bag.

He shook her head as he watched her run around in her tank top and panty, she had always been wearing young boy panty and the sight was amusing to him. Soon, she was hopping around trying to pull on a pair of pants while tossing couple of dresses into the bag. He sighed as another pair of pants was smacked into his face; he took it and noticed the tag saying it belonged to Zack.

"Zack's pants?" He asked.

"What about my pants?" Zack popped his head into the doorway and chuckled at Cloud, struggling to pull on a blue crew tank.

"This is your pants; apparently it looked like it was shrunk in the wash." The silver-haired held up the pants which was obviously too small for the raven-haired man.

"What?" He entered the room and grabbed the pants, inspecting the tag, "Cloud! Those are my clothes!" He picked up several clothes that appeared a bit too small and turned the tag over to find most of them are his.

"It's too small for you, so I though I'd save you some time and take it for myself. It fit me."

Sephiroth chuckled as he went to the door, "Who did the washing?" He saw Zack pointing to Cloud and made mental note to not let Cloud do the washing, even if she was a good housekeeping.

"That's the last time I let you do the washing…" The raven haired muttered as he dug though the laundry pile in the corner of Cloud's room, finding several of his shirts and shorts.

"How can you tell? They're all the same!" She retorted as she pulled Zack up from the floor and pushed him though the bathroom door to his bedroom, "Go and pack, we gotta leave in a bit."

"I'm already ready." Zack grinned.

"Whatever just let me finish. Exactly where are we going?" She asked as she stuffed her duffle bag with her personal things and clothes, as well equipments and other things she figured she might need. The two men watched in amusement, wondering how she could stuff so many things in a small limited spaced bag.

"Nibelheim, didn't you read the summon paper?" Sephiroth asked.

She stiffened at the town name, "Nibelheim?" She asked, turning around, "my hometown?"

"Yes. I'm sorry." Sephiroth replied, recalling year ago of Cloud's fear of returning to her hometown. "The ShinRa assigned us to go and we have to go."

Cloud nodded somberly. "All right. I suppose so. I'd be nice to see my mother again."

Zack picked up the summon paper he found on the desk and handed it to Cloud, "Next time, read the entire page, I made the same mistake before and it nearly cost me the entire mission."

Cloud took the paper and read the entire page, word by word, "Reactor problem… Attracts monsters… Oh." She looked up to the two men at the doorways, "I though the reactor closed down years ago, sometime after my father died." She said quietly.

"It is closed. But it still draws Mako for some other reasons. We're being sent to shut it off for real this time. Hojo was the one who ordered this mission, it's highly suspicious." Sephiroth explained, "Only the Elites are going, also a top Class Two Soldier is joining us, this is his trail run as well. He's good but not good enough yet."

"How long…" Cloud asked and glanced back on the paper, "A weekend? I suppose I can do this…" She sighed and stuffed the paper in her bag.

"You are to go as female during the mission." Zack said as he took Cloud's duffel bag. "Remember our plan to tell the board on Monday?"

The three of them agreed that they will go to the board of the ShinRa Army, tell them about Cloud's true gender and have her pardoned to remain in Class One. However, Sephiroth had a back up plan if it ever fails in his mind. He wasn't sure if Zack would go for it because this plan means to throw their entire careers out of the window.

"I must go, see you in a bit." Sephiroth sighed as he started to leave.

"Must you?" Cloud asked, referring to his appointment with Hojo.

He turned and traced her cheek with his gloved hand, "Yes, I must or else he'd send the entire Turks down on my arse. You will have to go through this after Monday as well; I will be there for you as you've been there for me in the last one year. We've dodged this far too long."

"Yeah, I just don't like to see you sick."

"Me either. See you in a bit… Don't forget your bandage." He poked her ample chest, making her squeal.

"Yeah, yeah… Go on." She shoved him lightly out of the door and turned back to her room to search for her fresh roll of bandage.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Oh…" Cloud moaned as she clutched her stomach, turning rather a nice green shade. She was sitting in the back of the truck, against a box with Zack and another Class Two Solider named Luke Stroganoff. Zack, as usual couldn't contain himself as he sort of bounced around in the small space of the canvas truck while Stroganoff tried to avoid Cloud, giving her strange look.

"Hey, how are you doing?" Zack asked as he sat by her side.

She looked up, her face going several shades paler and waved a hand, "I'm all right, I am sure I'll get used to this."

"I wouldn't know…" He shrugged, "Never had motion sickness." He turned to Stroganoff, "How about you?" He received a shake of head and strange look.

"Zack, settle down…" Sephiroth turned from the front of the truck and tossed a box to his friend, "Give her this."

"Her?" Stroganoff asked as he looked from the General to Cloud confused. Cloud took the box from Zack and took out the pill and popped it in her mouth, waiting for the motion sickness pill to work. "You're female?"

"Yeah, so what of it?" Cloud muttered darkly as she felt the pill working its miracle and turned to Sephiroth, "Hey, is this thing laced with Mako?"

"I think it is." The General turned back around and took the box from Zack, reading the content on the side, "It says so, and it's a no wonder." He looked up to find Cloud's eyes glowing slightly. He recalled in the past mission trips, having given Cloud this thing often; her eyes would glow slightly for a day and then fade. "It's designed for Soldiers…"

"She's a female?" The other Soldier asked, getting a bit loud. "I though Strife's a guy, I mean… being in Soldier and all."

Zack laughed, "Long story. Don't worry about it. You're one of the first to know."

"Whatever…" Luke said, watching Cloud warily.

"We're getting close now." The truck driver announced.

"Good, we should be expecting to see something out there." Sephiroth commented as he turned back around to face the road ahead.

Zack grinned, nearly bouncing in his seat, "Can't wait! Got me some new Materia, I can't wait to use it!"

"Just like a kid." The General voice carried to the back with teasing tone.

"So, what's the briefing?" Zack asked.

"This isn't a typical mission." Sephiroth started, his eyes remained on the road. "Our mission is to investigate this old Mako reactor; reports came though it had been malfunctioning, attracting brutal creatures. We're to dispose of those creatures and then locate the problem and neutralize it. In simple term for our friend Zack here, shut the reactor off for good."

"Hey, I'm not dumb."

"Oh, I though you were immature." Sephiroth retorted coolly. Zack glared at his friend while Cloud snickered behind her gloved hand. Luke stared back and forth between General Sephiroth and Zack, astonished to see friendly banter. It was heard of through the Soldiers but to witness it was a different matter.

A long while passed with silence, Cloud rested her head on her knees. Zack played with his Materias, jugging them while Stroganoff dozed.

Sephiroth turned around once again, gazing at Cloud, "How is she doing?" He asked softly to Zack.

"I suppose she's okay." He reached out and brushed the blond hair away from her face to find her sleeping lightly. "She wasn't so great about going back to her hometown and appearing as a female. Why are you doing this?" He looked at her again to find her dozing.

Sephiroth leaned on the back of his seat, watching Cloud. "The Mission came up and it cannot be avoided. It happened to be the same time with our plan of revealing her. I think the prophecy is falling in place, I hope it won't be this time around. Hojo had requested for the Elites to go, no others. I can't back out this one. But keep an eye out for anything unusual, Hojo is up to something." He glanced at Cloud, wondering if Hojo had finally figured it out about Cloud.

"But she's a blond and blue eyed; you know how they feel about her."

Sephiroth had an odd look on his face, "It's time they face the reality. Hometown…" He turned back around and went quiet again.

Soon, the truck jolted to a halt, nearly tipping over, "Sir… s, something just crashed into our truck!" The driver stammered.

Sephiroth got out of the truck, his Masamune drawn, "That would be our first monster." Zack hopped out of the back and turned to the other two, gesturing for them to stay.

They encountered a huge red dragon, several stories high. Zack and Sephiroth stood facing the dragon away from the truck. It made attack on Zack, swiping its tail, knocking him down. Sephiroth moved in quickly, attacking the dragon with one swipe of Masamune, causing it to disintegrate in thin air. Cloud and Stroganoff watched from the back of the truck, amazed at the General's true strength against the massive beast.

Sephiroth returned to the truck, dragging Zack by the collar and threw him onto the back of the truck. Zack woke up and rubbed his head as he waited for the healing of Cure Materia work on him by Stroganoff, "Whoa…"

"So, how's that for a challenge?" Sephiroth teased lightly as he patted his friend's leg. He chuckled as Zack gave him a scowl.

"Just shut up."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Nibelheim, a small and quaint town, almost vintage-like was very eerily quiet; the air seemed to be tinged with light green vapor, the scent putrid, smelling of Mako. It looked almost deserted if it weren't for lights that shone in the windows, giving evidence of life.

The truck had parked outside the gate of the town, Sephiroth stood at the entrance, taking in the sight of the small town, he knew it were only populated by mere hundred fifty people, where once it prospered over five thousands nearly a hundred years ago just before the reactor was built. Just standing at the gate, he could almost see the entire layout of the town, stretched nearly a mile long in distance across both ways. The town had shrunk over the time, no building from old days were left, but rather destroyed and replaced with green grass surrounding the town. The mountain of Nibel loomed over them in majestic size, dark and foreboding before them.

He wondered idly if it once looked glorious, beautiful in its sheer size, dazzlingly with snow capped peaks. He couldn't tell because its peaks were obvious, jagged in sharp points. He knew it was rather dangerous to traverse in the mountain.

"How does it feel? It's your first time back to your hometown in a long time, right?" He asked as he felt Cloud standing behind him. She had removed her bandage before leaving the truck and with Zack's shrunken clothes; her feature had changed suddenly, from male to female. Her hair, as it had been growing over the past year was always worn in short ponytail was hanging down on her shoulder, shining soft gold along with her eyes shining brilliant blue in the shadow of the light of the town. One look at her face, one would think she was ethereal, yet the uniform broke the image.

She saw how considerate he was toward her; only she and Zack could tell his hidden emotions. Luke, as hard he could observe only got what appeared to be sarcasm or scathing retorts, making Sephiroth appear to be crude, cold and heartless man.

Her soft reply, "It feels strange. It had been nearly four years. As trained Solider I shouldn't fear but I can't help but feel afraid."

"So," He inquired and sighed, he saw her face blank, "I wouldn't know… I don't really have a hometown."

"Weren't you born here?" She asked quietly as she adjusted her helmet, ready to put it on. She looked up with wide eyes as her helmet was taken away and tossed to the back of the truck.

"You're a Class One Elite officially, you do not need helmet. Don't hide yourself." Sephiroth said softly, giving her a secret smile. "As for my hometown, I am not so sure. My mother, her name was Lucrecia Brown, she gave birth to me here in Nibelheim, but I was taken to Midgar and I grew up there under Hojo's care. Funny thing, he kept telling me that my mother's name was Jenova…" He glanced around and shook his head. "What does it matter?"

"Sephiroth, I think we should call me Sorano here. Everyone here know Cloud Strife as a guy. I wouldn't want to confuse them." Cloud suggested. Sephiroth glanced at her and nodded. He turned to Zack and Luke and saw they also nodded.

"All right, let's go."

Cloud followed with Zack beside her and Luke on the other side. He mumbled under his breath, "It's so boring, being on watch." He had lost the short straw draw for whom to take the first watch.

Zack chuckled, "This is going to be an unusual mission, expect something."

Sephiroth wrinkled his nose, "The Mako smell is pretty bad, almost rotting." Cloud had to agree; she sniffed the air and rubbed her nose. It wasn't so bad the last time she was here.

"It's quiet here." Zack commented as they approached the town square, finding it empty. The tall water tower stood in the center. "Every one must be staying in their house…" He watched a woman dart from one building to another, she kept her eyes trained on them the entire time, giving them a look saying that she didn't trust them. "Must be the monsters on loose."

Cloud shook her head slightly, "No, they're afraid of us…" She whispered and brushed her hair aside. "They know we are here for the Reactor. Usually when Soldiers come in town for other reasons, they're okay but when it comes to the Reactors, they don't like it. The Reactor is a curse to the town."

"We leave for the reactor at down. Make sure you get to sleep early." Sephiroth announced and made a turn to the Inn so he'd reserve some rooms for them. He stopped at the door and turned back around, "All we need is one lookout, and the rest of you get some rest, change every six hours." He nodded once, giving another secret smirk toward Cloud. "Oh, Sorano, you may visit with your family and friends." He said almost too formally.

Zack patted Cloud's head, "I'm going to look around a bit, ask questions."

She batted his hand away, "Yeah, see you later. I best see how mom's doing." She gestured to the small quaint house on the other side of the town square that stood before a path that lead up to the mountain. A large mansion stood on the other side of the path, nearly outside of the town.

"I heard General Sephiroth was coming and got my camera ready." Zack turned to find a man appearing out from a shop next to the inn. He smirked at the man, Sephiroth was famous and everyone wanted to get a look at him.

"Better get back in the house, it's dangerous." Zack gently turned down the man, gesturing to the shop where he came from.

"All right…" The man said dejectedly as he went back into his shop with Zack following him, wanting to check out the shop.

Cloud sighed as she stood before the door to her house, she glanced at herself, brushing her uniform, making sure everything was in place. She frowned at her chest, unbound and fully ample, stretching her crew shirt. She adjusted her strap that went across her chest that held the sword on her back. She rubbed the shoulder armors that attached to the suspender that held her pants up. She had preferred to wear one but the regulation had required for all Soldiers to wear both.

She pushed the door open slowly; the sound in the house filled her ears, soft familiar humming and the scent of Luchile nut bread in the oven baking. She entered to find the house the same, colorful and homey as usual. Her mother was in the kitchen, preparing something.

Cloud cleared her throat to get her mother's attention. She wasn't sure what to do, since it had been four years since she was home, so she simply stood there.

The woman turned, frowning as she met with the female Soldier before her, "Yes?" She brushed her hands on her apron; cautiously she stepped up and gasped as she recognized the face of the female Soldier, "Cloud? Oh, welcome home!" She quickly hugged her daughter.

"Hi mom," She smiled as she returned the embrace.

The older blond woman walked around Cloud, smiling as she inspected her daughter, "Oh, look at you. You've grown so much! And…" She frowned as she came fully face to face to her daughter, "I though you said you were masquerading as a male." She gestured to Cloud's figure.

Cloud laughed, "Yeah, I was, but not anymore. I will be telling the board of the ShinRa about my situation…" She murmured the last word, unsure what to call it as she slipped her sword strap off and placed the massive broadsword by the door and sat down on the couch.

Cloud's mother, Freya, smiled as she sat next to her daughter, "I am rather surprised you made it though four years without getting exposed. So, what brings you home?"

Playing with the pillow on the couch, she sighed, "I'm here with others for the Reactor,"

"But I heard General Sephiroth is coming with his group of Elites…" Freya frowned and then realized what Cloud was trying to say, "Oh my, you're one of them now?"

"Yes, Class One Elite, I have been on for a year now. Sephiroth and Zack were the one who suggested that I come clean with the ShinRa. They're going to back me up if anything happens."

"Sephiroth? As in the General and Zack, your roommate you told me about?" Freya asked, curious as she turned her body toward her daughter, giving her full attention.

"Yes, they know. It was an accident that they found out, but we've been close."

"That is wonderful, they treat you good?"

"Better than anyone. Before I forget…" Cloud rummaged though one of her hidden pockets on her pants and pulled out a cardboard roll, "I was going to send this to you but ShinRa inspects package so I wouldn't want them to find this." She handed the small package to her mother.

Freya took the package and opened it to find a rolled up image, she unrolled it and gasped, it was a picture of Cloud with Sephiroth on their first date at Gold Saucer the previous year. Both smiling as Sephiroth held her, his hands on her waist, standing taller than she was. "You looked so beautiful! Is that General Sephiroth?"

Cloud's cheeks pinked, "Yes, mom. We've been dating in secret for about a year since then."

"Oh my, he's really handsome." They both looked up to the door as someone knocked. Cloud stood and went to answer the door to find Sephiroth standing there. Freya stood up and removed her apron and brushed her skirt, smiling.

"Seph, come in." Cloud took his hand and guided him in.

"Much handsomer in person," Freya smiled, not afraid of the General's cold demeanor.

Suddenly, the cold demeanor melted and Sephiroth gave a warm smile, "Nice to meet you, Mrs. Strife," then he noticed the picture in her hand and turned to Cloud, "So you finally gave it to her?"

Cloud nodded, "She knows now. Come on, sit." She guided him to the couch and sat next to him. Freya went to the kitchen and returned with tray of Luchile nut bread, several glasses and a pitcher of tea.

"Thank you for opening your home to me." Sephiroth bowed his head as Freya handed him a cup of tea.

"Now, now, since you're dating my daughter, you're family. I'm curious, how a man likes you get snared in my daughter's trap?"

He chuckled at her pun, "Her bravery and skills, as well her intelligent caught my attention during the first year she joined. I was rather curious about her, er, him rather at the time. We never came across each other until a bit over a year ago at the ShinRa ball; we met in a dancing game."

"Oh my, that sounds romantic."

Cloud buried her head into the pillow she was holding and muttered something darkly.

"Never mind her." Freya sniggered, "Had she been eating right?" She then asked out of the blue.

"Mom!" Cloud retorted as she looked up, gaping.

"The ShinRa treats us well." Sephiroth laughed as he took a bite into the bread.

"Good, good."

There were another knocks on the door but before anyone could answer, the door busted open with Zack bounding in, "Hey! There you are, Sephiroth!"

The said man rose from the couch, giving a glare, "Where's your manner?"

"Sorry, just looking for you since you weren't at the Inn anymore." Zack grinned and turned to Freya, "So, you're Cloud's mom? I can see where she gets her pretty look from."

Freya laughed, "Why, thank you, please make yourself at home. I assume you're Zack." He nodded as she gestured to the easy chair near the couch. She sat in the other one as everyone sat down and made them selves comfortable.

"Uhm, Mom…" Cloud started and stopped as she turned to Zack, "Do you have the tome?" He nodded and went though the bag he had brought with him and took out the tome and handed it to her. "Sephiroth started to research and found several items in Midgar that belonged to Dr.Gast." She saw her mother take a sharp intake of breath, "You know him?"

"Yes. He came to this town a long time ago with few others. He also was your father's colleague. The tome, has it been found? It was lost for many years."

"Yeah, Sephiroth came across this tome, it had been in Gast's possession and then in the ShinRa for long time. I read it and I know we are the Valkyries, you and me, mom."

Freya closed her eyes and sighed, "Yes. It's no point to hide this from you anymore, daughter." She looked up and glanced to Zack and Sephiroth who were somber, listening as well, "They know?"

"Mom, they're involved in this as much we are. We found a lot more things to the legend. First thing first, tell me about my being a Valkyries."

"Yes, you're right. You are a Valkyrie, one of the last one. My time is near, I just know it." She sighed and gave her daughter a pensive look, "As a blond haired and blue eyed women, you and I are Valkyries, guardian of the mountain here, however, it's been a long time since one of our kinds returned to the mountain since Jenova threw us out."

"I know of that legend."

"Well, since you figured most part out already by the story of Jenova, we cannot return to the Mount Nibel until the Son and the Daughter reunite and put to end of Jenova's suffering."

"That means Sephiroth and I are the one to do this?" Cloud asked as she held the tome on her lap.

"What do you mean, you and Sephiroth?" Freya looked from Cloud to Sephiroth and back.

Sephiroth spoke, "You know my mother, Lucrecia Brown?"

The older woman gasped as she stared at Sephiroth, "Oh my, it's true… I mean… you two are dating, which mean, are you two in love with each other?"

Being blunt, Sephiroth nodded, "Yes, I love you daughter very much as I know, she return that love for me."

"Then," Freya stood and paced in a little circle, "It's going to happen sooner than I thought. Once you find each other, everything falls into place…"

"What is it?" Zack asked.

"Let me tell you this story," Freya sat back down and sighed deeply, "It happened years ago, here in Nibelheim, when the Reactor was first build. The town suffered losses of men, it was stormy each day and night from the beginning the ground was struck to be build, every bolt and nuts screwed, a man's life is lost for each day, as a price.

At first, they though it was just an unfortunate accident, but each day wore on and a man is lost, it was becoming suspicious. Fear start to set in their heart, many quit, the reactor was slow to build, finally, it took ShinRa to bribe the townsmen to return and finish the job. More men died each day and finally, on the night before the reactor is to be turned on…"

The sky was dark, stormy as the wind blew harshly and rain fell, soaking the already muddied ground of Nibelheim. It was very, very late, everyone asleep, many men exhausted and tired from finishing the building of the Reactor. They felt relief that it was over, yet their heart burdened with the loss of the other men. Guilt harbored in every soul of Nibelheim.

A drunken man came out of the Inn, stumbling toward to the center of the town square; he figured if he got there, he'd find his way home. As he approached the center, soaked to his bones from the chilling rain, he blinked and rubbed his eyes, wondering if it were a drunken stupor that made him see things.

A woman stood in the center, looking up to the darkness of the sky in the direction of Nibel Mountain, a tear rolled down her face. The rain fell about her, splashing off her body, yet not making her wet. She seemed to glow in the darkness, her long golden blond hair swayed along with her white gown. She turned to the man, her brilliant blue eyes glowed like the rest of her body, yet brighter. A deep sorrow set in her eyes.

"Who are you?" the man asked, wary of the stranger. He had never in his life seen a woman with blond hair and blue eyes, it wasn't common. He wondered if she was an angel or a demon, "Angel or demon be you?" he asked.

The woman's eyes shifted from sorrow to malice, she raised her finger to him and pointed her voice beautiful yet chilling, loud over the torrent rain and storm, "Destruction shall fall upon this sinful town." She then looked to the sky and raised her hands and suddenly, she disappeared with the flash of lightening."

"The town people found the man the next day, sitting there in the town square, babbling, insane, his hair turned white from the fright. It was an omen and ever since, they feared any women with blond hair and blue eyes, claiming them to be the demons. This wasn't in the tome because it's new. Ever since then, there had not been a single Valkyrie woman in the town until I showed up with Cloud. It was a small part leading to this. Once the Son and the Daughter finds each other, everything foretold in the book will follow soon after, including the destruction of Nibelheim."

Zack shook his head, "Whoa, that's bound to scare me if I saw something like that. But how come you are here, knowing the town fears you."

"Yes, I came here with my husband along with other scientist from ShinRa, nineteen years ago. They ridiculed me and tried to get me to leave town, until my husband told them that I am just a foreigner from another country, not some kind of made up myth. It took a long time for them to calm down and accept me. I kept from them that I am what they fears. I became pregnant with Cloud here and when they first discovered that I was carrying a child, rumor spread that I was carrying a demon."

Sephiroth frowned as Freya paused to rub her face, "Please, continue."

She nodded, "There was this doctor in this town, he came to check up on me every once in a while, to make sure I was all right and making to the full term of my pregnancy. It wasn't very long,"

"Three months, isn't it?" Zack asked.

"Yes, how did you know?"

"Please continue with your story, we will tell you ours."

"Sure. Yes, three months I carried Cloud in my belly, on the night she was born, the doctor came and helped with the birth. He was very quiet and when Cloud came into the world, the doctor paled while he wrapped her up in blanket and handed her to me. He asked me then if I was a Valkyrie. I couldn't say anything and he just nodded and left me alone with my husband. He knew, by seeing I had bore a girl. We left two days later, no one was ever truly given a chance to see Cloud or know anything. We didn't come back until about four years later, by then, Cloud was already assumed as a boy, everyone didn't bother. I had heard the poor doctor died few days after I left, he did mutter a warning but no one could understand. All he said was 'beware of the girl…'."

"Yeah," Sephiroth nodded, "He's right. According to the tome, to the prophecy left behind, Cloud and I are to bring destruction and peace. We don't know how… Anyway, here's my story. My mother was Lucrecia Brown, she did carry me for about three months, much like a Valkyries women would. She left behind something on this disc," He held up the disc that holds the conversation between Gast, Iflana and her. "She says that I am the Son of the Valkyrie and she mentioned that I would meet Cloud in Midgar and so on. That was pretty much it, we figured the rest out. Like you said, it's all falling into place."

"Yes, that's why I said the time had come already. I though it would be much later when Cloud was much older but I guess I am wrong. It seems to be your job to put end of Jenova and bring this world to its rightful order. Cloud," She leaned over and took her daughter's hands, "I'm very proud of you, no matter what. Keep in your heart always, forgiveness is the greater form of love."

Sephiroth frowned, confused while Cloud glanced over to him, "What do you mean by that, mom?"

"You will see when time to come. And Sephiroth, I give you my blessing, take care of my little angel." She smiled at the silver-haired man.

"I will, ma'am."

"Please, call me Freya, which goes the same for you, Zack. I feel like you are my son as well, it seems though Cloud's letters to me over the few years, you've treated her much like a brother she never had. Now, would you like to stay for dinner?"

The three of them nodded and stood as Freya did. They followed her into the kitchen and started about to help her set the table and make dinner, their conversation going to the lighter topic over how Cloud had been doing at ShinRa in the last few years. The three Elites knew better than to pry any more into it seeing that Freya was much more acceptant to their fate.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	12. S1:12: Nibelheim Reactor

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . O N E : T H E . A C A D E M Y . **

Chapter Twelve: Nibelheim Reactor

_Before I go whence I shall not return, even to the land of darkness and the shadow of death; _

Job 10:21, The Holy Bible

"You have a question." The older woman bluntly said as she busied around the kitchen cleaning up after dinner.

Sephiroth nodded, "Yeah."

"And you're stuck on how to ask the question. It's about Cloud." She turned around and faced him.

He nodded again, leaning against the wall across from her, "I just want to understand a little bit more... Megamiki and Madoshi, my mother mentioned that Cloud and I am the Son and the Daughter, the Queen and the King. I understand the Son and Daughter part, but not the rest; how does Megamiki and Madoshi comes into the picture, setting them free and all."

Freya chuckled and turned away from her dishwashing, they could hear Zack and Cloud shouting over a match of board game in the living room, "I regret one thing your mother left out in her message, the suffering that Megamiki and Madoshi had gone through, you and Cloud will too. But your fate along with their will end the same, you all will be set free. I'm sorry, I have a very little premonition ability, and I only see little of what will come. Your mother has the strongest ability and could see the whole future at will." She then busied herself at the sink, washing the dishes. "It's the Queen and King part that bothers you to the extent as well."

Sephiroth nodded as he helped her, handing the dishes from the table to her, "Yes. I can't see that happening because the whole planet has governing system and all that. The only country under monarchy rule is Wutai."

Freya nodded, "Yes. But things are changing, that is all I can tell you." She frowned and stared at the water in the sink, "The destruction of Nibelheim…the book only mentions that but my mother and her mother also foretold something about the beginning of destruction. They told me that the Dark Ruler will fall." She look up to Sephiroth who stared at her with wide eyes, "The prophecy in the book does not reveal everything, it was written by Valkyries ages ago and whatever was foretold recently was never added to the book, there are a lot of holes. But I assure you, in the end, everything will be good. I've told Cloud once long ago, bad situation is just a mere illusion of good situation."

Sephiroth frowned as he pondered her words. She smiled at him, "There is something else, and you wish to know."

"Yes, in the disk, my mother, Lucrecia, as much I know it was her, why did she conceal her identity with the name J.L.?"

Freya remained silent for a moment and sighed, "Its quiet simple. Who was your mother reincarnated from?"

Sephiroth froze and whispered, "Jenova… no… You're telling me that she is Jenova as well?"

Freya nodded, "Your mother was Jenova's child, if you recall from the tome, the story how Jenova gave birth to a child with different coloring?" He nodded, "Jenova is technically your grandmother however, your mother carries her soul in place of Jenova's body to escape the alien soul, and hence, you carry her gene but not her soul. In time to come, the alien soul will attempt to replace her body and you are her next victim. So, be careful, remember always, she must be destroyed, body, mind and soul in all before you and Cloud could proceed to make the rest of the legend come true. This is what Lucrecia wanted, purge this planet of this evil soul that now harbor in Jenova's body."

Sephiroth stood away from the beam he was leaning against, "You're telling me, Jenova is still out there, somewhere? And my mother too?"

"Jenova's body is, but your mother, Lucrecia has passed on, her soul is safe, hidden somewhere until the time comes. She refuses to pass on until everything falls into place."

"Sephiroth! We better go back and get some rest." Cloud called out from the living room, shaking the two out of stupor and dissipating the ominous feeling that Sephiroth was starting to harbor.

Freya smiled and cupped Sephiroth's face, boring her blue eyes into his green ones, "I forgive you, for what you will do." She whispered to Sephiroth and watched Cloud come into the kitchen and pulled the silver haired man out into the living room.

He frowned as he glanced over his shoulder, wondering what she could have meant.

Soon, Zack, Sephiroth and Cloud gave Freya thanks and farewell, returning to the Inn for the night. Freya stood at her doorway, watching the trio as they cross the square. She whispered to the night, "Your son came home, my friend. It has begun."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Midnight rolled around, Cloud rose from her bed and glanced around, finding Luke had returned from his watch and was sleeping in the next bed. Zack was gone, assuming that he had taken over the watch.

She exited the room and found Sephiroth standing in the hallway of the Inn, gazing out of the window in front of their rooms. There were a small table nearby, with several cups and a pot of hot water. She silently went to the table and poured herself a tea, noticing an untouched tea at the end of the table near Sephiroth.

Deciding to break the silent, "What's you looking at?" She whispered.

He blinked as the silence were broken and shifted and his body swayed slightly to her, acknowledging her presence. "The scenery," He replied and she joined him to the window, looking out to the dark landscape, illuminated by the near full moon. "I just feel nostalgia. Even though I was born here but I wasn't raised here, it still felt like I know this place."

Cloud smiled at him and stepped closer to him leaning her head on his broad chest, sipping her tea, "Yeah, I heard places do that to everyone, I suppose it is this place that calls to our Valkyries blood inside us. We are born with genetic memory of our foremothers."

His hand found her hair and stroked the golden strands, "Maybe you're right." They stared out of the window together, simply taking in the landscape of the wild Nibel grassland that rose to meet the jagged mountain range under the bright moonlight.

After a long silence, he sighed, breaking the stillness of peace, "Come, and let's hit the bed so we can get early start tomorrow." He broke away and gave a soft smile to her.

She nodded and hesitantly walked away from him to her door and paused there.

"I've hired a guide to the Mako reactor for tomorrow. I've heard that she's young, I hope she is reliable. Good night, koibito." He said, reaching his door and gave her a final nod before closing his door shut softly.

She smiled as she closed her door at last and climbed into bed, getting sleep before dawn.

Inside Sephiroth's bedroom, he sat at the bed, glancing at the small black boxed object in his hand. The feeling of foreboding was worse now since he had talked to Freya Strife. He couldn't understand why Freya needed to forgive him. He knew something was going to happen, and according to Freya, soon.

Standing up, he clenched the box in his hand with resolve and silently slipped from his room and into the next room. The Mako enchanted eyes of his told him that Luke and Cloud was sound asleep, he found her in the bed near the door and knelt beside her bed.

He watched her sleep for few minutes, simply memorizing the plane of her face, the shine of her golden hair in the dim moonlight from the window, making the strands appear soft silver.

Reaching out, he took her hand and stroked her fingers softly, feeling the softness of her skin on the back of her hand. He stood and left, leaving behind the empty black box on the night table.

Outside of the Inn, on the steps, Zack sat there, cradling the Buster Sword in his arms, he glanced around, yawning. His head turned to the windows on the second floors and his mind strayed to his two best friends.

He smiled, knowing Sephiroth's secret plan for the next night. The next day would mark their one year anniversary of dating. The general had planned to take her out to dinner and propose at the end.

Zack was ecstatic over the idea and encouraged him to go ahead with the plan. Surely, the aftermath would shock the entire ShinRa and probably the entire planet, because Sephiroth was known to be one of the most eligible bachelors and the most challenging one of them all.

He saw a shooting star streak across the midnight sky and sighed, wishing the best for his two best friends.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack stood next to Luke outside the abandoned mansion before the path into Nibel Mountain. Sephiroth stood away from them, in conversation with two men from the town.

Cloud soon showed up, running toward them, out of breath and late. She reached to the General and puffed her breath, "Sorry." Then under her breath, "Somebody hid my boots."

Zack whistled as he noticed the blonde and the General gave him a glare. He had taken Cloud's boots when he had returned to bed, feeling in mood being a prankster.

Sephiroth tilted his head sideway, giving his friend a glare and turned back to Cloud, "Once the guide gets here, we are heading out."

She gave a nod and went to stand by Zack and gave him a hard whack on the head. Luke gave a puzzled look at them when Zack winced.

A man walked up to Sephiroth with a serious look on his face, he wasn't all too happy and Cloud recognized him as Tifa Lockhart's father. "Listen to me, Sephiroth." He received a glare from the General and brushed it aside, knowing no one would call him by his given name. "In case something happens…"

Sephiroth raised his hand, immediately causing the man to quiet, "Trust me."

A girl around Cloud's age arrived, wearing wide brimmed hat, white shirt with red short fringed jacket and red shorts. She turned to her father, patting him on the shoulder, "I'll be all right, Dad! I have them to watch out for me," she gestured to the Elite Soldiers and smiled to them, turning around, she clutched her hands behind her back, "I'm Tifa, nice to meet you!" She gave a wink to Zack.

Cloud frowned, recognizing the woman. "You're the guide?" She asked quietly and Tifa nodded.

"A female Soldier, that's unheard of." Tifa said, walking around Cloud, looking her over, "Well, I just happen to be the number one guide in this town."

Cloud nodded, supposing it was best to get along with her without causing any troubles. She glanced over to Zack and found him inquiring her look, knowing that Zack had recognized Tifa's name. She gave him a nod, letting him know he was right in guessing that this girl was the one relating to the Nibelheim gang back in Midgar.

She wondered as she watched Tifa bounced toward the path that led them directly into the mountain, instructing things to Sephiroth who also took lead. Wondering how the girl came from falling and getting hurt in the mountain a long time ago to this tour guide. She was cheerful and had hint of bouncy personality, always seeming to smile at everyone, even at Sephiroth's stoic expression.

Sephiroth stopped and turned to Cloud and Zack, "Let's go." Luke was already ahead with Tifa. But they were stopped by another man, with the camera, pleading to have a picture.

Suddenly, the man turned to Tifa, pleading to her to ask and then Tifa turned to Cloud, "You there, you think your boss will let him take pictures?"

Feeling stumped, she shot Sephiroth a look. Sephiroth rolled his eyes and nodded, "Be quick about it." He moved to stand and to his distaste, Tifa took his arm and held on, smiling broadly to the camera. Cloud smirked and stood beside him while Zack and Luke came behind the two women.

After the snapshot, Tifa bustled around and placed the four Soldiers together alone in line, another picture were taken. Zack then gave Luke a look, asking him silently to step out of the next shot. He moved around and the three of them stood there, somber and serious. The entire time, Sephiroth stood there casually, almost bored out of his mind, thinking it was a waste of time.

The light flashed. "Great, thank you!" The man called out to them and went up to Cloud and Tifa. "I'll give each of you a copy once I get it developed!"

Tifa then soon then lead them up the twisting paths of Mt. Nibel. Sephiroth followed behind her while Zack, Cloud and Luke trailed behind, discussing about the mission and what's to be expected.

As soon they reached a bridge that spiraled over a gap between two jagged towers of mountain, they crossed perilously knowing it was an ancient bridge. Tifa took lead with Sephiroth on her tail, Cloud and Zack followed behind and Luke shaking with fear of height behind them all. As soon Tifa reached the end of the bridge, she turned and gasped as the rope snapped, sending the bridge into violent shake.

They all grabbed hold of the rope that didn't snap. Tifa screamed as she slid down toward Sephiroth. He grabbed the woman and glanced behind himself and saw Zack and Cloud hanging on the other end of the bridge, he saw that Luke had taken the free fall down into the dark chasm of the crude mountain.

Zack and Cloud swung toward the solid ledge on the opposite side and landed safety. She brushed her uniform down and sighed in relief, "I think they landed somewhere around the ledge." She said as she pointed to the path that led them around to a flatter area.

Sure enough, they found Sephiroth and Tifa standing there, checking over to see if they had lost anything. Only Tifa lost her brimmed hat.

The General looked up to find Cloud coming toward them, he asked, "Sorano, are you okay?" He gave a quick look over and saw she was only merely starched from the rocks.

"I'm fine." She nodded.

Tifa watched the interchange between the General and the female, noticing that the man did indeed have emotions, only toward the blond haired woman. She couldn't help but find this Sorano very, very familiar and she couldn't put her finger on why. She glanced around and recognized where they were, they were at the bottom of the desired cavern. "We were to enter the top part of the cave above from the bridge," She pointed to the hole that gaped to the two pegs that held the bridge. "But these cave mouths along the side of the mountain are intertwined, just like an ant farm. General, one of your men is missing."

He nodded, regaining his stoic composure, "It may sound cold, but we've got no time to search for him. We can't go back now, so we must go on. We'll stay closer from here." But he knew that Luke didn't make it. He had fallen to his death; there were no hope for him, knowing that Nibel had swallowed him up.

They all gathered together and went up the twisting path into the cave. The cave was eerily beautiful inside; the stones glowed crystalline with green and aqua light. They traveled in awe.

"What is this?" Cloud asked as she touched the wall of the cave and gasped as she found them to be soft to touch, yet almost surreal, the color shifted under her warm hand, almost as if it reacted to her touch.

Tifa smiled and replied, "A mysterious colored cave, and the townspeople believe this to be part of the lifestream."

"It is Mako inside this rock; the mountain is especially abundant in it. That's why the Mako Reactor was built here." Sephiroth explained and took the lead to the exit of the cave. Soon, they all found themselves into the center of the mountain, an ominous but beautiful area flatted out like a bowl with a rock protruding in the center, almost like an altar.

However, instead of normal rocks, there were shimmering colors of rainbow all around them, the sun reflected though the jagged spires of the mountain above them. The rock in the center spewed the colors out, like a fountain, appearing in liquid state but to the touch, it wasn't liquid or gas or solid of the matter it just flowed and spread around them as they stood there.

"Mako fountain, in its purest sense, I am rather surprised the ShinRa hadn't discovered this area." Sephiroth noted.

Cloud stepped up to the fountain and allowed her hand to skim the surface while Tifa touched it and studied it in awe. "It is a protected area." She whispered, "It is a special place for the Valkyries… I believe." Her blue eyes gazed over, the colors reflected in her iris.

Zack noticed this and saw Sephiroth also had gone into trance and he knew immediately that the two of them were aware of their heritage; the entire place seemed to call to them. Tifa did not notice the entire time, her focus was on the rock, studying it in amazement.

Suddenly, Cloud and Sephiroth snapped out of their trance and glanced at each other, giving knowing look. They looked resigned as well. Cloud whispered, loud enough for all to hear, "It's a holy ground, their praying area." She said bowing her head and her eyes closed in respect.

Tifa stepped away from the fountain rock; Cloud had finished her short prayer and regained her composure of a Soldier. The woman smiled at them, unknown of the event that transpired between the three of them, she asked, "If the Mako Reactor continues to suck up the energy, this fountain will dry up too…"

Sephiroth nodded as he walked around the fountain, "The reactor is created to make energy and Materias, when you condense Mako Energy, Materia is produced. It is very rare to be able to see Materia in its natural state." He pointed to the fountain. "Worry not; we're here to stop the Reactor. This will remain untouched."

Cloud thought back to her studies and then asked, "By the way… why is it that when you use Materia, you can also use magic too?" Asking referring to the elemental power from the Materia they were supplied.

Sephiroth gave her a quizzical look, "You're in Soldier and don't even now that?"

She gave a sheepish smile, "I guess I didn't pay attention in class that day."

He shook his head, "The knowledge and wisdom of the planet is held in the Materia seeing it is made from Mako, the planet's life blood. Anyone with the gene of the planet has access to this knowledge can freely use the power of the Land and the Planet. That knowledge interacts between us and the planet calling up magic… or so they say."

Tifa sighed as she skimmed her hand across the fountain. "What do that mean?" She asked curious.

Cloud shrugged, "In simplest term, anyone who has the gene of the planet can control the power… that means basically everyone since they're all descendant of the Valkyries and Cetera over the last two thousands of years." Tifa paled at the word Valkyries and frowned, ready to protest but Sephiroth interrupted her.

"You're correct." Sephiroth said curtly.

"Magic… a mysterious power…" Zack murmured as Cloud smiled, watching the color dance. Sephiroth laughs softly, earning an odd look from the other three.

"Did I day something funny?" Zack asked, confused.

"A man once told me never to use an unscientific term, such as mysterious power. It shouldn't even be called 'magic'! I still remember how angry he was." Sephiroth smiled, amused at the memory.

"Who was that?" Zack queried, suspecting he knew the answer.

"Hojo," Sephiroth said and saw Tifa's confused look, "Scientist of ShinRa, an inexperienced man assigned to take over the work of a great scientist, Dr. Gast." His brow knotted, "He is a walking mass of complexes."

"A Mako fountain… so this is where the knowledge of the Ancients is." Tifa said, unaware of the scathing look from Cloud who muttered under her breath, "Not the Ancient, it's the Valkyries."

The four of them continued out of narrow path of the ancient ground of Valkyries. They soon found their destination and walked up the path that led them to the reactor. As soon they got there, Sephiroth had assigned Zack to remain behind with Tifa, not trusting the young woman. Tifa had protested and wanted to explore the reactor. Sephiroth had informed that only authorized people are allowed in. She stomped her foot and threw a small fit, giving amusement for Zack to watch.

The reactor wasn't large but it still loomed ominously before them against the mountain's side, the area around them was flat and large, there were several deep glowing green Mako pool surrounding the reactor.

Sephiroth and Cloud made their way up the steep rusted steps and into the reactor, everything seemed normal as they glanced around, chains, pulley, tanks and bits. It was long abandoned, running on its own. They had to find the source of the leak and shut the part off in the area. They were to come back the next day to shut the entire reactor down temporarily until the ShinRa sent a crew to fix the place. Sephiroth suspected that the ShinRa wouldn't bother to bring the reactor back to power anytime soon.

They made their way around the reactor and figured the leak must had been coming from the room below where they stood and the only way down was to cross a plank and climb down thick chains. After they reached to the bottom, they stood in awe and puzzlement.

"What is this place, it is not in any other reactors." Cloud said as she surveyed rows of pods twice the size of a man and in between was a staircase toward to the top of the pods and a metal door at the end.

The room glowed reddish from the light and each pods had windows that glowed greenish blue. Sephiroth took the staircase to the top and frowned as he glanced on the plate above the door engraved, 'Jenova.'

Cloud soon joined him and gasped, "This is…" She recognized the name. "Jenova… Why would she be here?" She attempted the door and found it locked. "It won't open."

Sephiroth went back down the stairs, checking each row of pods, "This is Nibel Mountain, home of the Valkyries… Jenova once was one of them… I know Hojo had something to do with her but, what is going on here?" He asked and stood before a pod, it was large and capable of holding something the size of man. "There, the valve is broken here, leaking Mako." He frowned at the pod, figuring that the valve and pipe had been feeding Mako into the pods. He glanced around, trying to make clear of senses.

Cloud made her way down the steps and to the cranks.

"Close the valve, right there." He pointed to one of the cranks and she moved to turn it until the hissing stopped, indicating the flow of Mako had stopped.

Sephiroth remained before the pod and wondered, "Why did it break?" He reached up and then peered into the green glowing window, his eyes widened, "… Now I see, Hojo." He whispered, "But, even doing this will never put you on the same level as Professor Gast." He turned to Cloud, "This is a system that condense and freezes the Mako energy. That is, when it is working correctly. What does Mako energy become when it is further condensed?"

Not sure where he was going, Cloud answered, "Oh yeah, it becomes a Materia."

Sephiroth sighed, "Right, normally. But Hojo put something else in there. Take a look."

She nodded and looked into the window of the nearest pod. She gasped as she stared into the green swirling Mako, a deformed figure of a man; he was twisted and mutated into some kind of monster. It was a horrid sight; she fell back down on her rump, shocked, "What is this?" She spat with disgust.

"Normal members of Soldier are humans that had been showered with Mako. They're different, but still human." He explained and Cloud understood because all of the Soldiers were required to take Mako injections. "But, what are they?" He gestured to the rest of the pods in the room. "They've been exposed to a higher degree of Mako, far more than normal."

"Some kind of monster?"

"Exactly, and it is Hojo of ShinRa that produced these monsters. Mutated living organisms produced by Mako energy. That's what the monster really are."

Cloud thought of what he had told her, "Normal members of Soldiers? You mean you are different?" She asked, knowing of his history with Hojo, and innumerable of Mako shots he had over the years.

He winced and covered his head with his hands and shook.

"Hey… Sephiroth?" She reached out to him, surprised by his strange actions.

Shaking his head, "No… no… was I?" He asked and withdrew his Masamune and struck the pods with anger, "Was I created this way too?" He ran over to the other and stuck it, "Am I the same as all these monsters?"

Cloud gasped at his violent outburst, "Sephiroth!"

"You saw it! All of them were human…" He cried in outrage and quietly stood still, his Masamune lowered to his side.

She shook her head, reaching to him, "Human, no way! They once were, but whatever their humanity is left, they're dead. You're alive… you're not a monster…"

He sighed, "I've always felt since I was young… that I was different from the others. Special, in some way," then he shook his head regrettably. "But… not like this…:

"Sephiroth, you and I are different from the others, different from Zack. We're Valkyries; we're here for a reason. Remember? We're to stop Jenova. She is here, in there."

He looked up at the door, "Yes, you're right. It is the Planet we have to save from this madness."

One of the pods started to shake, it shook violently, the pipes and wires broke free from it, electric shocks sparked. Something screamed inhumanly and the monster shook around inside. The pod flipped over it side and burst open, the monster screamed once more and flumped back down, dying.

Cloud gasped, seeing the monster in its true form. No, it couldn't be. She looked up to her love and then buried her head into his chest. "You're not a monster. You're a kind soul, I love you… never, never think that way." She whispered.

He felt her warm tears on his chest and drew his free hand to hold her against him as he watched the monster die. It was too much for them to comprehend in one day. He glanced up to the door and felt something stirred inside his chest, something beyond the door was calling to him and he dread what he would find in there.

"It is shut for now, let's go back. The Mako flow to the pods had stopped, they'll die eventually." He said as he led Cloud out.

As they reached outside, they appeared pale and shaken to Zack and Tifa. They walked past in silence, apart but close for comfort.

"What happened?" Zack asked as he caught up to them.

"Later." Cloud replied and they spent the rest of their trip back to Nibelheim in silence.

After they reached Nibelheim, Tifa had returned home sullen, miffed that she didn't get much information out of the Soldiers. Sephiroth had retreated into his room and locked the door, leaving Zack to watch Cloud cry herself into her pillow, muttering about Mako, monsters and other things.

After several hours of trying to calm his best friend down, he finally got the whole story and was shocked. He went and banged on the General's door, demanding that he should be out and be with Cloud. But the silver haired man ignored and remained locked in his bedroom.

Exhausted, mentally, physically and emotionally worn out, Cloud fell asleep. Zack paced the hallway, worried and suspecting something was truly wrong. He sighed and retreated to the bedroom and sat on Cloud's bed, watching her sleep. Soon, he noticed something on Cloud's finger, a ring.

He reached out and silently slipped the ring off her finger, studying it closer, he found it was a beautiful white gold ring, simple with green Materia chipped stone in the center, flanked with tiny clear diamonds. Inside the band, he peered closer and found an inscription, 'My beautiful angel of my heart, Sephiroth.'

Slipping it back on her finger, he suspected Sephiroth had given it to her sometime the night before and knew the plan wasn't going to happen. He made a resolve that he would remind Sephiroth about the ring and knock him to senses. He looked up to the wall that separated the two lovers; he could hear the other man pacing back and forth in the other room.

The next day, the sun shone into the bedroom. Cloud rose from her bed and decided to not change her clothes, seeing that she was still in the clothes she wore the day before. She went to search for Sephiroth and didn't find him in his room. She went down the inn and searched, and met with Zack outside. "Where is Sephiroth?" She asked.

Zack stood with his arms crossed across his chest; he tilted his head to the end of the town, "Several of the people said they saw him go to the Mansion. I suppose we should go and find him and get this damned mission over with. The farther away we get from here, the better you two be."

She nodded her agreement and two of them went to the old mansion and entered, searching for their missing friend. They searched every room in the place and met back in the main hall way an hour later.

"There's no sign of Sephiroth, but I swear he went into this room…" He turned and guided her to a room on the second floor to the west wing. He gestured into a small study room.

She stepped in and glanced around and noted there were faded footprints in the thin dust on the floor ending at a wall. She reached out and touched the wall; it clicked and moved, revealing a hidden doorway. They both peered into the doorway and found a staircase spiraling down into the darkness.

"I'm going down." She stepped and with burst of energy, she ran down with anticipation, worry and fearful all the same time not because of the environment, but because of Sephiroth, she reached to the bottom and found herself into an underground cavern.

She found him in a hidden lab, deep below the mansion. He was pacing around, reading a book, almost possessed.

"… An organism that was apparently dead was found in a two thousand year old geological stratum." He murmured as he read from the book. "Professor Gast named that organism, Jenova because…"

She gasped. "Sephiroth, what are you on about?" Something stirred inside, something so evil that they should not bother with it.

"Jenova was the last person to have this alien virus, the soul of the alien that came here by the meteor… They killed her... it makes all senses." He looked up from the book. "Cloud, Jenova is dead but this virus is keeping her body alive, we have to destroy it."

She nodded, "Come on…" She reached out to him, gesturing to the door.

He went back to the book, "Jenova confirmed to be an Ancient… No, this is wrong, she was a Valkyries… Ancients are the Cetra." He flipped the pages, frowning, still pacing back and forth in the room, "Jenova Project approved. The use of Mako Reactor One approved for use…" He then turned into the hallway lined with shelves of book. He stopped midway and looked up, ignoring Cloud. "Is this just a coincidence? Jenova, Lucrecia… now me. I can't have the virus in me…" He muttered.

"Sephiroth…" She whispered as she saw his head bow down in distress, his voice laced with sadness and anger.

"Professor Gast… why didn't you tell me anything? Why did you die?"

She swallowed silently, there was so much to Sephiroth's hidden past and she could feel that he had so much pain and confusion. She wanted to comfort him but couldn't because he had built a wall between them so suddenly. She went to him and reached out to him.

Before she could touch him, his cold voice stopped her, sending icy chill down her spine, "Let me be alone." There was nothing she could do but leave him alone as he wished. He was possessed by something.

He didn't come out of the Mansion but remained reading all the books that were in the hidden lab, forgetting about everything else, so intent to find more information about his past that the secret lab provided. Cloud found a room in the mansion and stayed there, waiting for time to pass.

She hoped Sephiroth would snap out of his madness. The empty feeling became heavy and heavier as the time went on. Finally several hours later, she got out of the bed, deciding to check on him again. Zack had left the mansion hours ago to assure the people in Nibelheim that things would be okay.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	13. LO:1: Nibelheim Crisis

. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .

. L A S T . O R D E R .

Scene One: Nibelheim Crisis

_Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah - from the LORD out of the heavens. _

Genesis 19:24, The Holy Bible

Green eyes watched in the shadow as Cloud passed by him in the hallway of the basement, heading for the floor above. He waited and listened with his keen ears, he heard the woman closing the door and the faint sound of the sheet rustling and the bed creaking. He knew the woman had gone to sleep. He waited some time more and decided it was time.

Stepping out of the shadow, making no sounds as he walked, he entered the office and smirked as he watched his mirror counterpart busily read a book, oblivious to the world outside the book.

"Don't bother. It's not going to do you any good."

Sephiroth looked up and his eyes widened, "Who are you?" He stared at the intruder; he looked every bit like him, except his eyes were cold with malice.

The counterpart chuckled, "You've come to your prime and you're useless now. It's my turn to step in."

Sephiroth stared, "What do you mean?" He dropped the book and gripped his Masamune. The counterpart crackled and like lighting, they both clashed at each other, sending the room in disarray of mess.

Sephiroth slashed with his sword and realized that his twin counterpart was every bit of a match to him, even without a sword of his own. A quick backhand, he was sent crashing into the far wall of the basement.

The counterpart smirked as he wiped his leather jacket of the invisible dust, standing over the fallen Sephiroth. He reached down and snatched the sword out of the former's hand and gripped the silver mane, pulling the former up. "Like I said, useless now. I'm much better, stronger and more powerful. But you still have one use left." He turned, dragging the half-conscious Sephiroth behind him, not minding him bumping into corners and over the rough ground.

The twin counterpart glanced around as he reached outside the Mansion; it was dark, well late into the night. He smirked, knowing that no one would see him. He shrugged and hoisted the beaten Sephiroth up onto his shoulder, "Off we go to Mother's house. There you will wait for both of us." He said in a sing song voice and trekked up the path in the mountain to the Reactor.

Sephiroth groaned as he felt himself being thrown to the hard floor. He opened his eyes and glanced around. He cursed silently to himself, knowing that he had allowed himself to be distracted and allowed his twin counterpart beaten him. It didn't help that he had a throbbing headache. He sat up, wincing as he touched his forehead, his gloved hand came away swaddled with blood. He glared at his mirrored self.

"What are you?" He snarled, attempting to stand up.

The twin gave an odd smile, "That doesn't matter. I'm here to take place in your life, fulfill the destiny. I'll be the true ruler of the planet, along with Mother."

He gestured to the armored woman above them, staring down at them with cold steel face.

Sephiroth looked up and realized he was in the chamber beyond the door of Jenova. He glanced around and gaped, the room was large, bright and glowing with eerie green light that came from below. He peered over the edge of the floor where he stood. The depth was unfathomable. He knew they were over some kind of Mako pool, a hole in the mountain.

The reactor was built on a specific location, an area on the side of the Nibel Mountain where there were a lot of holes that gave way to the Lifestream. It was one of the biggest that the ShinRa had discovered all over the planet. From what he recalled, it was also a cursed ground for Nibelheim, cursed by the Valkyries.

The pseudo-Sephiroth chuckled, "Come on, let's go home. Mother and I will join you shortly. But I have to do little research, there's few information that the idiot scientist left out."

Sephiroth turned to him, "Hojo created you. He cloned me to make you. Utter madness."

"Absolutely. The man is a genius when it comes to that. Anyway, off you go." Pseudo-Sephiroth held the Masamune to Sephiroth's throat, "go on," he gestured with a nod to the Mako below, "jump."

Sephiroth glared at his twin counterpart. "Ironically, I get my own evil twin and he's telling me to jump." He quickly darted forward along the side of the Masamune to grip the hilt and twirled around, suddenly switching position with his counterpart. "I don't think so. I have so much for my life to live, without the ShinRa. Consider that my resignation."

His counterpart, at the end of the sword crackled, "You have resignation notice and it's down there." He pointed behind him to the green glows. "Come on, I'm your match, perhaps even better." Suddenly he leapt up and Sephiroth followed, clashing with his sword, they bounced off the wall of the chamber, attacking each other in lighting speed.

Sephiroth glared at his counterpart, wondering why his twin wanted him to go to the Lifestream so badly. Suddenly, he regretted giving Cloud a cold shoulder and the feeling went to the pit of his stomach, he realized he had lost the hold of his sword in one quick move and his counterpart had the sword.

With one swing, he gasped as the blinding pain slashed across his chest, he fell back. Life flashed before his mind and the last image was of Cloud smiling at him, sweetly. "Cloud…" His eyes closed and he fell to the pit of the chamber, into the depth of the Mako, falling to the fathom of the Lifestream.

Pseudo-Sephiroth landed on the floor, peering into the depth with glee on his face. "Well, that was easy. I'm coming back, Mother. Just hold on a bit." He turned and with a swish of his silver hair, he left the chamber to head back to the ShinRa Mansion basement.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack had returned and was sitting in the office where the secret passage was. Cloud had came and went, checking on the silver haired man several times. He also went down to check on him as well, during those times they checked on him, the General had never noticed the two of them coming and going.

"He seems different." Zack noted as Cloud appeared in the room. His eyes were dark with emotions and hollow from lack of sleep in the last one night. It had seemed forever to the two of them but it was only merely passing of one day.

She sighed and went down the stairs to the lab. The closer she got to the lab; the feeling of dread overwhelmed her. Her eyes widened as she heard his cold laugher. It sounded hollow, laced with evilness, not the Sephiroth she knew. Her blue eyes shut close, trying to remove the sound that invaded her ears, replacing with the memories of kind, sweet laugher from before. The man she knew seemed to be gone.

With courage, she went into the office that adjoined the lab and found him sitting there, at the desk, not reading any more books. He was complementing the space before him and suddenly his head snapped toward her, his eyes cold and calculating, "Who is it?" She cringed and saw slow understanding appearing in his jade eyes, recognizing her. Her heart dropped to the bottom as he said, "Humph… traitor."

"Traitor?" She could only asked, her voice quiet.

He stood from the chair and turned his back to her, "You ignorant traitor. I'll tell you." His voice cold and empty, "This planet originally belonged to the Cetra. The Cetra was an itinerant race. They would migrate in, settle the Planet, and then move on… At the end of their harsh, hard journey, they would find the Promised Land and supreme happiness."

What of that happiness you have with me? Isn't that Promised Land to you? She wanted to yell at him but kept silent. Something was off here.

"But, those that disliked the journey appeared. Those who stopped their migration built shelters and elected to lead an easier life. They took that which the Cetra and the Planet had made with out giving back one whit in return!" He pointed a finger to Cloud with a frown, accusing, "Those are your ancestors."

"Sephiroth…" She gasped; this wasn't Sephiroth she knew at all. "I am not…" Something dawned inside her, whoever possessed the man she loved didn't know she was a Valkyrie, of a true race belonging to the planet.

He ignored her and continued, "long ago, disaster struck this planet. Your ancestors escaped… They survived because they hid." He moved around the desk, "the planet was saved by sacrificing the Cetra. After that, your ancestors continued to increase. Now that's all left of the Cetra is in these reports." He slapped his hand on the papers lying on the desk.

She was confused; there was nothing mentioned about the Valkyries. From what she could understand in her own rendition, this invading species that came from the meteor two thousands of years ago had infected the Cetra, wiping them out and moved onto the solitary Valkyrie that attempted to help, Jenova, and infected her. Before Jenova could carry the virus onto the other Valkyries, she was beheaded, thus stopping the spread. And yet, Sephiroth didn't mentioned anything about that but gave a different story.

That was the last time this some sort of virus was known. Somehow, they were unaware of the Valkyries. She glanced around the office and swallowed hard as she saw a large cylinder with bluish glow, it was open. She also noticed the room was in disarray of mess as well, papers, books and things were scattered everywhere.

Feeling that she should distract the man before her, find out what happened to this species, "What does that have to do with you?"

He rubbed his forehead, snarling, "Don't you get it?" He walked up to her, peering down at her, "An Ancient named Jenova was found in geological stratum of two thousands years ago. She became the Jenova Project here." He leaned back and covered his face with his hands, as it seemed there were a battle within him, "The Jenova Project wanted to produce people with the powers of the Ancients… no, the Cetra." He then looked up, there were familiar glint in his eyes, and she surged with hope to see her Sephiroth come out of Madness, "I am the one that was produced."

She stared at him with shock; this wasn't going where it was going. Whatever possessed him was getting it all wrong, "Pr…produced?" The cold emptiness came back in his eyes and her hope crashed.

"Yes." He looked away into the hallway, "Professor Gast, leader of the Jenova Project and genius scientist, produced me." Then he walked down the hallway, his jacked billowed behind him.

"How… how did he…?" She asked, curious to see what the possessed says about this. She knew Sephiroth was born of a woman, not produced like an experiment. She ran after him, "Se…Sephiroth?"

He stopped, "Out of my way, I am going to see my mother." He slammed her aside, knocking her out.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

She shook her head, awake an hour later as a feeling of cold dread washed over her, and then she ran out of the mansion, finding it empty. Sephiroth was already gone from the building.

As she reached to the courtyard of the mansion, she gasped, it all happened so fast. The town before her was licked in orange flame of fire, roaring to the night sky. Her hometown was burning while the sky was a dark, deep crimson orange.

"No… Destruction shall fall upon this sinful town." She gazed around, recalling her mother's story. It had already happened and so soon. As much this town had caused her little comfort though her childhood, she would never wish this upon them. "It's happening already…"

Her voice caught in her throat as she turned her gaze to the end of the town, where it led up to the path to the Nibel Mountain. Sephiroth stood, in his glory with flame rising around him. His long silver hair billowed upward along with the flame. He had slashed couple of the villagers. He paused, standing in the midst of the fire and turned slowly. His green eyes met with her blue ones, staring at each other. Then, his lips curled into a grin and she shivered as she felt the chill shot through her spine. "Sephiroth…" Then, he turned away, stepping through the wall of the flame and he was gone.

She blinked and turned, "Hey!" She called out, forgetting everything else, panic filled inside her, "Is anyone here?"

"Cloud!" She turned to find Zack running toward her, worried etched on his face.

"What happened?" She gestured to the burning village around her.

Zack shook his head, "I was hit with a sleeping spell, the next thing I knew, the whole place's up in fire."

"Look, its Zangan." She pointed across the square near the steps to the path of the mountain. The said man was retreating with a wounded man on his back.

Zack called out over the fire, "Uncle!"

Zangan stopped and turned to find Zack and Cloud running toward him. "Oh, it's you. You're still sane, right?"

Zack frowned, "How could I keep sane in this kind of situation?"

"It was Sephiroth, he did this, right?" Cloud asked her heart clenched with sorrow. She shook her head; a tear fell from her eyes. Everyone had called him a hero but he had proved himself to be a killer. It had gone too far. Whispering to the wind, her voice lost to the roaring fire, "What do you want, Sephiroth?"

Zangan tilted his head toward the mountain, "Yeah. Go ahead and help Tifa out."

Zack wheeled around to the martial artist Master, "What's up with Tifa?"

The older man shook his head, "She's looking for her father. She went to the Nibel Reactor. Sephiroth is there, too."

"What?" Zack gaped. He knew the girl was spunky but surprised that she would be so reckless to go after Sephiroth.

"That girl is no match for him. His opponent should be a Soldier like you."

Zack shook his head, "I'm not a normal Solider. I'm Elite. So is Sorano." He turned to Cloud, "Sorano, and here. Take the bag, help Uncle out of town. There should be Chocobos out there waiting."

Cloud took the bag, knowing by the weight, the tome was in the bag. "I'll catch up to you soon." She turned to Zangan.

"Please take care of Tifa."

"I will." Zack said as he departed toward the path to the Reactor.

Cloud helped Zangan out of the burning village and true to Zack's words, there were several chocobos waiting on the outskirt of the village. They had escaped the fire but their loyalty made them stay nearby, waiting for their owner or riders. She helped the Master hoist the wounded man on the bird and knew he wouldn't make it on the trip. He was coughing badly and spitting up blood.

Turning to Zangan, "Take this. There's a book inside. Don't lose it, make sure Tifa has gets it. Tell her that if someday, someone ever ask for it, she should give it to him or her. It's very important. Do not ever let this fall into the hands of ShinRa."

"I remember you. You're that kid from this town, aren't you?" Zangan asked as he took the bag from Cloud.

Cloud closed her eyes and nodded, "My name is Cloud and yes, I am from this town. Don't tell Tifa. She believes that I am Sorano, not Cloud who was a man." She turned and ran back into the burning village, dodging the flame.

Zangan watched Cloud retreat, holding the book. "So it came true. Little pitiful town getting destroyed." He shook his head. "I should wait until they get Tifa out and I'm gone." He muttered to himself.

The mountain of Nibel looked very ominous in the late of the night. The roaring of the fire in the village was distant to Tifa's ears as she approached the large Reactor. The area glowed ominous green with grey and black shadows dancing.

"Father? Father, where are you?" Tifa called out as she ran up the path, approaching the Reactor.

She gasped as she saw a man lying ahead before the Reactor, the long sword stuck in the ground. "Father!" She fell to her knees, taking the man's head into her lap as she held onto him, holding his quavering hand. "Hang in there, Father." She assured as she saw the extent to her father's wound. He was slashed and stabbed in the chest with the sword before them.

"Tifa…" Her father whispered, his hand wavering toward the Reactor.

"Father…" Tifa cried as she held the older man to her chest.

"Tifa, run, hurry. Get away." Her father gasped and exhaled his last breath as his hand dropped limp in Tifa's hold.

"Father, no… Hang in there." She cried until she ran out of tears and anger welled in her heart. She laid the man on the floor and rose, "It was Sephiroth." She murmured coldly. Looking to the Reactor, the hate burned in her crimson gaze. She recalled the man, as cold as he appeared yet elusive. She had suspected the man to be closed off, only trusting few people. She had suspected the man actually has a heart with that woman, Sorano. But it all went out of the window the moment her village was on fire, the moment she saw the bodies of the people.

She gripped the sword that stood in the ground, "Sephiroth did all this, didn't he?" She pulled the sword out of the ground, swishing it in the air with skillful slashes, "Sephiroth. Soldiers, ShinRa, Mako Reactor… All of them! I hate them all!" She yelled to the sky and made her way into the Reactor.

Sephiroth made his way up the stairs to the Jenova Chamber. He looked up and splayed his hand upon the metal door, "Mother, I've come for you…" His eyes twitches as he heard someone coming to him from behind.

"Sephiroth, how dare you kill my father and everyone in the village!" Tifa shouted as she reached the taller man, taking Masamune to attack him.

He shot out and gripped the sword by the hilt, gripping with his hand over Tifa's hands. He glared with his green eyes, lifting the smaller girl from the floor to meet his eye level. Tifa's crimson eyes filled with fears as she met his cold glowing green eyes. It struck fear in her heart as she stared into his cold and evil face.

A smirk tugged his lips and with quick move, he shook her off and slashed her with the Masamune. She fell back, tumbling down the stairs to land on the bottom, wounded and unable to move, her body broken and bleeding.

Sephiroth gave a scoff and turned to the door, it opened for him and he sauntered in, glad he had regained the sword he had carelessly left outside after killing the man, he supposed the girl's father.

Tifa looked up, wincing as her body shout with pain. Her voice quiet and full of sorrow, "When I am in danger, you will come, didn't you promise me that?" Her eyes gazed as she saw the starry night sky years before, the night when she sat upon the old well in the town's square, sitting back to back with Cloud. "Cloud…"

"Tifa, Tifa, Tifa! Tifa!" She felt herself shaken and wondered how long she had been out. The pain was unbearable. She opened her eyes and saw a man looming over her, shaking her by her arm. Recognizing the black wild mane of the man, "Zack…"

"You were hurt by Sephiroth, right, Tifa?" He asked concerned as he looked over her injuries and winced. He took out the small green orb and weaved a Cure Spell over her, enough to mend her broken bone and heal the sword cut on her chest. The wound wasn't completely healed but it was enough to sustain for now until she could get more help. He knew the wound would reopen and didn't risk moving her.

Tifa winced and looked away with trouble on her face. "You came to this village just to investigate, right? That's why I brought you guys here. That was all it was. How did it turn out like this?" She cries softly.

Zack felt stab of regret. He knew the ShinRa had sent them to Nibelheim to investigate the Reactor. He had been wondering why they would send the entire Elite team when a Class Two Soldiers could have handled it.

"Tifa."

"I hate… ShinRa, Soldiers, and you. I hate you all." She said with resolve.

Even Sephiroth took the chance because it was Cloud's hometown. He wanted to propose to the girl in her hometown after he had gotten her mother's approval. Something went wrong. He clenched his hands in tight fist; something was up in the ShinRa, they were also involved as well.

He stood and turned away, "Sorry, I won't ask you to forgive me." He went to the stairs and walked up, "But please, allows me to atone for my sins." He took the Buster Sword and blasted the door to Jenova Chamber open, revealing the bright green glow from within. He found Sephiroth standing before the mask of Jenova that loomed above them on the other side of the large room. The stone path led from the floor to the dais above over the deep pit of Mako.

"Mother, let's take back this planet together. I have a good idea. Let's go to the Promised Land, Mother." Sephiroth spoke softly to the mask.

Zack stared with disgust and anger, "Sephiroth!" He yelled, swishing the Buster sword, "why did you kill all the people in the village? Why did you hurt Tifa?" Seeing that the man ignored him, "Answer me, Sephiroth!"

The silver haired man smirked and said with annoyance in his voice, "Mother, those people are here again. Mother, with your superior powers and knowledge, you should have become the ruler of this Planet. But those people… those useless people." He shook his head, "They took Mother's Planet from her hands. But you don't have to feel sorrow anymore." He reached out to take hold of the metal mask.

"Come with me." He wrenched the mask off, ripping the tubes connecting to it and threw it aside to reveal a long glass chamber with a gruesome alien woman within. She has a long silver hair and a helmet on her head, a plate with encryption 'Jenova' on it. She looked pale bluish within the liquid. One of her eyes shimmered with light while the other was shut close.

Zack gasped, finally seeing the true face of Jenova, the once former Valkyrie that walked the Planet two thousands years before. The mother of Lucrecia Crescent, the descended Valkyrie who bore Sephiroth. He wondered idly why Sephiroth would call her Mother instead of Grandmother.

"At last we meet, Mother."

Disgusted, "Sephiroth, what the hell is wrong with you?" He gasped as Sephiroth smirked, turning to him.

"You traitor." Sephiroth jumped, attacking Zack. They both rebounded off the wall of the chamber, coming back together and attacking with the swords. The fight took aerial, slashing and deflecting, sending sparks from their swords. They were almost even match.

"Sephiroth, I trusted you so much." He glared as they went to the ceiling, Sephiroth standing upside-down, holding the Masamune against the Buster across his face. His face glowed eerily as their swords emitted strange light.

Zack realized as he stared into the green eyes, the mysterious wind whipping around them, "No, you're not the Sephiroth I know!"

Sephiroth used his leverage against the ceiling, jumping as he pushed himself off, forcing Zack back down. "I am the chosen one. The one chosen to be the ruler of this Planet." He deflected Zack's oncoming attack, bouncing around the room like pinball in the machine.

Zack frowned as he attacked as the best he could, chasing Sephiroth with jumps and leaps. He realized the man didn't even mentioned Cloud at all, since she was his life, his love. "What the hell you talking about?" He yelled as he swung the sword to Sephiroth.

"This Planet… I will take back the planet from you fools and return it to the hands of Cetra." Zack's eyes widened as Sephiroth went on his dialogue. Cetra? The Planet belonged to the Valkyries! Sephiroth continued, defending and attacking with ease, "That is why I was born." He slashed, attacking Zack, actually cutting his arm. "I am doing all this for Mother." He slashed again toward Zack, sending him back with force out of the chamber, crashing into one of the alcove.

Sephiroth landed before the doorway, sneering down at Zack, satisfied that he wouldn't be getting up at any time soon. He turned and returned to the glass tube where Jenova floated within. He leaned his head on the glass, "its okay now, Mother." He assured more to himself than the still form within the glass.

The glass cracked and liquid seeped out. He gasped as he felt pain from the depth of his back. He looked down to see a tip of the sword coming though his back to his stomach. Wondering since Zack was left immobile, "who is this?" He growled softly.

The sword was taken out with force and he heard a female voice from behind him, "Give me back Mother, Tifa and the whole village. I used to love you, admire you. You bastard!"

Sephiroth winced and fell to his knees, realizing that he had forgotten some important information about Sephiroth's life, he had a girlfriend. It was that spunky girl with pretty blue eyes and blond hair. He heard her run back down the stone path out of the chamber.

Cloud fell to her knees beside Tifa and picked the girl up with her strength and laid her down beside an alcove away from the stairs. "Tifa!"

Tifa looked up dazed, seeing only Cloud's face as her vision blurred, "Cloud, you're finally here. You kept your promise. You came for me when I was in danger…" She whispered.

Cloud smiled, knowing that Tifa was too dazed to tell the difference between Cloud and Sorano. Deciding to play along to get out of the unwanted debt, "Sorry, I am a little bit late."

Tifa shook her head, closing her eyes with smile on her lips, "Don't worry, Cloud."

Within the Jenova Chamber, Sephiroth broke the glass with a slash from the Masamune sword, sending the liquid and shards down. He reached up and slashed her head off from her body. Taking the head by the hair, he stumbled down the path and out of the door.

Cloud looked up to find him at the top of the stairs with the head of Jenova. She watched him nearing the top step, glaring down with sneer on his face.

"A bitch like you…"

"Cloud, finish him off." Zack whispered. Cloud gasped softly as her heart wrenched. To be asked to finish off the one you love was the worse thing she could ever hear.

Cloud picked up the fallen Buster sword and held it tightly, tears streaming down her face. Deep in her heart, she knew, this man wasn't the man she loved. He was somewhere and she vowed at the moment, to find him once again. "Sephiroth!" She ran up the stairs to attack.

The moment she reached him and swung the sword to land a killing blow, but he was faster, he had stuck the Masamune though her chest. "Don't think it's that easy!" With a quick pivot, he threw Cloud into the Jenova Chamber, sending her to the floor. "Did you think a mere human could defeat me?" He walked back into the chamber and stabbed Cloud once again, lifting her from the floor like a meat on a toothpick. "Know your weakness…" He snarled.

Cloud dangled on the sword, her head bowed down, "My family, and my homeland. My love… how dare you. The Planet never belonged to the Cetra but to the Valkyries!" She reached up and took grip of the sword and pushed herself onto it.

Sephiroth stared with shock in his eyes as the blood riveted down the sword. She pushed more until her feet met the floor and suddenly with the last strength she could, she flung him to the side with the leverage of the sword. He crashed into the wall, still gripping onto the head of Jenova.

Sephiroth stared into her face, noticing her blue eyes glowing as she glared at him with the amount of hate. He felt something stir within. "Who are you, anyway?" He watched her pant and fall to her knees. "I'll have you, someday." He whispered and took the head to his chest, cradling it like an infant. With one last glance to Cloud, he turned and jumped into the depth of the green Mako deep in the bowel of the chamber.

Cloud gaped, "Sephiroth…" She fell to her side and the world became black.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	14. LO:2: The Escape

. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .

. L A S T . O R D E R .

Scene Two: The Escape

_Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live. _

John 5:25, The Holy Bible

Zangan decided to go into the reactor after waiting for so long to search out for survivors. He saw a female with long blondish brown hair in high pony tail and sharp suit, recognizing her as one of the Turks. "I'm here for the village survivors." He stared at her in surprise, not having expected for the ShinRa to send reinforcement so soon.

The woman shrugged, "Take her." She gestured to Tifa. "Medics will arrive shortly. Wait for them outside the village; they'll take you all to Midgar to get some attention."

Zangan nodded, taking Tifa onto his shoulders, "What about the others?" He nodded toward Zack lying in the crushed alcove.

The woman shook her head, "None of your business. They're dead."

Zangan shook his head and left. He trudged down the path away from Nibel Mountain and looked back one last time, "I had hoped they survive… I just do…"

Not an hour later, the fire in the village died down, leaving burnt ground, only the ShinRa Mansion remained untouched. The ShinRa scientist, medics and Turks swarmed the place and the Reactor. They had cleared up the place and placed Zack and Cloud onto the gurney, preparing to carry them out.

The slimy head scientist of the ShinRa smirked as he investigated Zack on the gurney being held by two medics. Zack was breathing hard, his lungs being crushed by broken ribs. He was bleeding everywhere all over his body with lacerations made by sword cuts.

"Take this guy to the ShinRa Mansion's basement." Doctor Hojo pushed his glasses up on his hooked nose. He looked up to the stairs where few Turks were in the chamber, "Sephiroth, that was quiet a big thing you did." He turned to Tseng as he approached him, "It's you. Director Veld is doing well, I suppose?"

"Yes." Tseng replied stoically.

"I see. How is your handling of the village going?" Hojo asked, as he inspected the alcoves in the room. He knew he had requested for the Turks to take care of the village. Everything was under his control and power. He had intended to send Sephiroth and his small band of Elites to the village. He had not intended for the plan to go out of hands, having the clone destroy the village. All he wanted for the clone to switch place with the real one in secret, nothing more.

He had not expected for the two other Elites members to interfere. They were more troubles than he had guessed. The one named Zack was strong, he could had died from the blow when he crashed into the alcove, it was crushed halfway inward.

Tseng took the cell phone out of his jacket pocket and glanced on the screen. "We already started working on it. But do we really have to do all that?"

Hojo gave amused noise, "Hm, you're too young. I don't care how you see it. Hurry and finish it up." Tseng bowed and stepped back as the other scientist carried a second gurney carrying a female in Soldier uniform.

"Oh, wait." Hojo held a hand out for them to stop. "Interesting, very interesting. Correct, we do not have a female in Elite?" He asked, directly to Tseng beside him.

Tseng nodded, "That's correct. There are no female. However, this one is familiar." Tseng reached out and pulled out identification card from Cloud's pant pocket, "Cloud S. Strife. Elite Solider. There was one who joined into the Elite under Sephiroth's command recently, a young man, same appearance as this woman by the name. I wonder if they are the same person."

Hojo nodded, "Apparently so. This is good. We can use her as a new sample. Take her to the basement as well. I have just the project for her."

Tseng stepped back, a disgust look on his face.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Deep underground below the ShinRa Mansion, after the Nibelheim Crisis as the Turks had dubbed it, inside the secret laboratory where the entire room glowed green from two tanks filled with Mako liquid. Inside the two tanks were humans, one male with long ebony wild hair and another, a female, her hair glittering golden against the greenness. The male was awake and aware of everything going on around him and he was helpless, being trapped inside the tank, breathing the liquid and being tied up to tubes that stuck to his body in different places.

The female was in pretty much same state, in her own tube and tubes coming out of her body as well, however she was comatose, had been for a long time, she was weak and being fed with more kind of chemicals than the male was.

Two men entered the lab, both in their pristine white lab coat, one had oily hair tied back in pony-tail and another was tall dirty blond hair with pale grey eyes that looked watery. He was younger than the first, Hojo, but old enough to earn the title of Doctor.

Hojo held a thick folder in his hand, "Your project had succeeded, Gates." Compliment was rare from him and Doctor Gates smirked.

"Thank you, sir. Suppose your plan about those two is going to come out of the closet?" Gates gestured to the two cylinder tubes. It had been nearly two years ago that the two samples had been brought in and set up. The male finally woke up and responded after few months, he had reacted violently. However, the female remained unconscious and Hojo had reported that she woke up occasionally but with no reactions.

Hojo chuckled dryly, "Soon, soon. I'm going to brief you on the project shortly, you understand Jenova and Soldiers Project well, since you assists me on the latter." He went to his desk and pulled out some folders and placed it on the desk.

Gates took one and flipped it open, skimming through it, familiar with the older project that Hojo and Gast had worked on in the past. The first had eventually faded away, into a forgotten project since the ShinRa had disapproved it and the head was lost for a while. He knew Hojo was searching for the head, having put a tracking device on it. It was somewhere within the planet's Lifestream.

"Read this one, and I will brief you in a while. I must check on the samples." Hojo motioned to the folder he had also taken out. He turned and went to the tubes, inspecting the monitors hooked up next to it. Murmuring to himself and jotting down notes on his clipboard.

Zack watched Hojo with distaste, knowing he was unable to do anything within the chamber but it didn't stop him from sneering and expressing facially to the doctor.

Hojo looked up to meet Zack's eyes and gave an oily smirk, "You're doing well. You should be glad to know that you are equal rank with Sephiroth by now, strong and fast. Pity you're simply a human, a good assess to Soldier Project, nothing more. But your attitude will have to change before you come out."

He hobbled over to Cloud's tank and studied Cloud's sleeping form. She was naked with exception of tubes sticking in her body. He glanced over to the monitor and wrote some more on his paper. "Sweet Sample, we should initiate with the next project soon."

Dr. Gates joined him, "I've read the folder, interesting. You're going to start soon?"

"Yes, to debrief this. Adam and Eve Project were originally for Sephiroth, the original one. But our project went away and discarded him somewhere. Disappointing but that's all right, I have his samples anyway. I had been looking for a perfect female sample and by luck she was left in my hands." He turned away and went to a table full of scientific machines and opened an ice box holding tubes of different samples, frozen. "Semen sample, the recent one I could obtain, from the appointment before he had departed." He placed the said tube into a warming machine and popped the two other, "Jenova's cells, I'm using her eggs in this project and finally, pure Mako will be added soon."

"This project, what is your intention with this? Surely, as the report says that you're going to create race of Super-Soldiers." Gates asked, as he watched Hojo flit around the lab.

"That's what ShinRa want to think. Jenova told me to create children for her. She was the last of her kinds, so here am I, fulfilling her dream and wishes."

Gates frowned at the older doctor, inwardly questioning his sanity. "All right."

"Give me the semen and the eggs, it should be ready now." Hojo gestured to the warming machine. Gates went and took the tubes out, feeling the warmness radiate from the glass.

He handed the tubes to Hojo and watched him prepare the eggs into a Petri dish, adding to the green gel substance which he knew was the Mako. Hojo chuckled to himself, "The eggs didn't fail. This is good. These eggs, extracted from Jenova's body, still amazingly in healthy condition after two thousands years, however was empty of the nucleus. So, with the female sample here, I used her nucleus. It all worked out good in the end, Jenova's eggs was readily accepted the nucleus." He took the other tube and proceeded to transfer the semen to the dish, "Adding the semen…" He crackled, "Oh, they're swimming…"

He watched through the microscope. "I am going to insert the eggs within her body, allow it grow and evolve, it needed a mother body to develop. There had been no success in developing eggs outside the mother's womb. Good things, she is here." He crackled.

"How long will the gestation take?" Gates asked, leaning on the table, watching Hojo proceed with the intro-fertilization project.

Hojo looked up from the microscope, "Hm, let'see… Jenova's cells are a different origin, I was surprised to find the Sample," He gestured to Cloud, "DNA closely matches Jenova's. Almost as if they were related but not quiet close, this was why their cells were willingly to combine. It shouldn't take long, normal gestation span would take nine months, but I believe would be a third of that."

"So, three months?" Gates saw Hojo nod as he returned to the microscope and smiled. He knew the sperms and eggs had connected when Hojo drew out a syringe to proceed to take the eggs within the syringe.

"Prep her." Hojo commanded. Gates knew the procedure and went to Cloud's tube, clicking on the keyboard, entering commands to drain the Mako and open the tube. He carefully took her out, the tubes attached to her body stretched out as he placed her on the cold metal table beside the tube.

He stepped back as Hojo approached her body, he took one small clear tube from between her legs. It was attached to her vagina. "Here we go." He inserted the needle in the opening of the tube and watched the green liquid from the syringe pushes into the tube, into her womb.

"The ultrasound." Hojo gestured to the machine as he slowly inserted the liquid. Gates switched the ultrasound machine and placed the gel upon her abdomen, he held the stick to Hojo to take. Soon, Hojo put the empty syringe aside and took the stick, rubbing it over her abdomen. Cloud was unresponsive through the whole time.

After a few minutes of probing, Hojo chuckled as he saw on the ultrasound monitor black and grey blurry images. "Ah, it had been a good day." He gestured to the monitor, pointing to three small black spots, "they had attached to her womb wall and is developing nicely." He left the stick down and grabbed a small thin black and silver square, "I had this created so we can monitor the development of the samples within her womb." He placed it over her belly and it stuck, the image showed same when probed with the stick. "Let's return her to the tube; she will be on a strict diet from now on."

Gates nodded, "Yes sir." He carried Cloud back to the tube and closed it. He entered some more codes and soon, the tube was filled with Mako once again.

Zack watched the entire thing with horror; he had faintly heard their entire conversation and glanced over to Cloud, feeling scandalized and violated. Making a mental note to start planning the escape, he watched the two doctors clean up and finally leave the lab. He turned to stare at Cloud, floating helplessly in her tank.

Every day afterward was the same; the two doctors came down, inspected, wrote their reports, inject substances after substance into Cloud and checked the ultrasound monitor. Once a week, they would take her out, listen to her stomach with a special device, hearing heartbeats of the fetus within and poked and prodded her and return her to the tube again.

Finally after two months, Cloud's belly was large and heavy. Hojo came in with Gates and chuckled, "It's time to transfer the fetus into their own tubes."

Zack watched with abated horror as they took Cloud out of the tube and laid her onto the table, they took careful care to clean her up, remove the tubes and soon, they begun cutting her open. There were three large cylinders sitting on the next table, quarter third full of Mako, open and waiting.

Hojo reached in her swollen abdomen and pulled out an infant, grey and slimy with blood and Mako. He chuckled as he held the baby to Gates who took it and cleaned the infant up; it quickly turned pinkish color and started to squall. He placed the infant in a basket and turned to take the second one from Hojo, he did the same to the second and third. Soon, the three babies squalled and yelled in the basket while Hojo closed Cloud's abdomen and sewed her up.

They quickly cleaned themselves, replacing their grubs and gloves; Gates placed her back in her tubes and closed her up. He returned to Hojo's side and helped him to insert tubes into the babies. The scream of the babies filled the basement lab and Zack winced in heart-wrenching horror as they placed the infants into each cylinder tubes, ready to be transported somewhere else.

Finally after Gates left with the infants, Hojo slowly cleaned up, moving around the lab and stopped before Zack, chuckling, "Don't worry, they'll be fine."

He crackled as he saw Zack's face contorted in rage and slammed onto the glass side of the tube. "There will be more."

Zack watched as Hojo left the lab, turning out the light and he fell to the bottom of the tube, huddled the best he could, wanting to cry but he couldn't. He vowed to escape soon before they would force Cloud to become a baby making machine again.

Finally, one day, Cloud woke up and looked to her right, groggily as she saw familiar male in the other tube through the glass and tried to call him but found she couldn't. He shook his head at her in reply and drew with his hand on the tank glass, showing word with the warmth of his body against the cool Mako and glass. Fogginess appeared but words were streaked through.

'Dinner time, we get out.' He wrote, and then rubbed it away.

The blonde closed her eyes again to fall limp after seeing the words, she was exhausted beyond comprehension. Zack sighed sadly in his own tank, watching Cloud going comatose again. It was almost hopeless. He knew Hojo wanted her healthy and alive, doing so many tests, pumping her with unbelievable amount of chemicals into her and keeping her on vital watch constantly. Few times, he knew, she had died and he forced her alive again, and again.

Every time Cloud wakes up for a moment or two, he would attempt conversation with her but failed to get any responses. He wondered if she understood or not, all he knew, she recognized him by how her eyes met with his. But every time, it grows dimmer, as if she was losing her soul.

As dinner time approached, always on time every day like a clockwork, Hojo's assistants would come in with tray of food for Zack, drain his tank long enough to feed him and refill it with Mako. It would continue on for long time until Doctor see fit. Cloud was never fed for that she was hooked to saltine, fed by the tubes. The doctor had different orders for her. It was almost time to repeat the project upon her.

The orderly came in the room and a snide on his face, he went over to Zack's tube, working with the control to drain the Mako and open it. Zack watched with mild interest, floating hapless in the tank.

The tank drained of the Mako and he allowed his body to fall to the bottom. The air hissed from above, he coughed and hacked the green liquid out of his lungs, burning his throat and mouth. He was almost used to the feeling, but this time, he would ignore the pain and strain to keep his strength he has.

The orderly came over and opened the thick tank door with a smacking sound as it unstuck from the tank. The man didn't expect for a surprising and powerful punch from the prisoner inside, knocking him out.

Zack heaved heavy and ragged breath as he stood over the man on the floor. He looked around the room, knowing where things were. He had studied every day from his damned prison of the tank, carefully planning this moment, but the only downside was that he had to free Cloud and carry her out himself. She wasn't in any shape but didn't care. He wanted to take her and himself out of this hell hole.

First thing first, he removed the tubes attached to his body and winced. It wasn't fun sensations popping tubes that were attached to your skin. He watched in mild interest that his skin closed up over the holes and healed fast, leaving no scars. He knew she had a lot to heal from inside, physically, emotionally and mentally. He knew the latter of the two would take much longer time.

He went to the closet that stored his and Cloud's clothes and weapon, he found that Cloud's weapons were broken; he couldn't take it and decided it didn't matter for now. He dressed in his clothes and found Cloud's clothes were pretty singed and burned. He sighed; he would have to find something else for her soon.

He went to work on her tank, working at the control and finally he got her out and worked to remove the tubes, her body had healed faster than his had. He wrinkled his nose and sighed, she was bathed in pure Mako while his was processed and distilled. He recalled that Sephiroth was the only Solider that was injected with pure Mako. He wondered idly why Hojo wanted her to have the same treatment as Sephiroth did. He had little time left; the others would wonder where the dinner man was.

Her eyes opened and he gaped, the Mako had obstructed the coloring of her eyes and now out in the open, they were brilliant blue, glowing, very much like Sephiroth's eyes would glow. That was it; the Doctor wanted to create her as powerful like the General. But why would he do this to Cloud, a girl, barely a woman, the one Sephiroth loved? He banished the questions from his mind for a while, he would think about it later.

He quickly dressed Cloud up, it was sparse but it was enough for now until he got away. He wondered if his stash of clothes were still in the Mansion, if he were correct, above him. He was careful to bandage her chest up, giving illusion she was a male. Heaving her onto his shoulder, he grabbed his sword and made his way out of the lab quickly and luckily not running into any more thugs or Hojo at all on the way. He had found his duffel bag, gathering dust in the bedroom next to the room with the secret stairways.

As he reached to the outside of the Mansion, it was dark outside. He glanced around and found he wasn't alone. There were few ShinRa troopers surrounding the area, they were all targeted on him. He knew he had tripped the alarm within the lab sometime ago and alerted all of the soldiers. He smirked; they were no match for him.

They were simple Class Three and Two Soldiers, with no experience up against Elite. He made a mad dash through the town, dodging and weaving between the buildings, using his Buster Sword to deflect off the bullets that was being fired upon him.

For a moment there, he idly wondered why Nibelheim looked as if it never burned down and shrugged the thought off. That was a question to get an answer later, not now. All he needed to think about is getting away, get Cloud to safety.

They reached out of the village's limit and entered the dense forest. He sighed and hoisted the sword back on his back and helped Cloud to walk. Cloud was able to walk but not talk or move. He smiled at her and held her up while one of her arm slung over his shoulders.

The forest was dark, quiet and pretty thick. But he had no fears. They went on their way, going no where but away from Nibelheim, or whatever it was.

After a long while, Cloud stumbled, obviously tired. She wasn't used to using her muscles after a long time. Zack helped her up, holding onto her waist tightly. "Sorry, I'd love to let you take a break, but that's not gonna happen." He had sensed three Soldiers following from behind. They weren't skillful in stealth.

He gripped the sword once again and held onto Cloud, knowing she would follow his footwork; they had trained in to work along each other if case such as this happen in battle. Trained to not be a burden but an asset if you were wounded. He was glad her muscle memory was honed to work along with him. He dodged and swept the sword, deflecting the oncoming bullets. The men came running at him from three different directions. Two leapt out of the tree above and one came forward on the ground, he moved and gave the first ground man a low sweep kick and the two a swing of the sword, Cloud had moved her footwork along with his. Soon, it was over, the three Soldiers were discarded.

"Ordinary army guys are no match for me. Right?" Zack chuckled and then suddenly, his face changed as his eyes darted to one side.

"Here! They're here!" A shout rang in the forest.

"They never give up, do they?" Zack sighed, hoisting Cloud closer to his body. Bullets flew at them, he dodged and kept running. "You can't hit me!" He taunted and he saw there was a break ahead.

He made a mad running dash, knowing the Soldiers had called for back-ups before they had attacked. They jumped off the cliff and landed on the bottom. Cloud stumbled a bit and straightened up along with Zack. Zack noticed from waist up, she was almost comatose. Her arms were limps and useless, her head was barely holding up and her face was blank of expressions. However, her legs were working just fine.

Zack helped Cloud through the jungle for days, making sure she was comfortable and well, he hunted to feed them both, fought off any monsters that came across their path. Avoided major populations since the ShinRa Soldiers and Turks were looking for them. He knew Hojo was livid for losing his favorite sample and possibly sent the entire Soldiers and Turks upon them.

He recalled the three babies and shook his head, vowing to never tell Cloud about it until she was ready. He knew it would be a long time. He wondered for a moment there, what the babies would look like, like their mother or father, or some kind of monsters? He shuddered and banished the thoughts.

Times were tough but Zack kept optimist outlook, chatting up storms about just everything, even if the conversation was one sided. Often he gets worried with Cloud since she was still comatose, and she refuses to eat and he had to retort to force feeding her small morsel at a time. He suspected that she was in depression, which is why she hasn't really recovered fully yet. She was limp, weak and unable to move most of the time, she couldn't talk and would often stay still for a long time, simply staring.

Zack was very patient with her, helping her, knowing she was slowly healing but her body had changed so much during the time in the basement, she had been infused with so much Mako, almost rivaling the amount Sephiroth had received in his lifetime. He wondered often if her mind was still stable, but he had to wait until she heals completely to find out. The only response she would give was with the slight movement of her head, her eyes contact and slight movement of her hands. She would response to his questions and comment with little movement, giving him hopes.

Time passed into weeks, they traveled slowly on foot, getting away from Nibelheim, at first, they went just about nowhere until Zack decided to head toward Midgar since it was the only place they could start with their lives, risky but the best place. He figured they would find clues in Midgar to what happened to Nibelheim and to Sephiroth and start from there.

They had snuck onto the ship at the harbor in Costa Del Sol, heading toward Midgar country. Upon the ship, Zack learned the news by listening to the naval Soldiers' gossip. He had found that the Elites were no more, Sephiroth died and the rest were also declared dead as well. Zack was saddened at first and realized, the fact of the Elites were dead and yet he and Cloud was still alive, giving hope that Sephiroth was alive somewhere. He couldn't tell Cloud the news just yet; it would have hindered her improvement.

Arriving into Junon, he snuck off with Cloud and stolen few Soldiers clothes on the way out of the Base. As he redressed into fresher clothes, he helped Cloud into her clothes, helping her to assume male gender once again.

Her long hair was shorn off to his disappointment but it had to be done.

"You look good. That was the best I can get. I was fortunate to find your size. You've always been small." He commented as he studied his work on Cloud, her short hair flew up in spikes like they once did when she first entered Academy. The uniform was missing one shoulder guard and knew it wouldn't bother her that much, she always preferred to wear one anyway. She didn't complain or minded, even if she couldn't respond or do anything about it.

"It may smell in time, but don't complain, its best than those rags we were using before." He threw the rags into the bushes nearby. He chuckled and sat next to her, watching her roll her head to give him a look. "All right, enough resting, we got to keep moving. They're still looking for us. Once we get to Midgar, we'll change into civilian clothes and go from there. I guess you can pretend to be a boy for a while, whatever you want." He helped her up and slung her arm over his shoulder, holding her thin waist and they were off again.

They reached a desolate area, a small construction site some miles away from Midgar. He knew the place was going to become a new town to house the ShinRa employees and Soldiers in the future. The construction wasn't complete and there was a tunnel leading underground from the place to the outskirt of Midgar, about forty miles away from the city. They were close, but still far off.

He hadn't expected for the empty place to be filled with Soldiers so soon. They surrounded him. He glanced around with his violet eyes, taking in the numbers of men with guns.

Holding Cloud and Buster with his hands, he stood up straighter, "Come on, this is overkill for chasing just two people." He muttered as he concluded there was over thirty Soldiers around him. He knew there were more hiding somewhere, he could hear motorbikes in the distant and concluded there was two. A helicopter approaching from the distant, he calculated, about ten miles away and concluded there were Turks coming as well.

He let Cloud down to the ground, her back to the tall metal beam and stuck the Buster sword deep into the ground between her legs to protect her, giving her a barrier and a mean where the others couldn't remove her without taking the sword out of the ground. He knew the regular Soldiers couldn't wield the sword due to its weight and size.

He darted and danced as the bullet started to fly around him. With low sweep and attacks, he took out several Soldiers and heard few cries out as the bullets hit few behind him.

"He's in firing range. Even if we hit our allies, we have to… " Zack heard the leader shout and deflected few men off his side and heard the Solider in front of the leader cries out as he got hit. "Use close combat to take him down!" The leader shouted.

"Party time." Zack murmured to himself as he watched few men drop the guns and came to him with their issued swords. He recognized their faces in the mask they wore, they once trained under him and he knew they weren't good as he is. Barehanded, he defeated few of them, knocking them aside before they could even cut him with their swords.

"He's way too strong. This is the power of a true Solider." One said and Zack smirked.

Zack fought off the rest of them and he stood, fallen men around him. The leader gaped at him in surprise. Few of them from the distant murmured, unsure what to do now. Brushing his hair aside, he looked over his shoulder to see a motorbike arrive in the area from behind him. Turning and he ran off, away from Cloud.

"After him!"

Zack reached to the edge and saw that he was cornered by the two motorbikes and the helicopter came into scene by his left. The bright light shone on him. He saw the tail of the helicopter had the ShinRa logo on it, "Turks, huh?"

"Target found. Is our mission to catch or wipe out the target?" Zack frowned as he listened beyond the roaring of the whipping blade, inside the helicopter; the pilot's voice was familiar. An image of a dark skinned bald man came to his mind, Rude.

He waited, he couldn't catch the response that Rude gotten from. Suddenly, he knew what they were up to as the female Turk from within the helicopter spoke to him though the megaphone, "Surrender. If you do that, we can promise your personal safety."

Zack chuckled, recognizing her voice, Elly, the older sister of Elena. She was in the Turks as long he had been in the Solider. He had dated her once, she wasn't his type. "You really think I'm gonna believe that after all this?" He gestured around him, proving his point.

The man on the motorbike scoffed, "Let's catch the sample, then."

Zack sighed, rolling his eyes, "Every one of 'em is screwing with me… I don't need any guarantees for my safety. What I want is…" He took a running start toward the two motorbikes and shouted with elation, "Freedom!"

Elsewhere, in the ShinRa Headquarter, in Tseng's office, Tseng held the phone to his ear, "What?" He glanced to the book on his desk; it was information on the three Elites and the Nibelheim Crisis from two years back. It didn't give him enough information since Hojo had held back a lot. He regretted letting the two into Hojo's hands. They were just humans, not samples but there was nothing he could do and he didn't like it.

"All right." He muttered and hung up his phone. He felt an oncoming headache forming in his head and rubbed his forehead.

Cloud sat motionless, trapped between the beam and the sword. Two of the Soldiers were struggling to take the sword out of the ground but failed.

The third one, obviously the leader was impatient, "Hurry up, aren't you ready yet?"

The first one scowled at him, "We can't lift this, and it's heavy for any of us."

The second quipped, "Yeah, if we try to slip him out from between, he'd get amputated on the blade. Shush up."

A motorbike rolled around behind them and they ignored, thinking it was another Solider.

The first one looked back and gasped, "You're Zack…"

Zack got off the motorbike and pushed the leader away, sending him to the ground with a crash and shoved the two out away from his sword, knocking them out as well. He gripped the handle and hoisted the sword out of the ground and gave the sword a few whirls and latched it onto his back. He crouched before Cloud, "Sorry to keep you waiting, Cloud." He smirked as he saw Cloud roll her eyes at him. "Don't be mad, I wouldn't leave my friends alone." He lifted her up and helped her onto the bike and soon, they were off.

Elly watched as Rude piloted the helicopter, chasing Zack on the motorbike. "The army really gave them some extra presents."

Zack looked back and chuckled, "See you later!" he shouted and he drove the bike into the underground tunnel.

Elly sighed as she held the cell phone in her hand, "Target lost. Seems like they are in the underground tunnel."

Rude studied his phone for the map and noticed the tunnel lead to one place, "They're heading to Midgar, right?"

Tseng's voice came through both of their phones, "I see. Cordon off Midgar."

Rude replied and clacked his phone close, "Understood."

In Tseng's office, Tseng closed his phone, cutting off the connection with the two Turks in the helicopter. He glanced out of the window while the speakerphone on his desk crackled and came through a voice, "Director, there are intelligence reports that the target has entered the area."

Closing his eyes, "I know. I will be there right away." He heard the speakerphone click off. "Will we take freedom away from them again?" He turned to the desk and closed the book that held reports of the trio and the Nibelheim Crisis. He was surprised to learn that Cloud was actually a female, only learning that she had hidden it for a long time. For what reasons, he has no idea and was very curious. "Perhaps one day, I'll know why, but only after you gain your freedom." He whispered.

He had hated what Hojo had done to them. He despite the man and wished he could do something but he couldn't knowing it would pose risk to his life and his career. The ShinRa seemed all the glory and show but from inside, he was beginning to find out how vile and filthy the system was, corrupted. Bound to his job, he felt trapped. However, the two escapees seem to hold a hope for him, that perhaps, someday, he would also be free.

The helicopter had redirected toward Midgar's ShinRa headquarter and landed on the top of the building. Several other Turks from Tseng's legion were waiting by the helicopter.

Reno stood at the end of the line, watching Tseng exit the building, "The director looks all serious again, yo."

A tall man with wild brown hair stood next to Reno murmured, "We helped them five years ago, and now we are chasing them?"

Reno nodded in agreement, "Yeah, Ryoichi."

Elly gave in her one cent, "its destiny."

"What do you know about it?" Ryoichi asked.

"Not many know the Nibelheim Legend, I do and I just say it is."

The female with long brown hair, Cyr, tilted her head as she turned to Duo who said, "They really are a group of pathetic people if you think about it."

Roman shook his head, "I sympathize with' em."

Kate, a spunky woman with high pony tail laughed, "Ah, you are all so kind."

Reno rolled his eyes at her, "No matter what the mission is, we carry it out. That's our job, yo."

Tseng paused by Kate, having heard all of their conversation, "Let's go." Kate stuck her tongue at Reno and turned to follow Tseng into the helicopter as Rude turned the engine on.

"Yo, new guy, hurry up!" Reno turned to the last Turk who appeared in the doorway.

Elly turned and scoffed, seeing her younger sister running after them. "Elena, don't screw this up."

"Shut up Elly!"

Reno rubbed his head in nervousness as he waited for the rest to board the helicopter. He turned his gaze to the sky, "This is messed up," He murmured, "Who are you, Cloud and Zack?"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The motorbike had run out of gas and they had abandoned it on a road in the middle of the forest. Zack had hitch-hiked a ride on a yellow rickety truck that was heading to Midgar. The driver was kind enough to allow them on board and they were on their way. He wanted to get to Midgar and get underway and find some people to help him to hide from the ShinRa, even if it had to take for him to get close to the ShinRa. The best place for him to find such people would be in Midgar. He wanted to search for Sephiroth as well but knew he couldn't until he was better equipped and well hidden from the ShinRa.

The ride was long. Zack rested as he watched Cloud doze off across from him in the back of the truck. Dawn came and soon, they were out of the forest and into the desolate area of Midgar, barren land with rocks around them. He watched as Cloud woke up slowly, still silent as ever, her blue eyes gazed.

He figured he would strike up conversation with Cloud, see if she would respond, "Hey, what are you going to do when you get to Midgar?" He was curious if Cloud had any thought. No response but a blatant stare. "Anyway, we have to get some money first." He figured he would put his thoughts in to fill up the silence. "Hey, old man! Is there any business I can do?" He called to the driver behind him.

"What are you talking about? You should try everything when you are young. Spend your time trying things before you get old. Find your own way." The driver responded.

Zack smirked and turned back to Cloud, "He said we can do anything. But that doesn't really help…" He pursed his lips in thoughts. "Oh, yes, yeah!" He grinned as an idea struck him. He saw that Cloud was staring at him stoically. "I have a lot of knowledge and skills other people don't have… All right, I've decided. I will be an odd jobs person, you can help me with that too, Cloud."

The driver gaped, "Hey you, did you listen to what I just said?"

Zack ignored the driver, "Troublesome jobs, dangerous jobs… I will do them all as long as they pay me good. That will make me big bucks. Hey Cloud! What are you going to do?" He saw Cloud's eyes hardened in a glare and chuckled, knowing Cloud was accusing him for abandoning her, "I'm just joking. I won't leave you alone." He said tenderly at her, feeling pang of sadness. "We'll open an odd jobs company. Do you understand? Cloud?" He watched her eyes soften and she gave a small nod.

He frowned as Cloud's head straighten up and her eyes blanked out. He knew the look; there was something out there that he couldn't detect just yet. Cloud was always the best in grasping something out of place before it happened. His senses became heightened and on alert.

Somewhere in the distant, hiding behind the rocks, "Target is already past coordinate 12. They will be within firing range soon." A soldier whispered as he held the gun, targeting a blond in the yellow truck.

The second one waved his hand in a single, "All right, go for it."

The third asked, "But the Turks said we have to wait until after they arrive."

The first gave a soft scoff, "We're not going to hand the credit over to them. Don't worry, just shoot."

Zack stood up, leaning on the hood of the truck as he gazed around, his face set in carefree expression but within his mind, he felt tense. "Hey, uncle, why aren't we there yet? This old truck…" He felt the alarm went off in his mind and knew it was what Cloud had sensed before. He saw the shadows in the rocks and in the distant; he heard the whirring of the helicopter's blade.

With quick speed, he turned and grabbed Cloud, "Get down!" Gunshot filled the air and they were thrown out of the truck, landing on the dusty road hard. Zack groaned and looked up to find the truck speeding off, disappearing as it abandoned them.

Cloud's blue eyes stared from the ground as she lay motionless, she saw Soldiers coming down from the rock. She wanted to cry out but couldn't. Zack had whipped out his sword but the shock and the jarring sense from being thrown out of the truck left him vulnerable. Snaps of gunshots filled the air and she watched Zack jerk several times as he was being hit in the chest.

He uttered a cry, "Cloud, run!"

The scenes before her eyes were slow and torturous. The sword fell from Zack's hand and his head finally snapped back. He fell to the ground with echoing thud. Closing her eyes, she heard distantly a Solider ordered to shoot some more to be sure, and then the roaring of the helicopter landed.

With her eyes closed, the world was black yet the sounds filled in her mind. There were shouts, accusing and faint air popping which she knew was from the Turks' silencers. Few heavy thuds indicated the Soldiers were finished off.

Finally, after scuffling of feet, voices were clear to her.

"That's Zack. We were a bit too late. Idiots." One sounded like he was scowling.

A female asked, "What should we do?"

Then a voice, with tone of superiority replied, "Take him back."

A sound of crackle was close to her head and through her closed eyelids she saw blue glows. A familiar male voice came above her. "What about this one?"

The superior voice replied with softness, "Forget it. Just leave him; he will not live any longer. He is too insubstantial. Get out of here."

Scuffling of feet and dragging sound faded away, she blinked her eyes open to see pair of shiny black shoes before her face, dazed she lay there, not daring to move, even when she couldn't.

The man above her knelt and whispered, "You're strong. You are dead to the ShinRa, but there is hope for you, get up and out of here when you can. I believe he is alive, out there, somewhere waiting for you. Forget about Zack, he is lost to you."

She watched the feet walk away and soon, the helicopter was long gone from the area. Her eyes shifted to the distant, a dark city loomed. So far, yet so close, Midgar. She knew she had to get there. But she wasn't sure why, yet something in her heart tugged her to. She realized, she couldn't remember who she was or where she is. The world became dark as she lost her consciousness.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	15. S2:1: Seventh Heaven

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter One: Seventh Heaven

_We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: _

2 Peter 1:19, The Holy Bible

Deep in the Sector Seven, the well known slums of Midgar, where it was dark and dank, only the Mako powered light illuminating the area, making the section look discreetly like a city in the back alleyway. Cloud could see the area with her Mako enchanted eyes better, adapting quickly to the dim lights. People came and went around her, hastily going about their business. She slowly made her way up the stairs of the bar, 'Seventh Heaven', which was oddly named for a bar in the slum.

She had been in the slum in the past few days after meeting Tifa, a woman who owned the bar. The woman had claimed to be her, or rather, 'his' childhood friend from some town. She had no memory of the bartender woman, or anything before few days ago. She remembered her childhood in a small quaint town before a looming dark mountain, how she always dressed as a boy and the town's fear and rejection of her and her mother.

Something must have happened to her recently to cause the loss of her memory. She couldn't remember her name, who she was or where she was. She had stumbled into Midgar, she had remembered the pain her body felt and exhausted when she sat down at the train station near the outskirt of the city. She remembered thinking she had to go to Midgar so badly. But for what reason, she has no idea.

She rubbed her chest, glancing down to the faded old Solider crewneck shirt she wore. Her chest was bounded to give illusion of a male body. She knew it was Soldiers uniform she was wearing, but according to the other Soldiers she had seen in Midgar, her uniform was outdated and old. She wasn't sure how long her memory was missing. She wasn't sure how old she was and how long she must had been missing to someone, whoever knows her out there. According to Tifa, the last time the bartender had seen her, was seven years ago, when she was fifteen. She assumed she was about twenty one or twenty two years old. It fits right with her appearance.

Her hand went up to her hair, feeling the light fluffy strand that stuck out in way ward style, giving her wild spikes flying everywhere. She felt odd, having short hair and tried to remember if she did have a longer hair, perhaps down to her shoulder, she did remember feeling the heaviness of her hair hanging down. Shaking her head, she glanced in the glass window of the bar, seeing her reflection. She knew she was a woman, in mind, heart, body and soul, yet her reflection showed a hardened ex-solider, with the eyes that glowed brightly in the dark and hard with cold demeanor.

She couldn't help but feel something had happened to her sometime between seven years ago and few days ago. Her body felt odd, tingling with memories of pain, twitches and muscle spasm. Something must had happened to her terribly to cause her memory loss as well. She didn't recall herself having Mako eyes, the sign of a Soldier; however her eyes glowed brightly than any Soldiers she had seen in the last few days. It occurs to her that she did indeed have a very heavy dose of Mako or something. Her sword that she carries around, a weathered battered sword which she knew was called Buster Sword was usually for an higher rank class of solider, perhaps a Class Two or Elites. She knew she could wield it without problem and has graceful fighting skill that outmatches anyone.

She couldn't help wonder why she was here in the first place, at the Seventh Heaven bar. After bumping into Tifa, the woman had dragged her away to the Bar and introduced to her other friends, which she later learned was a rebel group calling themselves the Avalanche.

Avalanches were small division groups, this division made up of five people whom she had found them to be an odd sort of group, sketchy as well. Barret Wallace, a large burly black man who was the leader of this small group. He had a revolving gun arm in place of his right arm which was cut off long ago. Tifa was also in the group, she ran and own the bar, the Seventh Heaven, which was also a secret headquarter as well. The rest are the trio, which she has dubbed them, because in the past few days, she always never see them apart from another. The trios are Biggs, a quiet man, which she has not really gotten to know and his sister, Jessie, a spunky woman with intelligent and talent with her hands who made about anything from fake identification card to complex bomb. Then, lastly, a round jolly man who had a friendly demeanor, Wedge.

Out of all the people in the Avalanche, she felt comfortable with a little girl, an adoptive daughter of Barret, Marlene. She was a tiny girl of five years old and amazingly skilled at bartending which appalled her to no end. She suspected the girl to be very intelligent but was also shy.

Tifa had offered her to join Avalanche, promising pay if she did the job Barret gave her. At first, she didn't want to, unsure if it was the best idea. But the offer for a lot of money kept her there. She needed money to get around if she was to go and find out about her past. She felt that she needed to find someone but didn't know who or where to start. So, she accepted the job and the job was to place a bomb and set it to detonate immediately after she left.

It was a fairly easy job for her, with her ability to sneak around and run rather very fast. She had gotten away easily without any problem. It wasn't a simple job because setting a bomb in a highly guarded reactor swamped with guards is complicated. She found that she also had extensive knowledge of Mako and used her knowledge in placing the bomb in the right place. She became a valued asset to the Avalanche.

The reactor number One blew up exactly as it was supposed to do. Much the way Avalanche wanted. The place went up in an explosive fireball without damaging the surrounding area. The team had to split up once the explosion went off, to avoid attention from the ShinRa Soldiers. She remembered the encounter with few of them, thwarting them without problem and leaping over the bridge onto a train that she was supposed to get on earlier.

She had expected to meet with Class Two and Elite Soldiers, which she knew usually handled the terrorist. But to her surprise and confusion, there was none. She only ran into Class Four Soldiers and she had thwarted them without breaking sweat. Something was fishy going on and her lack of memory wasn't helping her. The more she does things and encountered made sure that she was a Solider, because she kept remembering protocols and regulation of the Soldiers. The oddest thing was, she was a female and to her knowledge, female wasn't used as Soldiers in the ShinRa Army and she also concluded that she also had concealed her gender during her time in the Soldiers as well.

On the train, Barret had scolded her about her entrance, saying she was a show off. She ignored him, finding he had a big mouth and liked to be in control. The trio wasn't a bad company and she kept close to them, trying to find out what she could about the ShinRa government. Something must had changed over the past few years. All the information she had learned from them was familiar, nothing much had really changed in the government except for the Military, they had just lost their entire Elite Soldiers, which happened to be just of three members, couple years back in a freak accident. The General was one of them and they no longer were alive, according to the news that announced after the accident.

Knowing this also had triggered a elusive memory, giving her quick flashbacks, she could only see flashes of silver and green in those memories. It teased her endlessly. She shook her head and glanced up to the building that she had been standing outside for a long time, lost in her own thoughts. She suddenly stepped aside as Barret chased some people out, announcing the bar was closed early for maintenance.

"Yo! Cloud! Get off your slow moving ass!" Barret shouted, waving at her.

She glared at him, his slang was very much slum-like. The man was at home in the Section Seven, she concluded. She followed him into the bar and watched the brown haired girl run around the corner to greet her father, "Papa!"

The girl gave the man a hug around his leg and peered up to Cloud, shyly smiling at her. Tifa looked up from the bar and came around to the front and knelt down to Marlene's level, "Marlene! Aren't you going to say anything to Cloud?"

The girl timidly went to Cloud, staring up at her. Tifa smiled and greeted her, "Welcome home, Cloud. Look like everything went well. Did you fight with Barret?" She shot a frown at the black man in the corner.

She shrugged her shoulder nonchalantly, "Yeah." She had quarreled with Barret in the Reactor about the bomb and where to place it.

"I should have known." Tifa tilted her head sideway, causing her long brown hair to sway, "He's always pushing people around, and you've always been in fights since you were little." She sighed, "I was worried."

Cloud waved her hands, gesturing it didn't matter. Tifa was right, she always somehow gotten into scruffs when she was younger in Nibelheim; it was what she had remembered. But she wondered, did she while she was a Solider? But the past doesn't matter right now. "Not this time." She mentioned, speaking of physical brawl. It was only verbal she had gotten into so far with the man.

Tifa gave a pensive look, "Hmm, you've grown up. When you were little, you used to get into fights at the drop of the hat." Her eyes, brown it was but with crimson hue gave Cloud a look over. To her, 'he' was handsome, strong and mysterious with deep sparkling blue eyes that showed the age of hardship and blond wayward hair. From what she could recall, 'he' had changed a lot since she had seen him in Nibelheim over seven years ago.

She spotted a small delicate pink flower in 'his' gloved hand. She gasped, "Flower? How nice…" she pursed her lips as if in thought, "you almost never see them here in the slums. But…" she pondered on where you could find one in their natural state.

"It's no biggie…" Cloud shrugged once again and held the flower out to the little girl, who was hiding behind Tifa. She grabbed it and hid behind Tifa again, sniffing at the delicate flower.

Cloud stared at the flower in the girl's hand for a moment. She had bought it off from a young woman in the slums after bumping into her from running from the Soldiers after the blast. The woman seemed nice and somewhat familiar. The girl was strange, a stark opposite from the rest of the people in the slums, she seemed to have mythical aura about her. She couldn't help but find her familiar.

Tifa looked around the bar and went behind the bar, Marlene trailing behind her. "Sorry Cloud. Marlene seems a little shy." The little girl stared up at Cloud with her large brown eyes.

Cloud herd her name being called and turned to the round man, Wedge who had called her, he grinned cheekily, "Tifa really know how to cook. Mmm, hmm! Anyway, let me tell you somethin'."

"About what?" the blonde asked, leaning on the bar.

The jolly man grinned, "Tifa always let me taste her cookin'. And look at me now, I'm rolly-polly." He patted his round stomach, "Don't know whenever I should be happy or sad. But it's the good food and drinks that make this shop famous!"

She smirked at the man and turned her attention back to the drink that was offered by Tifa. She took a slug from the mug and settled herself down on the stool. She grimaced as she realized she was given alcohol and found she didn't get the usual effect of the buzziness she should get from drinking it.

Biggs and Jessie started to squabbles over something relating to the drink and the job with Wedge. Cloud ignored them and thanked Tifa silently for the drink and got up to leave but, Barret who had gone in the back room came out and called after her. Marlene shouted in joy to see him again. The man smiled at her and inquired where she had gotten the flower and learned it was from Cloud.

"You all right, Barret?" Tifa asked as she wiped the counter.

Barret nodded as he lifted Marlene onto his shoulder easily, and turned to Cloud, "Stay," Then he turned to the rest of the members of Avalanches, "Get in here, fools! We're startin' the meetin'!" He hollered and delicately put the girl down and went over to the pinball machine that was in the corner of the room and pressed a button; it turned out to be a hidden elevator to the hideout below the building. Everyone else followed behind. Cloud remained with Tifa at the bar.

"Sit down." She gestured to the stool that Cloud had vacated before, "How about something to drink?" She asked, taking the mug that Cloud had emptied earlier.

She shrugged, "Doesn't matter. I'm never one for alcohol. The drink you gave me didn't do anything."

Tifa frowned, "Hm. I think I have something for you. Any standard alcohol doesn't work for a Solider like you. Your eyes tell me you have Mako. Makohol is a Solider drink. I suppose I have a bottle somewhere. I don't usually serve the stuff, but if you want. I guess after being in Soldiers for a while, you'd drink only that thing."

"Yeah, I guess." Cloud muttered, she thought as she waited for Tifa. She couldn't remember when she had joined Solider or anything to do with it. She supposed, maybe drinking Makohol would give her some sense of familiarity. "I suppose so."

Tifa nodded and went about her stocks and searched for the desired drink and shook her head. She ducked under the bar table and with some clatters, she appeared, dusting the abandoned bottle, "Here it is… several years old." She opened it and poured the greenish liquid drink, it glowed slightly.

Cloud took the drink and drank it down without much of a cringe. Tifa stared at 'him' and then sniffed the bottle and cringed, "Jeez, this is poisonous to human."

"Yeah, anybody who has Mako in their system can just jug down rat poison and be fine. I don't think I'll try. This thing might work better than rat poison anyway." She gave the other woman a smirk. The drink didn't give her a desired effect in attempt of remembering anything. She didn't like the drink anyway.

Tifa shook her head and poured another, "You know, I'm relieved you made it back safely."

"So? It wasn't a tough job." Cloud fiddled the mug on the table.

"I guess not, you were in Soldier."

"Yeah." The blonde set the mug down.

"Make sure you get your pay from Barret." Tifa mentioned as she went about cleaning the bar.

"Don't worry. Once I get that money, I'm outta here." She replied, suddenly getting weird vibe from Tifa. She knew that the brunette had a crush on her and obviously; no one knew she wasn't a male. It seemed that she had to keep the charade of being a strong ex-Soldier to stay alive; it was the only choice she had now to get the money she needed and get out and find a life of her own, maybe even find the missing gap in her memory.

The haunting image of a face framed with silver and emerald for eyes invaded her mind often in the past few days. The face came and went at random times; teasing her. She had to find out whom it belonged to, and why it caused pain in her heart, maybe she could find out who it was when she leave the place. She also suspected it must be the person she had the strong urge to find.

Tifa looked up to Cloud when 'he' stood up from the bar and turned away, "Cloud, are you feeling all right?" She asked, worried, perhaps the Makohol finally took effect.

Cloud turned back and smiled slightly, "yeah, why?"

Tifa shrugged, waving the towel in her hand, "no reasons. You just look a little tired, I guess. You'd better go down below; I think Barret is ready for you." She gestured to the pinball machine.

The blonde nodded and went to the machine and went down below, the basement looked like a den with cluttered mess. There were pictures of Midgar city plastered all over the wall, maps and lists of things. The television sat in the corner and a couple of low futon surrounded a small coffee table, which was also covered with papers, magazine and a laptop.

Biggs and Jessie sat at the futon, going over papers while Wedge sat, watching the television and Barret punching at the punching bag in another corner.

"You think I'm a little too uptight?" Wedge asked, his eyes never leaving the television, which were playing the Midgar News about the reactor explosion.

Cloud's brows went up at the odd comment, "Uh?"

"Ah, don't worry about it. I'm just a coward at heart. Are you like, impervious to feeling?" Wedge waved his hand and Cloud stared at him with blank face. "Naw, that couldn't be it. Anyhoo, the next mission will be to blow up Reactor Five."

Jessie looked away from her computer which was buried under the papers all over the table, "Oops, hey, look at the news! What a blast!" She grinned cheekily.

Everyone turned to the television, the replay showed the explosion from different views. One showed was probably from a helicopter, "think it was all because of my bomb? But all I really was just make it like the computer told me." She then frowned as she clicked at the computer, "Oh no! I must've made a miscalculation somewhere."

Cloud rolled her eyes; the blast was big and good enough. It destroyed the reactor like Avalanche wanted. The members of Avalanche were odd sort of people.

"Yo, Cloud!" She turned to the black man, "There's something' I wanna ask ya. Was there anyone from Soldiers fighting us today?"

She shook her head, "Some low rank ones. None of the Elites. You guys were right; there was none of them at all."

"Yeh sound pretty sure." He grunted as he sat down in his office chair.

"If there were anyone from the Elite, you wouldn't be standing here now." She had to agree, no one could go up against the Elites except their own. She suspected she had the same power as the Elite but couldn't recall why. Once again, the seven years gap eluded her. She supposed, in the past few days, she was picking up clues to her memories and concluded that she would eventually get them back over the time.

"Don't go thinkin' you so bad jes cuz you were in Soldiers." Barret said as he went about cleaning his gun arm.

She raised her eyebrow at him. The man was unique with the accent he had, the slum accent. She had suspected that he was illiterate when she first met him but had been proven wrong. Not all of the people in the slums were unintelligent, after all this man has a mastermind behind his burly, large frame and a gun for arm. He ran the Sector Seven Avalanche to go against the wrongful government of ShinRa, who treated the people below the upper plate like they were nothing.

"Yeah, you're strong. Probably all those guys in Soldier are. But don't forget your skinny ass's working for Avalanche now! Don't get no idea 'bout hangin' onto ShinRa." He muttered, idly threatening her.

She frowned at him, "Stayin' with ShinRa? You asked me a question and I answered it. That's all. I'm going upstairs. I want to talk about my pay."

Barret sighed, "Shucks, money…"

The ex-Soldier made her way to the main level and went to leave the bar but was stopped by Tifa, "Wait, Cloud!"

Barret had appeared by her side and placed his hand on her shoulder, "Tifa, let him go. Look like he still misses the ShinRa."

Cloud twirled around, furious, "Shut up! I don't care about either ShinRa or Soldiers! But don't get me wrong; I don't care about Avalanche or the Planet for that matter!"

Tifa nudged away from Barret's hold and stepped forward to Cloud, "Cloud! Straighten things up with everyone, for me!"

Cloud didn't reply but the television blared in the still silence of the basement. "… today the No. One Reactor was bombed. The terrorist group Avalanche has claimed responsibility for the bombing. It is expected that Avalanche will continue its reign of terror. But citizen of Midgar… there is no need to fear. I have immediately mobilized Soldiers to protect our citizenry against this senseless violence. Thank you and good night."

The rest of the Avalanche came upstairs, all of them staring at Cloud who was ready to leave. Wedge stepped up, "Cloud. You say you don't care, but you came to talk to me. Cloud, you just wanted friends, isn't that right?"

The blonde glared at the round man, snarling, "Blow off, I don't care."

Wedge sighed, "That was cold. Real cold… you looked kind of lonely to me. If you wanted to talk about anything, you could always talk to me."

Cloud's rage simmered and she sighed. She did want to feel welcome but she felt out of place, pretty much anywhere. She felt lonely, missing companionship deep inside her heart. She shook her head, she couldn't talk to anyone. There were so much questions going on in her mind and she has to find all of the answer herself. It was possible that some of the answers would be life-risking. She turned and went outside to the steps and sat down on the top step.

Tifa followed her out and stared at her, her hand out, almost desperately asking, "Listen, Cloud. Please join us."

Cloud shook her head, "Sorry, Tifa."

"The Planet is dying. Slowly, but surely its dying. Someone has to do something."

The blonde closed her eyes; somehow a flash of memory came to her mind. Vision of the jagged mountain loomed and colorful area in the valley, women praying in circles before an altar, all dressed in white and gold. She frowned and shook her head. "So, let Barret and his buddies do something about it. It got nothing to do with me."

Tifa gasped, "So, you're really leaving? After I've found you few days ago?" She knelt down next to 'him'. "You're just going to walk right out ignoring your childhood friend?"

Cloud looked up to meet her crimson hue gaze, "What?"

"You forgot the promise, too." Tifa bowed her head to meet her knees.

"Promise?"

"So, you did forget. Remember, Cloud. It was about seven years ago…"

Cloud stared at the woman before her and the memory slowly came back to her as Tifa explained. She looked up, seeing blue starry skies instead the dark underside of the ShinRa plate above them. They were suddenly young teenagers at the well in the town square in Nibelheim.

"Sorry, I'm late." The young Tifa gushed and sat down next to Cloud who was swinging 'his' legs on the ledge. "You said you wanted to talk to me about something?"

The young Cloud nodded, "Soon, I am leaving this town for the Academy."

"Oh, all of the boys are leaving our town." Tifa looked away, feeling a bit sad.

Cloud stood up on the ledge of the well, "But, I am different from all of them." She paused, wondering if she should tell the other girl about herself. "I am not just going to find a job. With the Academy, I'll find my place. Maybe I'll join Soldier, become stronger. If I like it, maybe even be the best there is, just like Sephiroth." Pink gazed 'his' cheeks as she recalled the famous General Sephiroth.

Tifa looked up at Cloud, "Sephiroth… The Great Sephiroth." Cloud nodded and sat back down, leaning back to gaze at the starry skies. She decided not to just yet.

"Isn't it hard to join Soldier?"

"I probably won't be able to come back for a while."  
Tifa moved and stood up, "Will you be in the newspaper if you do well?"  
"Maybe."

"Hey, why don't we make a promise? Umm, if you get really famous and I'm ever in a bind, you will come and save me, all right?"

Cloud turned to the girl next to her, "What?" She frowned, it sounded like a damsel asking her prince to make a promise. This was something she couldn't really do but the girl was desperately asking 'him' to.

"Whenever I'm in trouble, my hero will come and rescue me. I want to at least experience that once."

Cloud gulped, this wasn't where she wanted it to go. She had originally considered telling Tifa the truth about herself but she didn't find the window of opportunity.

"Come on! Promise me!"

Feeling as if she were backed in a corner and nodded, "All right, I promise!" She cringed inside.

Someday, she was going to set the girl straight. She had gotten herself in a mess now. They both watched the night sky, a falling star streaked across with its white tail trailing behind across the dark blueness.

"Whenever I'm in trouble, my hero will come and rescue me. I want to at least experience that once."

Cloud then looked back at the woman, finding themselves in front of Seventh Heaven bar.

Tifa smiled, "You remember now? Our promise?"

Cloud sighed, "Look Tifa… I…" she so badly wanted to set her straight but it didn't seem to be the time now, "I am not a hero and I am not famous. I can't keep… the promise." She looked away, her heart ached sorely. The name that appeared in the memory she had recalled, Sephiroth, stirred something inside her. The name was on the tip of her tongue but she couldn't just utter the name just yet.

It was something else she has to figure out. The Avalanche had told her about the General disappearing several years ago in the freak accident along with the other Elites. It did not make any senses; the man was resilient and powerful also one of the best Soldiers out there. It was as if, one day, he was gone and that was it, the military system seemed to topple a little bit and the ShinRa army weakened. She felt there was something about him that had to do with her and her lacking of memories and it was beginning to bother her more.

Tifa's cry broke her out of her daze, "But you got your childhood dream, didn't you? You became a Soldier."

Cloud studied her scuffed boots.

"So, come on! You've got to keep your promise…" Cloud kept quiet despite Tifa's begging. Something nagged in the back of her mind that the promise had been kept and served.

Barret appeared behind them in the doorway and held a sack in his hand, serious look on his face, "Wait a sec big-time Solider! A promise is a promise! Here." He flung the pouch to Cloud.

Cloud grabbed it, and felt it. It was fifteen hundred gil. She scowled, "This is my pay? Don't make me laugh!" She felt she had done was much more than this for her troubles.

Tifa frowned; it was what they had agreed on few days ago, "What? Then you'll…?"

Cloud looked up at Barret, "you got the next mission lined up? I'll do it for three thousands."

Barret gaped at her, "What?"

Tifa stood and placed a hand on his arm and whispered, "Its ok, its okay… we're really hurting for help, right?"

Barret chewed on his lip and replied back in low whisper, "Uh, that money's for Marlene's schoolin'…" Then he turned to Cloud who also stood up, "Two thousands."

Tifa turned to Cloud and patted 'his' shoulder, "Thanks, Cloud!" before 'he' could reply.

Cloud was given a place to sleep and though the night she wasn't really able to sleep well with the new environment. The haunting name of the once General of ShinRa and the mysterious face keep coming back to mind. To top it all, Barret was snoring loudly. She wondered how everyone else could stand it.

After finally getting to sleep, she woke up with the sun shining in her face annoying her. It was time to get up and get on to the next mission. She wasn't happy about it but it was worth some money and maybe she could come across something during the mission that would make her remember something more to her past.

She went up to the main level and found the little girl mixing several drink with some skill. She rolled her eyes and sat down at the stool, watching Marlene with silent awe. Soon Marlene filled a glass of the remaining Makohol from the bottle Tifa found last night and handed it to her with extra care.

With silent thank and being polite, she drank the glass down in one go and turned to find Tifa and Barret standing at the end of the bar, discussing quietly about the mission. Soon as they finished, the brunette turned to Cloud and started asking about Materia. Cloud had to buckle down and go into a long-winded explanation on how it was made and how it work.

Soon they all left Marlene to watch the bar and went on their next mission to Sector Five. The train trip didn't go as planned. The Identification checker blared on Security Alert, causing Avalanche to move ahead several cars and had to jump off the train before they were caught. They all found themselves in an underground subway.

The trip though the tunnel to the Reactor Five was quiet most of the time and they stopped at before a laser grid blocking their path, an ShinRa security sensor, Cloud had explained and found another way around. Barret had complained on how the alternate path was too small for him. The ventilation duct was on the wall next to the security sensors, when she was given some choices, she chose to go in and everyone followed behind.

They worked their way into the reactor and met up with Wedge, Jessie and Biggs. They had parted on the train and according to Jessie; it was Cloud's fake identification card that set the alarm off. They made their way to the ladder into the next level in the reactor. The building layout was similar to the first reactor they had blown up. The six of them split again, Cloud going with Barret and Tifa deeper into the reactor.

Cloud stopped, clutching her head, groaning in pain. A sudden flashback came to her and she stared around.

It came to her intensely, the vision and the emotions. The pain in her heart clenched as the confusion swirled in her mind; she saw younger Tifa, wounded and lying against a strange pod in a reddish room. The surrounding was inside the reactor, a bit different from the one she is actually in.

Tifa was speaking to her, "Cloud, you're finally here. You kept your promise. You came for me when I was in danger…"

She then heard herself reply to wounded Tifa, "Sorry, I am a little bit late."

Tifa then shook her head, closing her eyes with smile on her lips, "Don't worry, Cloud."

Cloud then looked up to the stairs where a doorway was open and murmured, "Sephiroth…"

Then the vision ended, finding herself back in the Reactor Five with Barret and Tifa staring at her like she was going to act out.

"Damn man, get a hold of yourself!" Barret scowled.

Tifa kneeled down beside Cloud, placing her hand on 'his' shoulder, concerned, "You all right?"

Cloud rose and shook her head, "Tifa?" feeling that she should ask, "What happened to your father?"

Tifa frowned, "Mmm? He died sometime ago. I don't remember much, Nibelheim… something happened and the next thing I knew, I was here in Midgar, they told me I was lucky to survive. I don't have much memory; they said I hit my head."

"Who's they?"

"ShinRa hospices."

"Ah, never mind. Come on, let's hurry." Cloud muttered and grabbed the bomb from Barret who was holding it and set it up, it started to tick.

They raced out and reached the mechanism that Jessie had told them about and they were to hit all three buttons at the same time to exit the reactor. They pushed the buttons together and a door opens up, giving them a way out. They went though the door and across the walkway that hovered over a huge vast of Mako.

Barret turned and pointed down a different path, "This way!" Several Soldiers appeared and blocked their path. "Soldiers! Shit, what's the hell's goin' on?" He cursed.

Cloud looked around and recognized the problem, "A trap." Then she heard footsteps and turned to see who was coming.

"President ShinRa?" Barret asked in surprise as the said man came to them.

Tifa frowned, "Why is the President here?"

The large elderly man in expensive suit and slick combed back hair smiled, "Hmm, so you all must be that…" He tapped his chin, "what was it?"

Barret shook with frustration, "Avalanche!" He hollered, "And don't ya forget it! Yer President ShinRa, huh?"

Cloud stepped forward, recognizing the man, "Long time no see, President."

The President turned to Cloud and his bushy gray brows furrowed, "Long time no see?" Then it hit him, "Oh, you. You were one of my Elites. Were you supposed to be dead? Maybe not, you got more Mako exposure than usual, from the glow in your eyes…" He gestured to Cloud's brilliant blue eyes that glowed in the dimness, "Tell me, traitor… what was your name?"

Cloud scowled at the past tense, "Cloud Strife."

The older man looked smug, "Forgive me for asking, but I can't be expected to remember each person's name. Unless you've become another Sephiroth… I think I recall correctly, you did. Always around my best Soldiers…"

That name again, she stepped back, frowning slightly, the name swam in her head and the desire to say it nagged her.

"Yes, Sephiroth. He was brilliant, perhaps too brilliant." The man murmured, taking a drag from his cigar.

The image came to her mind, a tall man with long flowing silver hair, almost regal and proud, his eyes glowed emerald and jade. Then she remembered the face of many emotions on his face. Sephiroth, the name was very familiar to her, it had once made her heart soar, but now it clashed with pain.

"Sephiroth…" She whispered at last, mesmerized by the vision and the name.

Barret ran forward, threatening the President, "Don't give a damn 'bout none of that! This place's goin' up with a big bang soon! Serves y'all right!"

The man gave Barret a pitying look, "And such a waste of good fireworks, just to get rid of vermin like you…"

The gun-armed man growled, "Vermin? That's all you can say? Vermin!" He spat with all the fury he had, "Y'all ShinRa're the Vermin! Killing the planet! And that makes you King Vermin! So shu'up jackass!"

President ShinRa sighed, rubbing his temple after Barret's little spat, "You are beginning to bore me. I am a very busy man, so if you'll excuse me. I have a dinner I must attend."

Barret took another step towards the President. "Dinner? Don't gimme that! I ain't even started wit' you yet!"

"But, I've made arrangements for a playmate for you all." The President smirked and snapped his finger and a low rumbling noise shook around in the room.

Tifa looked around wildly, "What's that noise?"

Barret ran back to her side, looking around also, "The hell is this?"

A large robot buzzed in and hovered several feet taller than the Avalanchers.

"Meet 'Airbuster', a techno-soldier. Our Weapon Development Department created him. I'm sure the data he'll extract from your dead bodies will be of great use to us in future experiment."

Cloud looked at the robot and then to the President, "Techno-soldier?" It was too much for her. When did ShinRa start making those things? She remembered that ShinRa solely depended on Class Two and Elites to take care of the situations, nothing made sense to her anymore. She knew she had to find out, after all, the President confirmed it that she used to be Elites, obviously a surviving one. If she had survived, the others must have too.

A helicopter hovered above the walkway and the President took the rope ladder, stepping on it and gave a wave to Avalanche, "Now then, if you'll excuse me."

Cloud ran to the President to intercept him, "Wait, President!" But it was too late, the President had already boarded the helicopter and left.

"Yo, Cloud! We've gotta do somethin' about him!" Barret called out to 'him' and took stance before the Airbuster.

Tifa looked worried at the robot, "Help, Cloud! This is from Soldier?"

Cloud shook her head violently, "No way! It's just a machine!"

The Airbuster spun around and Barret growled, muttering about not caring what it was and they all went into battle with the Airbuster. The Avalanche took turns giving it what they had with their weapons; Tifa with her hand-to-hand combat skills, Barret with his gun arm and Cloud with her valued weapon, the Buster Sword.

As soon they defeated the Airbuster. The robot exploded, taking half of the walkway with it. Cloud found herself hanging onto a piece of broken metal and looked down. It was a long way down. Tifa went to the edge to help but was stopped by Barret, "It's gonna blow! Let's go, Tifa!"

Tifa turned to Barret and gasped at him, "Barret! Can't you do something?"

Barret shook his head regrettably, "Not a damn thing!"

Tifa turned back to Cloud, "Cloud! Please don't die! You can't die! There's still so much I want to tell you!"

Cloud looked up at the crimson eyes that were filled with fear, "I know, Tifa…" So much more she wanted to know about her past. The busty barmaid was the key to her childhood while Sephiroth was the key to her Soldier past.

Barret looked over the edge. "Hey, you gonna be awright?"

Cloud stared back up at the man and spat, "You worry about yourselves! I'm all right, but take care of Tifa!"

Barret nodded, "Alright. Sorry 'bout all this."

Cloud could see the gentle side in his eyes and sighed, "Stop talkin' like this is the end!"

Not a moment later the bomb exploded, the force knocking her off and Tifa screamed, trying to grab 'him' but it was too late. Cloud fell back watching the sides spinning upward as she went down to the slums below.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	16. S2:2: The Flower Girl

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Two: The Flower Girl

_Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land._

Song of Solomon 2:12, The Holy Bible

_::Are you all right? Can you hear me? Cloud!::_

Cloud's mind swam in the darkened daze; the voice nudged her into waking consciousness. It made her think of silver, which was all she could describe it, warm and soothing with deep baritone tone. It was dark and she couldn't see anything.

"Yeah..." She muttered to no one in particular, not sure if she actually heard the voice or not.

The voice was back, shimmering, deepening and almost laughing at her in her mind::_Back then, you could get by with just skinned knees…:: _She frowned and attempted to turn around in the darkness but finding herself getting dizzier.

"What do you mean by 'back then'?" She asked, trying to settle the dizziness.

_::What about now? Can you get up?::_ It asked, teasing.

Clout was getting irritated at the voice, "What do you mean by 'back then'?" She demanded again, scowling as she gotten no reply and huffed; "What about now?"

It returned, _::Don't worry about me. You just worry about yourself now.:: _

The blond sighed as she took the hint that the conversation wasn't really going anywhere, "I'll give it a try."

"Oh! He moved!" Someone above her gasped, Cloud frowned, confused at the new voice, a female and familiar to boot.

_::How about that?::_ The voice smirked, how she knew she had no idea. ::_Take it slow now, little by little.::_

"Hello? Hello?" The other voice asked and Cloud felt herself being nudged physically.

She sighed, replying to the voice inside her mind, "I know…" She felt the presence of the voice fade away, leaving her strangely alone. "Hey! Who are you?" She called, desperately trying to hold on to whoever filled up her loneliness.

"Hello, hey, are you alive?" The sweet physical voice nudged her again.

Cloud groaned and blinked, able to get most of her mobility back and she groggily sat up. Blood rushed to her mind, dizziness returned. Blinking several time and the light blinded her. As she regained her vision back, getting clearer by seconds, she glanced around.

She found herself before a kneeling woman in pink outfit, the flower girl she had met earlier, where she had bought the flower from. The woman looked pretty in natural way, long russet hair tied in braid, her pink dress and short red jacked complimented her feature.

Cloud managed to stand up and rubbed the back of her head. She felt a nasty lump slowly fading; knowing due to the Mako in her blood was at work healing her fast. She glanced down, finding that she had somehow ended up in some sort of a flower garden in an abandoned old church.

"You okay?" The young woman asked, her brilliant green eyes shone with concerns, "You're in the church of Section Five slum." She smiled as she found that the handsome solider before her appeared all right. "You fell on the top of me. You really gave me quiet a scare!"

Cloud looked up to see the hole in the roof of the Church and though the top of Section Five. She couldn't remember what had happened before. It was a bit hazy since she had gotten a blow to her head, "…I came crashing down?"

The Flower Girl nodded, "The roof and the flower bed must have broken your fall, you're lucky. It's funny; you're the second Solider to fall here in my life time. The first one was a handsome devil," She smirked and blushed at the memory. "Ah, I wonder what happened to him… I miss him." She cocked her head and peered at Cloud, "You remind me of him."

Lucky, my arse. She thought and looked around once again and brushed the dust and debris off her clothes, amazed to find it unscratched. She found soot on her arm and suddenly it all came back to her.

The mission she had with Avalanche to blow up the Section Five Reactor, way up above. She glanced up again and found it was a long fall she had. Well, she would have to find her way back to the Avalanche and get her pay.

"Flower bed… is this yours?" She asked as she looked around her feet, the green glowing patch of grass and flowers bloomed under her feet. The woman nodded, "sorry about that."

"That's all right. The flowers here are quiet resilient because this is a sacred place. They say you can't grow grass and flower in Midgar. But, for some reasons, the flowers have no trouble blooming here. I love it here." The Flower Girl explained and tended to a bent flower that must have been under Cloud when she fell. "So, we meet again. Don't you remember me?"

"Yeah, I remember you, you were selling flowers."

"I'm glad you do. Thank you for buying my flower," She then stood up and tilted her head as she held her basket, "Say, do you have any Materia?"

Cloud stared at the woman, recalling somebody, a man in her memory. He spoke of a woman in Midgar who grew the flower. Frowning slightly as she wondered if this woman was the man was speaking about, another connection to her hazy and forgotten memories.

She blinked as the question was fired at her about Materia. Rubbing her arm, the soreness from the fall was fading away. "Yes, some." She fingered her bangle around her wrist, feeling several slots with Materia in them.

The woman shook her head and sighed, "Nowadays, you can find Materia anywhere. But, mine is special. It's good for absolutely nothing." She chuckled a little.

Cloud gave her a quizzical look, "Good for nothing? You probably just don't know how to use it."

"No, I do. It just doesn't do anything. I feel safe just having it. It was my mother's…" She looked skyward, "Say, I feel like talking. Do you feel up to it? After all, here we are meeting again, right?"

Cloud shrugged, "I don't mind." Talking with this woman was somewhat comforting. She felt like she could talk all of her problem with her and feel better afterward. It wasn't the same with anyone in Avalanche or even with Tifa.

The woman knelt to check her flowers and tended to some of them. "Just a little longer…" she murmured and looked up, "Oh! That's right; we don't know each other's names, do we?"

Cloud shook her head, inwardly smiling at the woman's antics.

"I'm Aeris, Aeris Gainsborough, and the Flower Girl around here. Nice to meet you." She stood up.

Cloud gave her a smile, she seemed nice, "Name's Cloud Strife. I just do a little bit of everything."

"Oh, a jack of all trades."  
The blond nodded and helped her up, "Yeah, I do whatever's needed."

Aeris giggled at her, getting a confused look from Cloud who retorted, "What's so funny? Why are you laughing?"

Aeris smiled again, "Sorry, I just…" She grew silent as she looked past Cloud's shoulder at the doors. "Sorry, bad timing on my part." She murmured to herself.

Cloud sensed several people behind her, and they were dangerous. They seemed to want the Flower Girl.

Aeris looked back at Cloud, "Cloud, don't let it get to you." She said and stepped back, so she'd be more protected by Cloud. "Say, Cloud…" She gave him a look over and smiled again, "Have you ever been a bodyguard?" The blond looked into her green eyes. "You do everything, right?"

Cloud ran her gloved fingers though her hair, "Yeah, that's right." She idly wondered if her life will always be this active and was it active as well in the past too?

"Then, get me out of here. Take me home."

Cloud nodded; another job to go for. "Ok, I'll do it, but it'll cost you."

Aeris tapped her chin as if in thought, "Well then, let's see…" Then she smiled wide, "How about if I go out with you once?"

Cloud swallowed hard, "Uh… I don't think that's a good idea…" Not again! What's with all those women throwing themselves at her? How handsome was she being a 'man'? She wondered if there was someone out there for her, truly.

What about Sephiroth, whoever he is?

She sighed in defeat and nodded. She turned around to see who she is up against. "I don't know who you are, but…" She started and got a good look of the person, he looked vaguely familiar.

The person stepped up to her, he looked surprised to see her, "You don't know me?" He had wild long red hair and dark skin. He also wore expensive, though un-kept suit and dark sunglasses. A faint flash back came to mind as she heard someone's voice in her mind.

'_Hey, come on! We all are going out to the park to play some game.'_

'_Uh, maybe some other time.'_ She heard her own voice reply back.

It was all she could remember. She must know this man personally in the past.

The red haired stranger looked at 'him' strangely and whispered under his breath, "How can he be alive?" His head turned to see three ShinRa guards come in.

"Hey, this one's a little weird." One of them points his gun at Cloud.

Cloud scowled, "Shut up! You ShinRa scums!"

One of the guards nudged the suited man, "Reno! Want him taken out?"

Reno stared at the 'man' before him, "I haven't decided yet."

Cloud saw her chance and reached to Aeris behind her.

"Don't fight here! You'll ruin the flowers!" She pleaded and tugged onto Cloud's arm and led him to the back of the church, "The exit is back here."

Reno sighed and followed them, going over the flower patch, stepping onto every flowers he could in his path. He frowned as he remembered the blonde's eyes, "They were… Mako eyes." Then he shook his head, "Yeah, all right. Back to work, back to work." He turned around to the other guards behind him and motioned them to follow, "Ah, don't step on the flowers…" He wagged his fingers.

The guards, three of them gaped at him and clamored together, "Hey Reno, you just stepped on them!"

"They're all ruined!"

"You're gonna catch holy hell!"

Reno smiled and left, following where Cloud and Aeris had disappeared to.

Aeris led Cloud to the back of the church and found a large ShinRa dud missile that had just crashed though, causing a large gaping hold around the area. She pointed to a place and they both went past the missile and climbed the broken flight of stairs. They stopped before a broken walkway; they were going have to jump over it.

Reno was on their tail in the chase. The guards and Reno went after them.

"Cloud! That one!" Aeris pointed over the gap.

Cloud looked over and gave a nod, "I know, look like they aren't going to let us go."

"What should we do?" The Flower Girl asked desperate evidence in her voice. Cloud wondered why the ShinRa would want with this girl.

"Well, we can't let them catch us, can we? Then, there's only one thing left to do." 'He' jumped across the path and motioned for the woman to follow, "Aeris, this way!"

Aeris stayed back, shaking her head.

Cloud looked around and gave up, "All right, I'll hold them off."

Aeris nodded, "Right, make sure they don't get though!"

Reno looked up at them from the bottom of the stairs and pointed, "The Ancient is getting away! You there! Let her go and I'll leave you alone."

The guards fired at Aeris with their guns. Aeris fell from the walkway and screamed.

Cloud gasped, "Aeris!" She looked down and found the pink clad woman all right, looking worse for wear at the bottom.

Reno peered over the top of his dark sunglasses, "Think we killed 'em?"

They shouldn't have to put a fight. I say!" He frowned. He recalled the blond man, several years ago dead for the world in the desert outside Midgar. It couldn't be right, then he knew his lackey Soldiers wouldn't be a match for him. He heard the girl calling for the man and it confirmed him, "So, it's you, Cloud Strife. You've grown since then… what a pity," He shook his head. "You're like another Sephiroth."

"Cloud, help!" Cloud muttered under her breath as she saw the girl trapped below. The call of help was getting to become a routine for the Flower Girl. Looking up above, she found four barrels and a quick glance down, she saw where the guards stood, advancing on Aeris.

Running to where the barrels were, she kicked each down and they hit each targets, smashing on top of the guards, knocking them out cold. The last one hit Reno, knocking him out cold as well. Aeris sighed in relief and looked up to where 'he' was, "Thanks Cloud!" She soon found her way to the top.

The blond saw a hole in the roof and guided the woman out, "This way…" They made their way to the roof and sat down on a secured area, looking over the Sector Five slum area.

"They're looking for me again." Aeris sighed as she drew her knees to her chin.

Cloud turned her head to the woman next to her, studying her profile. She didn't appear any much older than she and Tifa were. Yet, her eyes shone wisdom of things unknown. "You mean it is not the first time they've been after you?"

"No…" Aeris shook her head, hugging her legs tighter.

Cloud stared at her, "They're the Turks…" For some reasons, she knew who they were, especially that Reno man.

"Hmm…" Aeris nodded her head as if she knew too.

"The Turks are an organization in ShinRa. They scout for possible candidates for Soldiers." Cloud explained and flash back of memories taking her back to Costa Del Sol, where she recalled standing before a Turk man, giving slip of paper and receiving different papers. However, it didn't sound right; this Reno appeared more of henchmen type for the President. Maybe things actually did change within the ShinRa government.

"This violent? I thought they were kidnapping someone, namely me." Aeris scoffed.

Cloud nodded, "They're also involved in lot of dirty stuff on the side." She rubbed her cheek with her rough gloved finger, trying to recollect what she knew of them, "Spying, murder… you know." What she knew was information tidbits from Avalanche.

Aeris turned her head to look at the blonde, "They look like it."

"But, why are they after you? There must be a reason, right?"

"No, not really. I think they believe I have what it takes to be in Solider!"

Cloud nearly scoffed out loud but kept silent, this woman was nothing like her, she appeared demure, innocent and sweet, not what a Soldier would ask for in a person. Deciding to humor her, "Maybe you do. You wanna join?"

Aeris shrugged, "I don't know… But I don't wanna to get caught by those people!" She smiled and winked, "you know, my ex-boyfriend told me something a long time ago. He has this best friend who was girl, in Soldier. Mind you, we met the same way we met, him falling into the church from above."

It hit Cloud like a lighting bolt, her assumption of the woman was right, there were a connection. "Really, do tell." But Aeris stood up and started to jump over the roof and made her way across several roofs with her swift agility. Cloud had quickly caught up with her and went far ahead.

"Wait! Wait!" Aeris called out to 'him' and gasped as she delicately jumped over a gap and stopped, wheezing, "Slow… down… don't leave me…" She finally reached Cloud who was grinning at her.

"Funny, I thought you were cut out to be in Soldier."

Aeris gave him a glare and slapped 'his' shoulder. "Oh, you're terrible!"

Cloud laughed at her and she peered close to Cloud and studied 'his' face. "Hey, Cloud. Were you ever in Soldier?"

The blond stared at her blankly and nodded once, "I used to be. How did you guess?"

The pink clad woman smiled, gesturing to 'his' outfit, "That and your eyes… They have strange glow, much like his…"

Cloud caught on and nodded, whoever he was, she might had known who in the past, "Oh, that. That's the sign of those who have been infused with Mako…" She paused, tying to remember when she was infused with Mako but came up blank, "A mark of Solider. But how did you know about that?"

Aeris shook her head and looked down, "Oh, nothing."  
Cloud looked at the woman suspiciously, "Nothing?"

The Flower Girl looked up, smiling, "Right, nothing! Come on, let's go, bodyguard!"

Cloud groaned inwardly as she remembered her payment for being a bodyguard for the woman. They both went over more rooftops across the slums and reached a dirt road.

Aeris gave a sigh of relief, "Whew! Finally made it off, now what…" She looked around and pointed down a pathway, "My house is over there. Let's hurry before they get here."

Cloud followed the woman though the Sector Five slum to a small cottage just right outside the area in a grassy and wooded area. She guessed she was near the outskirt of Midgar. Aeris opened the door and called inside, "I'm home, Mom."

A woman, not very much older, maybe by only ten to twenty years older appeared and greeted them with a worried look on her face.

Aeris turned to Cloud, "Mom, this is Cloud, my bodyguard. Cloud, this is my mother, Elmyra."

Elmyra gasped, "Bodyguard? You mean you were followed again? Are you all right? You're not hurt, are you?"

Aeris smiled and waved her mother off, "I'm all right, and I had Cloud with me."

Elmyra sighed, "Thank you, Cloud. It's getting rather late, I suppose you will stay for dinner and rest for the night." She smiled and disappeared upstairs to prepare the guest room.

Aeris turned back to Cloud, "So, what are you going to do now?"

"I have to get back to Section Seven, is it far from here? I have to get to Tifa's bar."

The Flower Girl's brows furrowed slightly, "Is this Tifa a girl?"

Cloud felt uncomfortable, "Yea…"

Aeris stepped closer, inquiring, "A girl… friend?"  
She was taken aback, "Girlfriend? Oh, no, no way!" She shook her head.

Aeris giggled, "You don't have to get that upset!" Then she placed a finger on her cheek, "Let's see, Sector Seven, I'll show you the way."

Cloud shook her head, "You gotta be kidding. Why do you want to put yourself in danger again?"

"I'm used to it."  
"Used to it? Well…"

Aeris gave 'him' a look over, "What do you mean by that? You expect me to just sit by like I am just a feeble person?" She then turned to the stairs, "Mom! I'm taking Cloud to Sector Seven; I'll be back in a while."

Elmyra came downstairs, "But dear…" She sighed, "I give up. You never listen once you've made up your mind. But, if you must go, why don't you go tomorrow? It's getting late now."

Aeris tilted her head down, defeated, "Yeah, you're right, Mom."

"Aeris please go and make the bed," The said girl went upstairs and out of ear shot.

Elmyra turned to Cloud, "That glow in your eyes… you're from Soldier, right?"

"Yeah, rather I used to be…"

The woman wiped her hands on her apron, "I don't know how to say this, but…" She looked up at 'him' after all; Cloud was a bit head taller than the older woman, "Would you please leave here, tonight? Without telling Aeris?"

Cloud agreed and went upstairs as she was directed by Elmyra and met with Aeris on the way. They went back downstairs and had a simple dinner before turning in for the night.

"Sector Seven is not far; you just go though Sector Six, but that area is a little dangerous, so you'd better get some rest tonight."

Cloud bade the Flower Girl good night and went to the guest room. It was a small, nice cozy room, better than what she was given to sleep in at Seventh Heaven bar. She has to get away soon before she gotten herself into a deeper mess. Midgar seemed to be not the best place to be at and yet she was starting to find why she was here in the first place, the place was giving her clues to her eluded memories.

Aeris appeared in the doorway, "Cloud…" 'He' turned to her, "Good night." She smiled and left.

Cloud groaned softly, "Oh, man…" She looked down at her gloved hands and took off one of the gloves. On her left hand, a small beautiful white gold band adorned the ring finger with piece of green, chipped down Materia that flashed blue occasionally.

Taking the other glove off, she fingered the ring, "Who am I?" She whispered, feeling empty. A tear rolled down on her cheek, longing for something deep in her heart. Someone must have given her the ring, possibly someone who had loved her.

She took the ring off to take a closer look and something inside the band caught her attention. There was an inscription of some sort inside. She narrowed her enhanced eyes; the writing was so fine and so small that no normal eyes could make it out. She suspected it was so small so anyone who didn't have eyes like her couldn't read it, it said, 'My beautiful angel of my heart.' Then there were some beautiful design of a 'S' and then it continued on as 'Sephiroth."

She gasped, dropping the ring as if it burned her hand, "Sephiroth…" She whispered.

Flashes of a man appeared in her mind, a beautiful, yet powerful man with a long molten mane of silver and green glowing jaded emerald eyes. The face became clear now. "Sephiroth…" She then picked up the ring from her lap a placed it back on her ring finger. "Are you the one… that holds my heart in sorrow?" She whispered to no one as she gazed out of the window, seeing a moonless sky full of diamonds for stars. After a few falling stars shot though the skies, she returned to bed and replaced the gloves back on her hands and turned in, crying silently to sleep, confused and lost.

Darkness took her once again; she felt the same presence again and called out, "Hey, who are you?"

_::You know who I am.:: _The voice replied, slightly teasing with hint of saddened smile.

"I can't remember! I don't know who I am. Am I the Cloud that Tifa tells me of?"

_::You are Cloud Strife, the one I know and the one I love.::_

She gasped, "Who are you? Please tell me!" Desperately, she turned around and more tears rolled down her cheeks. She looked down and found herself dressed in a familiar dress of blue and white. It fell just past her knees and it was puffy short sleeved with dark blue bodice.

_::Wake up; it's time for you to go.:: _She gasped, not wanting this to end. Then, she felt a hand caressing her cheek. She leaned into it, the feeling of love and familiarity filled her; a thumb ran across her lower lips. _::Wake up, until next time.::_

Her blue eyes snapped open in the dark room. She rose from the bed and felt her face, it was wet and the pillow was damp. Rubbing her eyes dry, she remembered where she was supposed to go. "Sector Seven, just past Sector Six. I think I will be fine by myself." She looked around and found her Buster sword, and took it, strapping it to her back. She made it past Aeris' room and left the house as quietly she could.

The blue eyed ex-Soldier made her way though the slums, weaving around some people and place. She had picked up some scraps of conversations here and there about weapons, rumors on Avalanche and ShinRa. None of them were good at all. She sighed, not caring because she just helped Avalanche with blowing up two Reactors and that was it. Her next priority was to find Tifa and get her pay from Barret and leave, far away from Midgar.

She got close to the end of Sector Six and bumped into someone whose face gave her a start. "You're up bright and early." Aeris smiled at 'him' sarcastically.

"How could I ask you to go along when I knew it would be dangerous?"

Aeris rolled her eyes, "Are you done?"

Cloud didn't reply as she ran her fingers though her hair.

"To get to Tifa's Seventh Heaven bar, there's a short cut, I'll take you there. Come on!" She turned and ran. Cloud wasn't given much of a choice but to follow her though the area and they eventually arrived to an old playground.

"The gate to Sector Seven is in there." She pointed to the gate across the playground.

"Thanks, I guess this is a goodbye. You gonna be all right going home?"

Then Aeris made an act, clapping her cheeks with her hands and made a dramatic fearful look on her face. "Oh no! Whatever will I do?" She gushed and then became serious again with sarcastic tone, "Isn't that what you wanted me to say?"

Cloud rolled her eyes at her and sighed with some exasperation, "I would feel better if I see you home after all, I know the way now."

"Isn't that a little out of the way?"

"I have all the time in the world anyway."

Aeris clasped her hands behind her back and rocked on her heels, looking at Cloud. The ex-Soldier was just few inches taller than she was and 'he' was oddly slender for a male. She could tell that 'he' work out a lot due to muscular form of 'his' body underneath the high ranking Soldier uniform. "Can we take a break?" She suddenly asked and walked over to a large dome shaped children's slide in the old playground and climbed on the top of it. "Oh! I can't believe its still here." She giggled and sat on the top, gesturing for Cloud to join her on the top.

The blond climbed on the top of the domed slide an sat next to her, aware of her massive sword on her back.

"What rank were you?" She asked out of blue.

"Rank?" Cloud looked at her.

"You know, in Soldier."

"Oh, I was…" She looked up, searching her mind to remember. Flashes of white came across her vision. She saw some images of two men before her, they both were smiling at her and one of them reached toward her, decorating her collar with something. She then looked down to her collar and found nothing there, but she remembered. "First Class, Elite."

Aeris hugged her knees to her chest, "Just same as him."

"The same as who?" Tugging information in the back of her mind told her that she must knew the person the woman was referring to, since there were only three Elites Soldiers.

"My first boyfriend."

"You were serious?"

"No, but I liked him for a while. He was nice; I kind of miss him sometime. I heard he died in some kind of accident couple years ago."

Cloud rested her chin on her fist, propped up by her knee, "I probably knew him. What was his name?"

The woman shook her head, "It doesn't really matter."

Cloud closed her eyes; it was getting a little bit frustrating. It really does matter to her, just to find out her past. It was too strange for her, crossing paths with few people that could have keys to her past to who she was. She opened her mouth to try and persuade some answer out of the other woman but the sound of a carriage being drawn by a chocobo came though a gate.

Cloud looked and saw there was a woman riding in the back, she recognized her, "Huh? Hey, back there…" She stood up, "Tifa?" The woman who resembled Tifa greatly was wearing some sort of a blue short dress that wasn't her style.

Aeris stood up, "That girl in the cart was Tifa? Where was she going? She looked kind of odd…" Then she hopped down from the slide to go after the cart.

Cloud groaned in exasperation, "Wait! I'll go on alone, you go home!" Aeris didn't hear 'him' and disappeared around the corner where the cart had gone. The blond sighed and went after her, finding the pink clad girl to be much more than she can handle.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	17. S2:3: Wall Market

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Three: Wall Market

_Wail, you who live in the market district; all your merchants will be wiped out, all who trade with silver will be ruined._

Zephaniah 1:11, The Holy Bible

Cloud looked around and found Aeris ahead of her; she hurried, catching up with the other woman. They've entered another section, a smaller part of Section Six, a dodgy area which were busy at the time of the morning. It looked like nightfall since it was crowded with buildings around the area. From what Cloud knew, it was called the Wall Market, a sort of black market, a place with prostitutes, illegal marketing and oddity.

Aeris flittered from shop to shop, asking questions and checking things out, almost blending in with the busy hustling people. Cloud kept on her heels, feeling unsure of the place.

After several stores, Aeris finally stopped and Cloud grabbed hold of her shoulder gently and whispered, "This place is not good, especially for one like you."

Aeris nodded at 'him', "Yes, we have to find Tifa fast."

Cloud gave an affirmation noise and glanced around; she had heard somewhere long ago that this place is a place where you could pick up whores and drugs. She frowned, trying to recall who had told her. A memory came, fogged. She remembered a man, but the appearance was lost to her. He was speaking to her as they stood in this very spot, _"You see, this is not my best choice, but I have to pick up something here for my girlfriend. I wouldn't suggest you to go alone by yourself, even if you are a Soldier. You look too pretty for a boy."_

Aeris' sighing took her out of her reveries and Cloud turned to her. The woman smiled as she glanced in the window, "Look there…" She pointed to an object sitting in the window, a small wooden carved flower, among few other wooden carved things. "I have that; my ex gave it to me a long time ago."

Cloud started but kept her composure. She knew this woman was a girlfriend to this man in her memory. All she remembered three Elites, one being herself and another being Sephiroth, but who was this third person? This man, whoever he was, was like a brother, which she could recall.

Rubbing the back of her head, a habit when she felt a bit nervous, she glanced around the Wall Market. She finally noticed that there were people calling out to them;

"Hey, you two, I got some great room!"

"Hey boy! You shore got a good lookin' heifer there!"

"Take her to Don's place, and you'll make a mint!"

"Whoa momma…"

Cloud sneered at the people who were eyeballing her and the Flower Girl. Aeris gasped as she turned back around from the window to see a drunken man stumbling over to Cloud, attempting to feel 'him' up. She stepped back as the blond punched the man right in the face, knocking him out cold.

"Yeek…" Aeris murmured as she stepped over the man, "I can't believe he tried to make a move on you."

Cloud muttered darkly, "Dodgy place… Come on, let's go."

They both continued together, asking around and scouting the Wall Market. They learned where Tifa could be. Some people had witnessed a cart reaching to a hotel at the end of the marketplace owned by a Don Coreno. Cloud suspected Tifa was up to something for the Avalanche. She had told Aeris offhand that this wasn't something Tifa would willingly do without a reason.

They went to the hotel, which they found was called Honey Bee Inn and was shooed out instantly due to not having any appointment. From what Cloud learned from the receptionist, this shady character, Don Coreno request for three female every day and anyone who could give him a female or few would be paid handsomely.

"So far, they got one woman, and I am sure it's Tifa. We can't get in…" Cloud said as she stood in the front of a bar.

"I will go in. When I find Tifa, I'll tell her about you." Aeris said, smiling.

Cloud gaped, "No! You can't!"

"Why?"

"You do know! What kind of…" Cloud waved her hand around to the

surrounding, "Place this is, do you?"

Aeris sighed and placed her hand on her hip, "Then, what am I supposed to do? You want to go in with me?"

Cloud almost said yes but remembered her place, "Well, being a man, that'll be pretty hard. Beside if I bust in there, it'll cause too much commotion." She replied. She had a half of mind to throw off her ex-Soldier disguise and waltz in as her true self. But it wouldn't do any good, just yet.

Aeris giggled at 'him' and Cloud rolled her eyes back, "But, I can't let you go in alone…" She groaned and covered her eyes with her hand, "Oh man…"

Aeris gave 'him' a look over and nodded, "First, we'll need to find out if Tifa's all right." She then giggled.

Cloud peeked though her fingers and scowled, "What's so funny?" She saw that Aeris had some kind of twinkle in her eyes and it scared her.

"Cloud…" Aeris started and grinned, "Why don't you dress up like a female? It's the only way and I am sure you can pass that off, since you're…"

"I'm what?" The blond glared at the green eyed woman.

"Uhm, pretty? I mean, you got this face structure that look too feminine for a macho man and your figure," She gestured to Cloud's body, "slim enough to make a woman jealous."

Cloud rolled her eyes and sighed. "Aeris! I can't! Hell'd freeze over if I do this!"

Rolling her eyes, Aeris tugged Cloud's arm, leading 'him' somewhere else. "You're worried about Tifa, aren't you? Then come on, hurry!"

Muttering under her breath, which seemed to become a habit, "It's the money, the money I need…"

They went to a dress shop nearby and found that the owner wasn't there. The owner was at a bar, drinking into damnation because he had no inspiration to make any more dresses.

While Aeris discussed with the shop owner's daughter, Cloud stood behind the Flower Girl, arguing with herself in her mind, over if it was worth two thousands more gils, worth getting Tifa back. It all seemed like an insane crusade after something that she has no need in life.

However, the voice in her mind had a different perspective. _::You want to find out who you are. Tifa is one of the places to start. She has something that you needed.::_ The voice, she deemed to be a him, seemed to be amused and left quickly, leaving her alone in her mind.

Cloud realized she had just left the shop and was being led by Aeris to the bar to search for the shop owner. They were to get the shop owner motivated to make a dress for Cloud to make her appear feminine. The whole plan as it swirled in her mind made the esteemed voice laugh. She scowled, mentally planning that if everything fails; her Mr. Happy Buster sword will solve it.

They found the dressmaker at the bar, drowning a cup of strong booze. Cloud wrinkled her nose at the though of trying to get hammered. It had been becoming somewhat of distaste for her.

"Excuse us; are you the owner of the Clothing Store down the street here?" Aeris asked as she went up to the man.

He turned his head, slightly wobbly on his stool, "I own the Clothing Store." He drawled, taking another swig from the bottle.

"Yes…" Aeris gave an uncertainty look and sighed, at loss of what else to say.

Cloud rolled her eyes and sat on the stool next to the man, "Make me a dress."

The man turned to her and shook his head, "I don't make men's clothes. And I don't feel like makin' anything right now."

Aeris pulled Cloud back and whispered to 'him', "Cloud, you wait over here for a second. I'll try and talk to him. Why don't you get something to drink for yourself?" Cloud nodded and went back to the stool, though several seats away from Aeris and the man.

Aeris shook her russet hair and went back to the man, "You know, mister. He always said that just once, he'd like to dress up as a girl. So that's why I wanted a cute dress for him…" She smirked as she saw Cloud groaned in frustration, knowing it was aimed for her.

The man sat up, sobering quickly and interested, "What? A tough lookin' guy like that?" He gave Cloud a quick look over and grinned. She gave him a blank look.

"So, how 'bout it? Will you make him one?"

The man nodded, nearly completely sober, "Might be interesting, I was getting' a little bored just makin' regular clothes."

"Then you'll do it for us?"

He nodded as he stood up from the stool, "Yeah, what kind of dress do you have in mind?"

Aeris smiled and put in serious consideration as she watched Cloud roll her eyes and thumped her head on the counter, "Something… what do you have?"

"Come and take a look in my shop." The man offered Aeris the lead and they both disappeared from the bar.

The bartender stared at Cloud, "Are you sure you want something?"

Cloud looked up from the bar table and shook her head, "You might not have anything strong enough to make me forget the insanity I'm going though."

"Maybe I do." The bartender took out a clear liquid and poured into the shot glass, "My strongest stuff."

Cloud scoffed and drowned it in one go, "Not strong enough. See my eyes?"

The man leaned closer to get a better look in the gauzy light and nodded, "Ah, Mako eyes, that calls for Makohol but I don't have any and the next shipment is not coming in for a while. Sorry."

"Yeah, whatever. Thanks for offering." Cloud stood up and tossed couple of gils onto the counter. She turned and left the bar, calling out, "Hey Aeris! Wait up!"

As they reached back at the dress store, Cloud watched Aeris inspect several materials shown by the owner, some were nice, and some were pretty bright. At last the Flower Girl settled on the royal blue, nearly purple silk.

"What? Silk, you got to be kidding me." Cloud murmured.

Aeris gave 'him' a smile, "Cloud, the better dress you get, the more feminine you will be."

Cloud held back the strong urge to hit her head on the wall, "Whatever."

The dressmaker took Cloud's measurement and went around the store, pulling few dresses off the shelves and went into the back room, making the dress.

Aeris pulled Cloud out of the store once again and they went to a nearby café to eat breakfast while they waited for the dressmaker to finish the dress. It was not even mid morning and they've been promised the dress will be finished within the hour.

After their meal, they decided; which was more on Aeris part that Cloud needed a wig and they went to a gym where they were told that some people had good collection of wigs. Cloud had to go into some kind of match to win the wig as a prize. To her horror, it was the cross-dresser who owned the collection of wigs and she felt like being ranked as him.

"Ugh!" She groaned as Aeris giggled at 'him'. They've left the gym, gaining the prized beautiful blond wig that was almost Cloud's hair color but not as close. Aeris figured they could make the wig blend in with Cloud's hair.

They made few stops to pick up few essentials to go with the dress. They've learned they could pick up an undergarment someplace and Cloud turned down the idea and Aeris agreed they didn't need to go that far. To get the undergarment, Cloud had to do something that she thought was bizarre.

As they reached the store, Aeris opened their bag to inspect what they've gotten, "Let's see, we got wig, make up, nice perfume, ribbon. Let's see if the dress is ready." She gave 'him' a smile and went into the store.

The man looked up from the counter and smiled, "Oh, you're here! It's ready, go and try it on." He handed the purple cloth to Cloud and directed her to a dressing room near the counter.

Cloud took the material and gave Aeris a look and found her smiling back. "Go on!" The Flower Girl pushed 'him' toward the curtain of the dressing room.

The blonde went in and went about changing her clothes, she was careful to keep the bandage on her chest and winced slightly, it wasn't very comfortable wearing the binding and sighed in relief as the dress came on her just fine. It was high collared dress, long and the skirt brushed the floor around her ankles.

She had decided to put the dress over her tank top that she wore under the crewneck sleeveless top that she wore and the pants as well. The dress felt soft on her arms, smooth and delicate. She twisted the skirt around to see if it covered every bit of her pants and yelped as Aeris stuck her head into the room, "Hey! What are you doing?"

Aeris giggled, "Thought you had some problems. Apparently not, let me help you tie this." She stepped in and took up the white ties to the tiny apron that acted more of a bustier over the dress. "There we go. Let's put the wig on!" Aeris grabbed the bag just sitting outside the dressing room and pulled out the blond wig.

Soon as Cloud was in the dress and the wig on her head, she looked like a new person. Slight make up brought her feminine feature out more and some perfume were sprayed on and Aeris stepped back, admiring her work, "Wow… this is unbelievable!"

Cloud gave a sigh and stepped out of the room to look in the mirror just next to the changing room. She nearly gasped as she saw herself in the mirror, a female stared back, actually very pretty in the indigo dress with long blond hair that hung loosely in braids over her shoulders. The makeup was very light but they made her look like a true female that she was.

It made her very uneasy, even with her chest flattened in the binding; it was too easy to reveal her true gender. She didn't like this; even the dress was pretty and modest. She felt the familiar presence return in her mind and winced slightly, knowing she was in for it.

_::Hmm… very nice. Very nice, I like your natural beauty, no make up, no bandages, and all that golden spikes down to your waist.::_

Cloud closed her eyes, trying to make the voice go away. It wasn't the time for her to endure the teasing. She felt like she was going to lose control.

_::Oh, no… :: _The voice sounded disapproving::_Purple never suited you; I very much preferred white and blue, like your name, Cloud.::_

'Thanks for the compliments… but not now.' She replied back mentally and turned to Aeris. She suppressed the shiver that went down her spine as the voice left her with a warm caress and left her alone.

"Hmm, not bad. This may be a new business for me." The man said as he inspected Cloud with impressed air about him. His daughter was impressed as well.

"Yeah, you're right. Thanks for showing us something new. My father got his motivation back now. So, the dress is on the house!" The daughter declared smiling.

Aeris walked around Cloud and tugged on the dress, "Show me if you can walk like a girl."

The blonde's eyebrow rose, "Walk? Like this?" 'He' walked back and forth across the shop floor like if she were a runway model.

"Nice, I didn't know you could walk like that." Aeris giggled.

Cloud rolled her eyes and felt the voice return again, laughing, more toward the other woman. She struggled to suppress the rising blush on her cheeks.

"Oh! You're so cute, Miss Cloud." Aeris teased and clapped her hands, "Ah, I want one. Do you have one that'll look good on me too?"

The daughter of the dressmaker picked out a dress, "How about this?"

The dressmaker shook his head and showed another dress, "How about this one?"

"Father, what are you talking about? This one's much better."

The Flower Girl laughed softly and picked the dress from the shelves, surprising everyone. She went into the dressing room and changed, coming out. She wore a provocative red dress that showed her figure more.

"So? How do I look?"

The ex-Soldier blond shook her head. The voice in her mind sounded surprised, _::Whoa, that dress is not her style! If that neckline were any lower, she would be at home here in the Market. I don't think he'd like it very much.::_

'Shut up and who are you talking about?' She retorted.

Aeris frowned as she noticed that she didn't get the desired response from Cloud and wondered if Cloud were simply not interested in her or something else. She shrugged and turned to the owner, "I'll take this dress."

_::Itooshi Kokoro…::_ The voice teased with a hint of a pout. ::_I hope you have fun, but hurry up and get your memories back. I miss you so…::_

'Yeah… I think I miss you too…' She sighed and followed Aeris out of the store, wearing their new dresses. She glanced down to her hands, they were still gloved and she took them off, revealing her ring on her finger. "Sephiroth… whoever you are." She whispered.

At Don Coreno's the receptionist recognized Aeris right away and smiled, "Ooh, wonderful. Is this your friend?" He gestured to Cloud, who was standing behind Aeris. "I'll show you the room, wait there and I'll let Don Coreno know that you two are here as well." He got up from the desk and led them into a room on the second floor.

Aeris nodded as she followed the man with Cloud grudgingly following behind. "So far, so good." She whispered to the blond. They entered the room and both of them had to suppress their shock, the room they were to wait in appeared to be a torture chamber, kinky and deranged.

Cloud made a face as she glanced around the room, inspecting the instruments, "Oh geez, this man is sick." She muttered, unsure if she should touch the things or not.

"Oh! You must be Tifa!" Aeris turned and went to the woman who had just come out of the room adjoining the room they are in.

Cloud turned to find Tifa nodding at Aeris, giving her odd look. She appeared fine, wearing the two piece blue dress that left to the imaginations.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Aeris. Cloud told me a lot about you."

Tifa gave the other woman a frown, "Huh? Wait, you're the one with Cloud in the park this morning?"

Cloud huffed, blowing away the stray hair that fell into her face. Tifa did see them and ignored them. She stood near the door, playing idly with the ruffle of her tiny bodice apron on her dress, waiting to see if Tifa could recognize her under her disguise, so far, nothing.

"Right, with Cloud." Aeris smiled at the brunette.

"Oh," Tifa looked dejected.

Aeris shook her head as she waved her hands, "Oh, don't worry. We've just met. It's nothing."

"What do you mean?"

Aeris noticed Tifa's hostility and stepped back, "Ah, don't misunderstand."

Tifa shook her head, calming down a bit, "Cloud and I grew up together, nothing more." She bluntly told the other woman and gave the third woman in the room a look over and raised her eyebrow, "Hi."

Cloud gave a small smirk and nodded her head. It had been fun to listen to the two women argue a bit over 'him'.

Tifa frowned as she thought she recognized the smirk and walked up to the blonde, peering closer. She gasped as she saw the glowing blue eyes, "Cloud?" As the blonde nodded, she yelped, "Wow! You look so good… even covered up more than me and her, I'm jealous!" She gave a glance to Cloud's chest and pointed, "These look real! Can I touch?"

Cloud batted the offending finger away. The dress had been specially made with padded breast despite her bonded chest. "No! Anyway, what are you doing here anyway?"

Tifa ignored her question and stood back, crossing her arms, "Why are you dressed like that? And what are you doing here?" She then shook her head, "Oh, never mind, what happen to you after the fall, was you hurt?"

Cloud waved her hands at Tifa to stop her, "Hey! Give me a break! I'm dressed like this because there was no other way to get in here. I'm fine, you know Mako healing ability. Aeris helped me out too."

The brunette turned to Aeris, "Oh…"

Cloud sighed, getting rather tired of Tifa's attempt of running around in the conversation, "Seriously, explain. Why are you here in the first place?" She tried to be gentle but it came out too blunt.

Tifa looked down to her blue shoes, "Uhm…" she peered over to Aeris and shook her head.

Aeris caught on, "Oh, all right. I'll just plug my ears and turn around. Don't worry about me." She put her fingers in her ears and turned around, humming softly.

"I'm glad you're okay." Tifa suddenly gushed out.

Cloud nodded, "Thanks. What happened?"

"When we got back from the Reactor Five, there was this weird man. So Barret caught him and squeezed some information out of him."

Cloud caught on, "So, Don Coreno's name popped up."

"Right. Barret told me to leave that pervert alone, but something's been bothering me."

"I see. So you wanted to get the story straight from Coreno's mouth?"

The brunette nodded. "So I made it here. But now I'm in a bind. Coreno is looking for a bride. Everyday, he get three girls, choose one of them, and then… ah well…" She blushed and looked away. Cloud sighed, knowing Tifa got herself into a mess. "Anyway, I have to do this, or else."

Aeris turned around and came up to them, "Sorry, but I overheard…" She brushed Tifa's glare away and continued, "Well, here we are, three girls, one of us are going in and get the words out of him. We get better chances."

"She's right." Cloud murmured as she tapped her chin in thought. "It's going to be hard… I don't like this idea, with me going in and all that."

Tifa smiled and grasped 'his' arm, "Oh, you have to…"

Cloud closed her eyes and nodded, sighing deeply, "All right, but after this, I get my pay. Uhm… you have something for me… Someone told me."

Tifa let 'his' arm go, "Right. Your pay, Barret still has it, and, I don't know

what you mean by that last comment."

::_Ask her about the tome.::_ The voice came back suddenly in Cloud's mind.

"A tome?" She asked, not realizing she did out loud.

Tifa's eyes widened, "A tome? I believe I know what you're talking about… I have something like that. Now I think about it, Zangan, remember him?"

Cloud shook her head.

"Oh, he was my martial art instruction from our hometown; anyway, he gave me the tome, along with few things in the bag with it. He told me to hold onto it until someone asked for it. I guess it belongs to you, I've never opened it or anything, just put it away and forgot about it until now."

"All right, I'll need that tome, there's something in it that I need to know." Cloud said as she turned to the door as it opened, the receptionist came back.

"Hey." He called out to the three women, "It's time, ladies. The Don is waiting!" He grinned at them and waved for them to follow. "Hurry up, will ya."

Cloud swallowed hard, sighing as she felt around her dress and nodded, for some reason, the massive Buster sword was hidden in the dress on her back, and the wig was long enough to cover what was partially sticking out.

Tifa and Aeris gave each other twin smile and grabbed each Cloud's arms together and dragged 'him' out of the room to follow the receptionist. They all followed toward the center door and entered.

A large, bleached blond man was at the desk, otherwise known as Don Coreno. He looked sleazy and rather nasty. He has two more thugs behind him, standing guard.

One of the men stepped up, gesturing with his hand, "All right, and ladies! Line up in front of the Don!" He gave with air of command and the three women lined up without a second thought. Cloud stood in the center with Aeris on her right and Tifa on her left.

The Don stood up and went around his desk, giving the three women leering look as he inspected them in turn, "Hmm, good, splendid!" He rubbed his chin and he had the strange gleam in his eyes that Cloud concluded as disgusting lust. "Now, let's see, which girl should I choose for today? Hmm?" He approached Cloud, who looked down to the floor, in shy gesture but more of trying to hide the disgust on her face.

He reached out and tilted her chin up and turned her head sideway and the other, it went on for few times before he let her go, "This one?"

Tifa was next to be inspected and he took time eyeing her entire body since she was more revealed than the other two, then her face and finally settling on her bust, "Or this one?"

He returned to Cloud and smiled directly at her, exposing several gold teeth, "Whoo! I've made up my mind!"

Cloud suddenly felt clammy and swallowed. She realized Aeris was mostly ignored and Tifa was given a short look over while she had the up-close inspection. She knew she looked pretty in a dress and long hair, an 'unnatural beauty' as Sephiroth would call it.

Just like a flash, she remembered the General of ShinRa with clear memory, how he looked at her with loving glance and a secret smile. She wrenched her hands behind her back nervously; the memory just had to decide to show up at the most unconvinced time.

"My choice for tonight is…" The Don announced and there was a drum roll in the background, wherever the women couldn't guess.

Cloud suddenly wished she didn't agree to dress up and go though the ordeal, it suddenly seemed to be a bad idea and it was going to get worse.

The Don noticed Cloud's nervousness and grinned, all the better, "This healthy looking girl!" He announced at last, taking hold of her arm.

"Wa, wait a sec!" Cloud sputtered, trying to not struggle as much, "I mean, uh, please wait a moment!" She remembered her place and stilled.

"Whoo-hoo! I love chickies who play hard to get! Yeowza!" He turned his back to the women and grinned, almost too lustful for their taste, "you can have the two others!"

The two guard men saluted, "Yes sir! Thank you, sir!"

Don Coreno changed his attention to Cloud, "Well, then. Shall we go my pretty?" Cloud slowly followed him to a room off the office, into a bedroom. Behind her, Aeris and Tifa were taken away from the two guards.

The Don grinned as he slumped on his bed, smirking like a hungry wolf, raring to go. "Ahh, we're finally alone…" His eyes gleamed as he gave Cloud a look over, "Here pussycat, come to daddy!" He motioned for her to come closer.

Cloud moved slowly to the end of the bed and crossed her hands over her apron in demure action.

Don Coreno sat up and for a moment, he frowned and then smiled once again, "Oh, you're so cute. Innocent, eh?" He saw a pink blush on Cloud's cheeks.

Cloud flustered and anger rose inside her. The man was disgusting and he has unstable libido, always going at this every day, women after women. She wondered if he ever gotten any transmitted diseases already. Her hands moved to the back of her dress, feeling the edge of the Buster sword.

"Suppose do you want me? After all, you're here." He leered at her and moved closer to her on all four.

"Uhm…" Cloud replied, struggling to not scowl as her hand deftly moved to unbutton the dress from the back. It appeared to him that she was undressing.

Suddenly, with jealousy tinged in his voice, "There isn't someone else, is there?"

Cloud shook her head slowly, "No…" She grimaced as she said the next part, "only you."

He perked and jumped upright on his bed, "You sure do know how to make a guy feel good! Then, what do you want to do?" He asked, excited once again.

Cloud mumbled as she fingered her Buster sword handle behind her head, "whatever you want, daddy." She groaned inwardly at the idea and she couldn't get into the act completely, despite the fact she was picked, this man was a serious pervert and he needed to get help or have his limb cut off.

Don Coreno hopped slightly, "Oh man! I can't stand it! All right, then…" He wriggled his hips, "Give me a kiss! A kiss!" He then puckered up.

Cloud closed her eyes as she suppressed a disgusted groan, this wasn't what she expected, she though she would have more fight on her hands but so far, the man was like a awkward raging hormone teenager facing sex for the first time. She wondered how many women he went though with this act.

Deciding to hold it off, she let her sword go, hanging off her back, still attached to the belt from her armguard, "Nope, can't do that…" She knew Tifa needed to question this man and at some point; she should be barging in anytime soon after she had handled the two thugs in the other room.

"Why?" He became aghast, "Why?" Soon he was on the verge of crying.

It became too much for her, she had a new urge to just punch the man's light out.

Clenching her fist behind her back, she drawled, "Because…" and suddenly, she became serious, "Because I'm gonna have to use that mouth of yours to give me some information!"

With one swift move, she pulled the dress over her head, and in that quick movement, only an well trained Soldier she was, she had wiped her face off the make up and took the wig off along with the dress, revealing her ex-Soldier uniform and flat bonded chest, indicating her 'manliness'.

To her relief, Don Coreno fell back on the bed in shock, muttering, "A man, a man…" Then he became red with rage, "You tricked me! Somebody get in here now!" He hollered, expecting his guards to come in.

Cloud grinned, "Unfortunately, no one will be comin' to help." She turned to find Tifa and Aeris at the doorway, grinning back at her. They appeared a little worse to wear and ready to do more damage.

He turned to the two other ladies and gasped, "You too! Are you two men as well?"

Aeris rolled her green eyes, "Oh, get it out of your head; he's the only one with the equipment." Unknown to them, Cloud blushed slightly.

Tifa bared her teeth at the man, "Shut up! We're asking questions now… She grabbed hold of his shirt and pulled him up from the bed. Cloud held the sword ready, aimed at the man, "your assistant, what did he find out? The ShinRa, talk!"

Cloud leaned forward, "I'll chop them off, so I would be the only one in the room with the equipment. You better talk if you want to keep you precious jewel." He winked at Aeris and brought the sword closer to his round belly.

Sweating and shaking slightly in Tifa's strong hold, his hand reaching toward his crotch to protect it, "Ok, ok! Not that! I'll talk, I'll tell you everything!"

"So, talk!" Tifa demanded, hoisting him higher, choking him slightly more.

"I made 'em finds out where the man with the gun-arm was. But that's what I was ordered to do!"

"By who?" The brunette demanded, clenching her fist more in his shirt, causing his collar to tighten.

"No! If I told you that, I'd be killed!"

Tifa rolled her eyes and narrowed to the man, "Talk! If you don't tell us…" She tilted her head toward Cloud and at the cue Cloud poked the sharp tip of the massive sword toward his crotch, ripping the pants slightly.

The Don sweated visibility, "All right, all right. It was Heidegger of ShinRa! Head of Public Safety Maintenance!"

Cloud frowned, remembering the name and a face came to her mind, a large burly man with wiry brown bear, and he resembled a bear to her. Since when he became the head of Public Safety Maintenance, all she remembered he was the head of the ShinRa Army. Something must been going on in the ShinRa in the last two years.

She leaned forward, causing his pants to rip more with her sword, "Did you say the ShinRa? What are they up to? Talk!" She poked her sword and heard his boxer rip as well.

He swallowed hard, "You're serious. Aren't you?" He looked at each of them and shook his head, "ShinRa's trying to crush a small rebel group called Avalanche, and want to infiltrate their hideout. I mean, really crush them…literally." He pointed up to the ceiling, gesturing to whatever was up there.

Cloud's eyes widened as she backed up a bit, "The plate, huh?"

"Yeah, blowing out the support. You know what's going to happen? The plate will go down and bam, Sector Seven's gone, crushed like ants, that's where the hideout is. I suppose. I'm glad it's not here in Sector Six."

Tifa paled as her hands loosened grip on him, "They're going to wipe out Sector Seven?" She let him go with a grunt, throwing him onto the bed and turned to Cloud, "You gotta come with me…"

"Of course, Tifa." She nodded as she strapped the sword back on her back and the three started to the door, leaving the shaken man on his bed.

"Just a second!" Don Coreno called out to them.

Cloud turned back and sneered, "Shut up! You've done enough."

"No wait! It'll only take a second. How do you think scum like me feel when they babble about the truth?"

She gave him a puzzled look, not sure what he meant. "I suppose, they've pretty much given up their worthless life."

Don Coreno gave a leering grin, "Buzz! Wrong!" He then flipped a hidden switch and the trio fell though a trap door that was beneath them.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	18. S2:4: ShinRa Headquarter

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Four: ShinRa Headquarter

_And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth. _

Revelation 6:8, The Holy Bible

A tall and large man, appearing imitating strode into the office of President ShinRa, on the top of headquarter. He was dressed in royal purple suit with gold trimming, his shoulders were decorated and he had military badges decorating on his jacket breast. His wiry black beard hid nearly half of them.

He grinned as he saw three other men in the office. The President sat at his desk, reading a paper while a lean average man with held a folder in his hands. He saw the third man, standing near the window behind the desk, simply gazing out; he was young, strong and handsome, yet somber.

Heidegger never liked the lone man; there was something in the man's pale-violet eyes that sent chills down his spine, seemingly as if he bore no soul within him. He remembered faintly that the man once was jovial and wild over four years ago, one of his best Elite Soldier and now a General, replacing the former one.

He wondered idly if it were the position of General that was cursed. It seemed that no matter, anyone who takes the position as a General of the ShinRa army was doomed to be a cold, isolated and cruel man, almost a monster. He remembered General Sephiroth and shuddered at the memory of the silver-haired. The new General was almost like him in every aspect but their feature and coloring set them apart.

He averted his attention to the President, "How are the preparations going?"

President ShinRa looked up from his paper, "What do you think?"

He crackled, "Ha, ha, ha! Smoothly, I suppose. I've assigned my best Turks to this."

The smaller man, Reeve, frowned as he leaned forward. He has dark, tousled hair that was pulled loosely back in hastily done dragon tail with well-trimmed goatee on his handsome face. He has an intelligent air about him with thin black oval shaped glasses perched on his well-defined nose, making him look smart. "President! Are we really going to do this?" He had hint of worry in his voice.

The new General remained silent though the ordeal, watching each men in turn.

"Simply to destroy a small group." Reeve finished, as he stood back, clutching the folder to his chest.

ShinRa shrugged, "What's the problem, Reeve? You want out?" He stood up and walked around his desk and stopped by Reeve, placing his hand on the smaller man's shoulder.

Reeve shook his head slowly, "No." He glanced over to the General, sighing inwardly before he turned his attention back to the President. "But, as head of the Urban Development Department, I have been involved in the building and running of Midgar, that's why it is my concern."

The massive man interrupted, booming, "Reeve, you should flush those personal problems in the morning!"

Reeve sneered at man a bit, "Heidegger, the Mayor's against this anyway."

The black bushy brow on Heidegger's face rose, "Mayor?" Then he shrugged, "He just sits in his building all day feeding his face! You still call that a mayor?" Then he faced ShinRa and gave a sloppy salute, "Now if you'll excuse me sir!"

The three men watched the burly man leave the office and Reeve exhaled a long sigh, his shoulders slumping, weary from a long day of work.

President ShinRa noticed this, "You're tired. Why don't you take a couple days off and go somewhere." Reeve nodded his reply and left the office.

"We'll destroy Section Seven and report that Avalanche did it. Then we'll send in the rescue operation care of ShinRa Inc. Heh. This is perfect." ShinRa smirked as he sat back down at his desk.

The stoic General stood there silently behind the man. He then abruptly left the room without a word at all and down the hallway to find Reeve.

He found the shorter man easily enough, in his office, standing out on his balcony, overlooking Midgar.

"General Donovan." Reeve acknowledged the General's presence as he rested his arms on the railing.

"I told you, it's Zack."

"Sorry, habits. Say, do you have any butt to spare?" He took out a lighter from his front pocket of his dark blue jacket.

"You know it's a bad habit that's going to bite you in the arse someday." The General smirked, breaking his stoic expression as his pale eyes darkened with mirth.

"Oh, shut up, you know me."

"Suit yourself." Zack went to Reeve's desk and searched until he found a cigarette and brought it back over to Reeve. He watched the smaller man light it up and take a long drag from it.

"You should quit, it's a disgusting habit."

Reeve shrugged and looked to the side, taking in the sight of the taller, bigger built man. He frowned slightly, taking in the other man's appearance. His hair was pulled back neatly in a tight ponytail, his uniform neat and sharp, not like Sephiroth but it consisted of dark blue, nearly black pants and top with long jacket that were buckled several times around his narrow tapered waist. His boots went up to his knees and was buckled in same fashion.

No one knew Zack still had his same personality from before, only Reeve did. The ShinRa, after reviving him from death, they were very wary of him since he showed similar personality as Sephiroth, their former General, they feared that he would go insane as well like the former General.

Hojo had convinced the ShinRa that Mako, in high doses caused insanity and Sephiroth was the one who had the highest doses of Mako in his bloodstream. However, with Zack, he had Mako Regeneration and it called for higher doses of Mako. They felt that Zack had to be under close supervision for a year or two to make sure he didn't end up like the former General.

Zack only outwardly shown the other a serious stoic façade but only those who he trusted, he showed his true personality, the jovial, easy going person. Sadly enough, Reeve was the only one Zack trusted in the entire ShinRa Company; the only one he felt had the same perspective of the ShinRa government.

"Sorry, but at times like this, I need one." Reeve flicked his cigarette over the railing.

"Don't worry about it. What are you going to do with the Sector Seven?"

"I can't do anything about it."

Zack bowed his head down as he rested his arms on the railing and sighed, "Damn, why does all this have to happen? I mean, Sephiroth disappears, Cloud's out there, alone, I am sure, lost. And how the hell am I supposed to be alive?"

Reeve glanced over to him and sighed as well. He had heard Zack's story about Sephiroth and Cloud before Nibelheim and what happened at Nibelheim. From what he knew Zack's memories were muddled after that up to when they revived him recently, with about two years span of memory block. He suspected Hojo had a hand in it.

All he knew from the report, Zack was shot several times in the chest, destroying most of his organs, killing him. Hojo had brought him back, using his cloning technology, restoring the damaged organs. The scientist was known to be specializing in cloning and was trying to achieve full body cloning, but wasn't able to yet. Zack had been brought back alive with the help of Mako and cloning.

The ShinRa knew Zack had no past life memory for almost nearly seven years but in fact he didn't let them on that he had regained most of them shortly after and was working on trying to recall the last two years, and only was the one who Reeve knew of this.

To Reeve's shock as he once found that Cloud was present at the time of Zack's death but was reported dead. In Hojo's report, he had stated Cloud a failure in his experiment and was declared dead. No one had ever found his body, only the trace of blood track that led toward Midgar, near Zack's body when he was shot. ShinRa suspected he was finished off by some creature on the outskirt of the city. Only Zack truly believe Cloud is alive and out there somewhere.

Reeve pushed himself away from the railing and went back into his office. He took a file from his desk and handed it to Zack, "Here, and the updated file of who's in Avalanche. No one else has seen this file because of my special robotic spy had been sent out into Midgar. I've been monitoring Avalanche for the past few days and I've discovered something."

Zack nodded as he took the file and flipped it open, reading the document, "Hm, this I know of. The Leader, Barret Wallace…" He mumbled as he read the profile of each member. He flipped it once again and found a pretty picture of the Seventh Heaven barmaid and owner, Tifa Lockhart. "She's pretty, but not pretty as Cloud. Her last name is familiar."

Reeve frowned at his mentioning and shrugged, unsure what his friend meant. "What do you mean by that?"

Zack shook his head as he grinned, "Oh, nothing." And he kept flipping the pages, "Biggs, Jessie and Wedge…" He kept reading, nodding, "Those are the original members of Avalanche, the ShinRa already know all of them."

Reeve shook his head, "Keep going, Avalanche has two more new members, apparently since yesterday…" He pointed to the folder.

Zack frowned and thumbed several more page until he hit a photo of a pretty woman with russet hair and green eyes, he gaped, "Aeris… I've never thought she'd be involved…" He whispered as he traced her picture.

"You know her?"

"Yeah, she was my girlfriend a long time ago… I dated her when I was a Class Two Soldier; she was only fourteen or fifteen then. Oh man, she's grown into a beautiful woman…" He read her profile and smirked, "Ah, a fighter… not by much but she can hold her own…"

Reeve gave a weak smile, "Go on…"

Zack flipped the page to the last paper in the folder and swallowed, "Cloud…" He traced the picture in same fashion he did with Aeris. "Alive… it says here he has amnesia. He doesn't remember anything of his past." Zack looked up; his eyes welled with unshed tears. "I have to see him…"

Reeve took the folder, "No."

"Why not?"

The shorter man shook his head, "He has no memories, or some. By the time he recovers, he will know that you are dead. It is not time yet."

"But! He's in Sector Seven! He's here!"

"I know, but I have a feeling that he will get out alive." Reeve put the folder in the bottom of his drawer and locked it. "No one but you and I have seen the file. The ShinRa will have their information on Avalanche soon. Come; let's see how Avalanche is doing right now since they've already found out the plan on the Plate."

Zack sighed in defeat and nodded. He followed the smaller man out of the office to the laboratory down below the ShinRa building where Reeve was given a space to build his robotics.

In Reeve's laboratory, they both sat down in computer chairs before several small screen television stacked together. The television flickered on and Zack could see different view around the pillar that held up the plate in Sector Seven. He noted several people were going up the stairs.

"This is your spy devices?" He asked as Reeve tapped away at the keyboard.

Reeve nodded, "I built them so no one would notice them. They're small, airborne and are trained to stay in sight of Avalanche members. They also can take the form of small mogs, so no one bothers them." He smirked as he flipped series of switches and clicking several keys and the screens started to move around, Zack noticed they were focused on the members up close. He found Cloud crouched over a fallen man with Aeris and Tifa behind her. According to the files he had read, it was Wedge that was lying on the platform halfway up the pillar.

"Hey, is there any sound with this?" Zack asked.

Reeve nodded and searched around and started to fiddle around with few switches and knobs. Finally the speaker came on, though they could barely hear anything, "Only one mog camera has the sound system and it is not good enough yet."

"Oh…" Zack replied, watching the screen with Cloud in it.

"… Cloud… you remembered… my name… Barret's up top… help him." The voice of Wedge came though the static.

Zack watched the whole scene in silence. He was thankful the room was in dark, because of the silent tears streamed down his cheeks. He had missed Cloud for so long since he woke up in the blinding white lab after being dead.

He had tried counting the years since he had seen Cloud last and discovered it hadn't even been a year since they had escaped Nibelheim. Only a few weeks to a year, yet it felt like it had been forever. He often wondered how Cloud had survived the Mako poisoning; she had been so very weak when he had last seen her. Another thought occurred to him just now, how did she get Mako poisoning?

"Aeris, do me a favor." Tifa's voice cracked though the speaker, breaking Zack's train of thoughts, "I have a bar called 'Seventh Heaven' in this neighborhood. There's a little girl named Marlene there. Also get a black bag with a big tome in it, it should be under the bar countertop near the end, it's important."

Aeris nodded, "Don't worry, I'll get Marlene and get her somewhere safe and the bag."

"It's dangerous here! Everyone get away from the pillar, quickly… get out! Sector Seven." The speaker died for a moment and loud static came back. Reeve cursed as he fiddled with the electronics.

The violet-eyed General watched Tifa and Cloud climb up the pillar, having to fight their way though to the top. When they finally reached the top, they got into a serious fight with Reno.

"Cloud's getting h…" He coughed as he realized he nearly slipped there, "His memory back…" He pointed to the screen.

Reeve didn't notice the slip as he worked with the speaker, "Really?" He then looked up to the screen and noticed Cloud was staring hard at Reno with odd look on his face. Suddenly sparks came out of the speaker and he yelped, then the speaker emitted some static sounds, "Oh shit… Here we go."

"That's not a normal time bomb." Cloud replied to someone as she looked over the console of the pillar and stared at Reno.

"That's right." Reno smirked, "You'll have a hard time disarming that one. It'll blow the second some stupid jerk touches it."

Cloud stared at Reno, "You forget, I was Elite."

Reno shrugged, "Was. Things are different now. Or, haven't you noticed?" They got into another all-out battle with each other, though it didn't last very long before Reno jumped onto the helicopter and flew away.

Cloud shook her head, "That's not the Reno I know…" She mumbled.

Reeve sighed as he sat back in his chair, "You've been gone a long time from Soldier, and lots had changed over three years since you left with Sephiroth. None of you guys came back." He turned to Zack, "Well, I'm working on something to get Hojo's files to see what happened to you guys during the past few years."

Zack nodded, "Thanks. It'll help me to clear up on some things. Though I do have some memories, they're still fuzzy." He watched the scene with Cloud and realized the bomb was going off. "The bomb's going off now." He leaned in closer to watch Cloud and Tifa climb onto the massive black man's back and hang onto for their lives as the plate came crashing down on Sector Seven.

"Shit…" Reeve slumped in his chair as he waited for the rumbling crashing subsides.

Zack closed his eyes and sighed, "All those people in Sector Seven. I never thought that the ShinRa would go to the extreme."

Reeve nodded and clicked on his keyboard so the screen would show Aeris getting away safely with a little girl in her arms, she had a black bag slung over her shoulder. "ShinRa is getting worse. I understand the Avalanche's motivation and they're right."

Zack sighed, "Well, that's between us for now."  
"Yeah."

Zack leaned forward again to watch a small television that was trailing Aeris, "Why would the Turks be after her?" He asked as he pointed to the screen. The Turks were chasing Aeris from her home, now bagless and childless. Then, she was captured and struggling in a long black haired Turk's arms. "They've got her."

Reeve frowned, "Don't even try." He caught on what was a glimpse of hint on Zack's face, "Let Cloud get her out. I have a feeling he will… I don't know why the Turks were ordered to capture Aeris… I do not have all the information from ShinRa."

Zack groaned as he felt his Personal Handset, otherwise known as Cell Phone buzz on his waist belt. He glanced on the screen and mumbled, "Duty calls… I don't like this." He stood up and left the small laboratory full with electronic junks and stopped before he exited the door. He glanced what was sitting next to the door, it was impossible to miss it. It looked to be a giant pink thing shaped like a mog and a cat slumped over the top. "Uh, Reeve?"

"Yeah?"

"What's this?"

"Oh, a project I am working on now. It seemed to be getting along great, only if I can get the speaker to work. That seemed to be a problem for me."

"Right, see you later." Zack left.

Reeve looked up and shook his head, "Zack, you better not do anything foolish to jeopardize your career, or your life. Something will happen soon, for the better or worse." He returned to fixing the speaker that was fizzling with some sparks. "Ow! Damn thing!"

Zack took his cell and answered it, finding that he was to see Aeris was safely transferred to the science Lab and make sure everything is running smoothly in the building after the crash in Sector Seven. He made his way to the Science Lab and saw Aeris being held in a cell. He suddenly had an urge to see her once, but he knew he couldn't just yet. He gave Hojo an icy glare with a hidden warning.

After checking each level of the headquarter, making sure no one were in a panic, he went to the top and entered the office of the President, "Sir, the building checked as you wanted it, and everything is in good shape."

"I like you; you're loyal and as good as the former General, possibly even better. Who knows yet?" President ShinRa smiled.

Zack bowed, "Thank you sir. May I be excused?" He asked, he felt as if an alarm went off in the back of his head and he felt he was needed elsewhere.

"Very well. Thank you and you may leave for the night."

Zack gave the President a salute and left the office. He went to the elevator and down several levels, deciding to stop on the fifty ninth floors and waited there. He had a feeling that something would be happening soon on this floor.

As the plate crashed down Sector Seven, half of the Avalanche was lost, dead. Aeris had escaped earlier and was caught by the Turks. Elmyra had taken in little Marlene in her care. Barret, Tifa and Cloud barely escaped and were stuck against the back building of the ShinRa Headquarter that lay in the center of Midgar.

The three of them opted to go into the ShinRa building by the back stairs. Little they realized they had to go all the way to the top, which was somewhere around sixty nine floors. They knew Aeris had been caught by the Turks because Aeris had given them a call before she was captured.

"Yo… you really gonna take these stairs all the way up?" Barret asked, looking up at all the staircases, rubbing his head.

"Well, we've got to get to Aeris to help her somehow…" Tifa retorted with her hands on her hips.

"Talk about out of the way..."

"I don't have time to argue with you! I'm going!" Tifa fumed and started up the first flight.

"Wait a min! How do'cha know which floor Aeris is on?" Barret asked, stopping the brunette on the top of the first flight. They both turned to Cloud.

"The flights go up to fifty ninth floor. From floor sixty to sixty nine, you have to have high security access." Cloud explained, running finger though her spiky hair, wishing at the moment her hair was longer so she wouldn't bother with the bothersome spikes, "I know the President's office is on the top floor…" She paused, trying to remember, "I think Aeris is being held on the sixty seventh floors, where the holding cells are and the science lab is. It got to be the only place. We will have to make our way up there from the fifty ninth floors."

"That's a long way up there. What's in between all those floors?" Tifa asked.

The blonde shrugged, "Lots of offices and stuffs, just from sixty and above is high security, I suppose this can get us in," She held up a card.

Barret took the card and read the facing, his eyes went wide, "This is General Sephiroth's clearance card! Where did'ja get it?"

Cloud frowned as she took the card back, "I had it in my back pocket the entire time. I didn't know what it was for before but now I do." She glanced on the card and the name 'Sephiroth' was printed on the side card with a mug shot of the former General, he looked so impassive in the picture.

"Well, let's go!" Tifa bounced and made her way up the second flight.

"Yo Tifa! Don't go off alone!" Barret called after her and started up. They climbed up and up. After twenty flights, "Don't know… why the hell… we gotta climb…" He complained, breathing hard.

Cloud grinned at him as she followed, not breaking a sweat yet, "because we don't want to start a commotion until we've saved Aeris." She commented, "I doubt that's possible though…" She frowned as she heard the dark skinned man giggled slightly. She turned her head to the man and saw that he was looking a little bit demented. "Knock it off, you're creeping me out."

Barret shrugged his shoulder, "So even you will fight for someone else. I had you figured wrong, I guess."

Cloud stopped and turned around to face the man, "Who care what you figured!"

He looked up at 'him' pointing a finger, "See here… just sayin' mebbe I was wrong about you…"

Tifa giggled up ahead and Cloud sent her a scowl.

"I thought you're a loner, care nothin' 'bout anybody. Here you are, goin' in rescuin' a girl yeh only met yesterday."

Cloud scowled a bit more and turned back to climbing the stairs, "Its nothing more. She got answers for me, much like Tifa here."

Tifa called back, "What do you mean by that?"

Cloud sighed as she kept climbing the stairs, "You know I don't have much memory of last seven years, you and Aeris has key to them. That's why I'm here."

"Oh."

The rest of the trips up the long stairs were mostly silent, Barret had mumbled slightly about seeing his adopted daughter again soon.

Finally, Barret broke the silence after a long while, breathing hard, "Are we there yet?"

"One more flight." Tifa announced.

"Finally… M… made it…" He huffed, "Never… wanna see… no more stairs the rest of my life…" He exhaled slumped over the railing on the top and wheezed as he saw how far he had gone.

Cloud chucked as she swatted his back. "Come on, We'd better get ready." She went to the door and swiped the card, hoping against hopes that it still worked. The light on the lock flashed green, giving them the access; she sighed and opened the door, "Still works…" She mumbled as she pocketed the card.

Zack looked at his cell phone as it vibrated and saw Reeve had text messaged him that there was a meeting soon about the Sector Seven. "So soon…" He whispered and looked up to find the back door on the fifty ninth floors open. He held his breath and slinked back into the shadow of the hallway, out of sight.

He saw blond head popped out of the doorway, peering both ways into the hallway, then stepped in. He gasped softly, watching her enter with two other members of the Avalanche.

The lower class Soldiers guards spotted them and they all went into a quick fight, Zack watched and smirked as he noticed the black man and the brunette woman stood back, letting the blonde take the two guards out without trouble. After the fight, she knelt and fished the key card out of both fallen men's pockets and pocketed them in her pants pocket.

He watched them get on the elevator and disappeared out of his sight. He moved out of the shadow and went onto the next elevator. He knew they were going to rescue Aeris and knew Cloud knew where they were holding her. Memories were starting to return to the blonde.

Inside the elevator, Cloud waited for the elevator to stop. She silently wondered what the feeling she had was, it was like the voice in her mind, yet a bit different. She couldn't quiet put a finger on it, it was almost as if she were being followed but at the same time, there were no sense of danger.

She shook her head, she has to focus on one goal, get Aeris and possibly out of Midgar so she can move on with her life, not on anymore harebrained adventures that she kept getting into in the last few days.

The elevator stopped on the sixty fifth floor, they ran into several guards but quickly put them out. The entire way, Zack remained behind them, out of sight, watching them.

Cloud found on this floor, in a room a large mini scale of Midgar, she saw it wasn't done assembled and she quickly put the pieces together and scowled, the plan called for more reactors and expansion of the ShinRa's power. She saw that the Academy would be moved and rebuild near Junon Harbor.

On the next floor up, Cloud sensed the feeling she had been having since she entered the building gone. She found there were a meeting going on the floor and waved for Barret and Tifa to follow her into the bathroom nearby.

"Shh, there's a meeting going on right now with President ShinRa. We can hear them in here, the vents are connected." She motioned them into a large stall with the vent on the wall, she climbed onto the toilet and climbed into the vent, Barret and Tifa followed and they slithered across short way and stopped before a screened vent that faced the conference room. They all could see President ShinRa and others in the room.

"Geez, that's a lotta suits!" Barret whispered as he saw several Turks as well, standing guard, he also pointed to the far wall near the door, "Is that a new General?"

Cloud followed gaze and stared at the man standing half in the shadow, she couldn't see his face but his uniform was clear to her, "Looks like it. Shh."

They listened in silence as the meeting went on, a thin man stood, a name Cloud never learned, Reeve gave the estimates damage for Sector Seven totaling up to nearly ten billion gils. The subject on Sector Seven was dropped very quickly as President ShinRa denied the plan to rebuild. The new plan was to build a new Midgar elsewhere, which was lost on the three Avalanchers.

They listened as they went on about rate hike and Mako increase then the agenda shifted into something the three of them never thought of stumbling onto, the Ancients, an old race that once walked on the Planet, which supposedly died out about two thousands years before. According to the meeting, the President was searching out the Promised Land, the home of the Ancients, where there was unlimited supply of Mako.

The subject was shocking to the three of them and Barret fumed as the President and Heidegger decided to leave the crash of the plate on Avalanche, not worried about the morality of the people. They were too powerful to care about the riot of people down below; they wanted to work on taking over the world, one piece at a time.

Suddenly, Cloud had to shush Barret who nearly sputtered when she heard something that interested her.

Roscoe ShinRa, the President turned to the lanky skinny, oily of man, Doctor Hojo, "Hojo, how is the girl?"

Hojo pushed his thin wire glasses up his protruding nose, "As a specimen, she is inferior to her mother. I'm still in the process of comparing her to her mother, Iflana. But for now the difference is eighteen percent."

Roscoe nodded as he blew a puff from his cigar, "How long will the research take?"

"Probably about a hundred and twenty years. It might be impossible to finish in our lifetime or in the lifetime of the specimen too, for that matter." Hojo turned away from the table and stood up, "I've had recent discoveries, and there is another race, much far more advanced from the Ancients."

That held everyone's attentions, even the three in the vent. Zack froze in his place, afraid of what Hojo had discovered.

Hojo smirked as he continued around the table and to the wall beside President ShinRa, he clicked a small button and an image of a drawing appeared from the overhead projector. "This," He gestured to the image of a woman that appeared like an angel, "I first thought it was a myth. Former General Sephiroth brought my attention to his obsession of studying the mythical race, the Valkyries."

Cloud's blood froze as she heard the man. She stared at the image, the drawing of an angelic woman in white and golden dress, standing with her hands clasped in prayer; she had long shimmering hair, supposedly golden.

Hojo shrugged as he continued, "I'm considering of sending out a search to see if the Valkyrie existed. I believe I had my hand on one once but it escaped. The Valkyries are only females, blond haired and blue eyed."

A woman gasped and everyone turned to the scantily red-clad woman, the Head of Weaponry Department, Scarlet Rouge, "You mean, any woman who has blond hair is a Valkyrie?" She happened to be a blonde but green eyed.

Hojo sneered at her, "No. Anybody who has blond hair and blue eyes are not always the Valkyrie, according to the myth from what I've learned, it's just the feature that the Valkyries commonly shares, it is much more than that, they're nearly immortal. To find one, it will assist in my experiment greatly."

President ShinRa nodded, "Well, I give you the approval to start your search, be discreet about it. What will you do with the girl meanwhile?"

"Breed her, to provide more specimens to withstand the experiment."

Cloud was nearly shaking by the time the three of them returned to the bathroom. She didn't know why the whole Valkyries thing had gotten to her.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Tifa asked, "You're pale."

Cloud shook her head, "Nothing."

"Nothing, nothing, let's just get Aeris outta of here before she's in trouble." Barret grumbled.

The three of them agreed and waited for a while before exiting the bathroom. Cloud had told them the Aeris was more likely to be in the science lab rather than the holding cell and it was just down the hall.

"Sh, I think the coast's clear." Tifa peered into the hallway and waved for the two others to follow as she stepped out into the empty hallway. As they exited the bathroom, they turned to make their way down the hallway to the science lab.

The three of them froze and drew out their weapons as a man stepped out from the shadow, facing them. They noticed it was the current General, tall, imposing and brooding.

Cloud glared at the man but something told her to lower her sword, "Who are you?" She asked, wary of him.

The man's lip quirked at the corner, "General Zachary Donovan. You don't remember me?" He asked.

She stared at the man, noticing his slanted eyes glowed slightly despite the light. They were eerily purple in color, his irises were pale violet and it jarred familiarity in her. "No… but I feel that I should have…" She lowered her sword and stood straighter out of her battle stance. Barret and Tifa gaped at her as she continued the conversation, "You're Aeris's ex-boyfriend, aren't you?"

The violet eyed man smirked, "You got that right. I was… do take care of her, she's special, just like you."

"What the heck you two talking about?" Tifa nearly screamed, confused.

Zack and Cloud stared at each other, ignoring her.

The blonde frowned, "What do you mean by that?"

"I know you had listened to the conference. Hojo is dangerous, stay away from him if you value your life and you should. Trust me, once you get your memories back, you will know. You must get out Midgar; your place is not here. You must find him, he is the one who needed to be saved or else."

"Or else what?"

"We all will cease to existence."

"Who is he that I must find?" Cloud asked, almost sure she knew the answer.

Zack stepped closer to Cloud and touched her chest over her heart, "Your soul mate," he whispered and lowered his head to her ear, "You two have a prophecy to fulfill, my dear Valkyrie. Hurry." He stepped back and took her gloved hand, his thumb pressed over her ring finger. Then he let go, leaving a cold chill in Cloud, "You must hurry. We will meet again someday." and he turned, disappearing out of their sight. She understood what he had meant and glanced at her hand.

Barret growled, "What the hell he talkin' about?"

Cloud sighed as she hoisted her sword back on her back, "Never mind that, first thing first, we gotta get Aeris out of here and we'll bother about the rest later."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	19. S2:5: ShinRa Headquarter II

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Five: ShinRa Headquarter II

_They called out in a loud voice, "How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?"_

Revelation 6:10, The Holy Bible

Zack watched the blonde and her two comrades in arms run down the hall toward the science lab where Aeris was being held. He knew that Cloud was starting to remember, but it wasn't time for him to interfere with anything, it was instincts that told him to back off and let things run its course. His place was in the ShinRa, being close to the enemy. Somehow, he just had a strange feeling that the ShinRa wasn't the enemy but more of a pawn in this whole game of fate.

He sighed and turned, and nearly yelped as he saw the shorter man staring up at him with an expression almost like a mother scolding her children, "What?"

Reeve rolled his eyes, "What's really going on?"

Zack shook his head as he shrugged his shoulders, following the other man in the opposite direction, "I have no idea but things are being put in motion by some higher power. I just pointed Cloud into the right direction, don't ask me why."

Reeve nodded as he opened the door to his office, "I got to file some report on the Section Seven and all that crap, why don't you tell me what's churning in your mind?"

Zack sat down in the chair opposing the desk as Reeve sat in his, "Well, I was thinking that there was something going on and the ShinRa is not the enemy, but something bigger. This whole Valkyries thing, it's just driving me nut."

Reeve looked up from his computer, "Valkyrie? You mean, the one that Hojo want for his experiment, they're real?"

Zack nodded, "They are. Whatever is going on, it's all part of the Valkyrie's prophecy. Don't ask me, I am still confused about the whole thing. You see, back when Sephiroth and I found a cadet, who surpassed anybody in the ShinRa Academic, strength and speed naturally without Mako enchantment, we suspected something about the myth that he was reading about and we went into some research, turned out this cadet was a Valkyrie. We even learned that Sephiroth is one too."

Reeve waved his hands, "Whoa, whoa, back up here… this cadet, who happen to be third Elite toward the end few years ago? Am I guessing this right?" Zack nodded. "And… this third person is Cloud Strife?" Zack didn't response and his eyes went wide, "And you're telling me Sephiroth was a Valkyrie? I am lost."

Zack sighed and looked around the office, "I don't feel safe talking about this here."

Reeve gave a smile, "Come on, there's only one place we can talk, where it is not bugged."

Zack grinned, "Asgard." He then paused, "I don't think I should leave the building just yet…"

Reeve understood, "All right, you owe me a story, when time is right. Look like we're gonna have to sit back and wait a while until the whole thing blow over for the Avalanche. You think they'll be able to slip though the Turks and get out of the building?"

Zack grinned, "With Cloud helping them, anything is possible. Sephiroth and I trained him good."

"I trust you, if you believe so; I have no reason to disagree." Reeve returned to his computer, his curiosity piped but he knew it wasn't time to hear the entire story just yet. There was something about Cloud that just seemed different and he knew he will find out eventually. But first thing first, his report needed to be done now.

Across the building, Cloud led Barret and Tifa to the lab. To her surprise, the lab was dreary, dark and dank, strange experiments here and there, tanks with floating object surrounded them.

"The actual lab is next floor up; the only way to get there is the elevator at the end of the room." Cloud explained and pointed to an elevator on the other side of the room.

Barret grunted as he followed the blonde. Tifa winced as she stared around the lab, turning slightly green. Near the elevator, Tifa tugged Cloud and pointed to a metal case, the circular window glowed greenish. "Cloud, look…"

The blonde turned and went to the case; a vague memory came to her mind as she stared at the metal case that looked like a pod. She looked at the plate above the window and read it, "Jenova…"

"What is it?" Tifa asked.

"This was Hojo's experiment, I think from Nibelheim…" Cloud explained, unsure how she remembered. She stood on her toes and peered in the window and gasped. "Oh gross. It's headless."

Tifa shuddered as she peered in as well, "Where's the head?"

Cloud looked over to the elevator, "I have a hunch… It's upstairs."

Barret pressed the button and the elevator door opened, they went on and went up to the next level. They entered a brighter and cleaner lab and quickly made their way to the side, hiding behind some crates.

A female assistant came around and stood by the greasy haired doctor, "Is this today's specimen?" She asked.

Hojo nodded, "Yes, we're starting right away. Raise it to the upper level." He walked up to the glass and placed a hand on the surface as the woman left, he whispered, "My precious specimen," He stood there for a while and then left.

Tifa came out from the hiding and went up to the glass, she couldn't see anything in the compartment because it was fogged, "Precious specimen? Is it going to be used for a biological experiment?"

Cloud felt uneasy as she glanced around the room. She found a metal dome with a single door at the far end of the room with bright purple light. She stared at it, feeling something familiar, like she was being drawn to it. Not realizing, she uttered a word, "Jenova…" Walking up to it, she peered into the window on the door and gasped as she found the missing head.

Staring at the purple head within the blue liquid, it was missing an eye, cruelly cut off around the neck as if hacked off with a sword in one swipe. Her long silver white hair floated around her ethereally, as if she were simply sleeping.

Cloud shuddered, she could sense the head held no soul within anymore. Whatever possessed the body of Jenova was no longer there, but had passed on, somewhere else. She saw a clipboard and pulled it off the hook and read the report.

Tifa and Barret came up to her and expressed loudly their disgust as they saw the head and the brunette turned to Cloud, "What is it?"

Cloud sighed as she gestured to the clipboard in her hand, "Reports… from what I can tell, this is the only existing proof that the Valkyrie existed at one time, the only proof that Hojo has." She looked up and met with Tifa's reddish eyes, "Valkyries are a mythological race, once ruled the planet a long time ago before the Cetera came. You see, they're supposed to be a powerful and superior race and this is why Hojo want a living Valkyrie, this one is not giving anything he wants now."

"Why would he want a Cetera or a Valkyrie?" Barret curiously asked as he stared at the head.

Cloud frowned and shook her head as some more memories came to her and it all came together. "I think, I think he wanted to make super Soldier. I don't remember where I know this but he wants a Valkyrie, they're a female race, and he can breed them with his experiment, using a male gene, much like Sephiroth's, and in between Hojo can create a new race, a stronger race for the ShinRa army." She frowned and looked away, "Why do I feel he had done this…" She rubbed her abdomen, feeling strange dull pain.

"Freaky insane. Breed them for longer term of experiment, right. Breeding them for Soldiers make senses, he's even lying to ShinRa. I hope he never find a Valkyrie at all. Let's get Aeris out before she gets knocked up." Tifa muttered darkly.

Cloud suddenly clutched her head as a painful splitting headache hit her. She groaned softly and fell to the ground as Tifa grabbed hold of 'him'.

"Cloud, be strong." Tifa whispered as she held the ex- Solider in her arms.

"Jenova… I can hear her… she's crying out somewhere. Crying for her son… Sephiroth…" Cloud muttered and blinked as the pain went away.

Barret growled, "This whole thing's stupid. Let's keep goin'." Then under his breath, "I gotta get sum answer soon."

Cloud stood up warily and followed the other two; they found another elevator and went up to the next floor where Hojo would be. There was a third lab, a smaller one, much more elite than the first two with all the technology, advanced as well. They saw two large tubes of glasses in the room, one was empty and the second one held Aeris in it. Hojo was outside the tube, looking over some note on his clipboard.

"Aeris!" Cloud saw her and moved closer carefully, not to be seen by the doctor.

However, Hojo had heard her and continued as if it were an everyday occurrence for anybody to burst into his lab. He jotted down on the board, "Aeris? Oh, is that her name? What do you want?"

Cloud stood, tensed, "We're taking her back."

Hojo shook his head, "Outsider." He muttered to himself and moved a bit away as he peered at Aeris as if she were some sort of specimen. During the whole time, he never bother to give Cloud or the two other a glance.

Barret growled, "Shoulda noticed it earlier, you."

"There are so many frivolous things in this world." The doctor retorted softly. Cloud and Barret moved forward, threatening the spindly scientist. "Are you going to kill me? I don' think you should. The equipment here is extremely delicate. Without me, who could operate it? Hmm?"

Cloud made a disgusted face at the man, "Ugh."

Hojo finally looked up at her, "That's right. I recommend you think things out logically before you make any rash moves." The greasy haired man waved his hand to someone behind the dark glass across the room. "Now, bring in the specimen!" He then turned to Cloud, giving her a hard stare, "You know, you're familiar. I once had a nice specimen, a female, look a lot like you… too bad, she's dead. She would've been better than this Ancient but she gave me a quiet slip and ended up in some belly of a beast." He shrugged and turned to the glass, watching with glee as Aeris's compartment fogged up a bit, then the floor opened up inside, a red creature shot from the floor into the tube with her. Aeris gave a shrill scream and backed up against the glass.

Tifa and Barret ran to the glass, pounding on it, trying to break it to get Aeris out. To their surprise, the creature sat on its haunch, twitching its tail, glaring with contempt at the doctor.

"Cloud! Help!" Aeris panicked, yelling at 'him'. The doctor's eyebrow rose at the name Aeris called the ex-Solider.

Cloud turned away from the doctor after giving a scornful look to the man, "Hold on… We'll get you out." She turned back to him, "what do you think you're doin'?"

Hojo simply waved off with a crude sneer, "Lending a helping hand to an endangered species. Both of them are on the brink of extinction." He then smiled, his thin lips spreading thinner under the greasy moustache. Then his face fell into some kind of mock depression, "If I don't help, all these animals will disappear."

"Animal?" That's terrible! Aeris is a human being!" Tifa shouted at the doctor.

Barret shook his gun-arm at the doctor, "You're gonna pay!"

Cloud turned to him, "Barret! Can't you do anything?" She gestured to the tube.

He nodded and moved to position himself from the glass tube, his gun-arm ready, aimed, "Awright, step back!"

Hojo's beady eyes went wide, "Stop!"

Ignoring the doctor, Barret fired at the tube. It didn't do damage but the glass had absorbed the bullets, but it cause the compartment glow with brilliant white light. Hojo ran to the glass, worried, knowing something had malfunctioned.

"Wh... what are you do. Oh! My precious specimens." He caressed the glass as if it was something dear to him.

The light kept glowing brighter and then the door opened. The light dimmed down and every one saw the red creature, a wolf standing in the doorway, getting ready to pounce.

The Avalanche trio backed away as the red wolf pounced and attacked Hojo.

Cloud pointed to the doorway. "Now's our chance to get Aeris!" She ran into the tube and helped Aeris out from the place.

"Thanks, Cloud." Aeris breathed as she stepped out of the tube as it glow dull blue.

Cloud backed out from the tube, staring at the floor in the center. Tifa tried to see what the blonde was looking at. "Cloud, what's wrong?"

"The elevator is moving."

The doctor had managed to pull himself out from under the red wolf with several scratches. "This is no ordinary specimen. This is a very ferocious specimen!"

The red creature seemingly snorted at the doctor in distain and turned away from him and sat on its haunches.

"He's rather strong. I'll help you all out."

Tifa's eyes went wide. "It talked!"

The creature nodded. "I'll talk as much as you want later, Miss."

The blond fighter stepped out from the tube. "We'll take care of that monster. Somebody take Aeris somewhere safe." She turned to Tifa. "Tifa, I'm countin' on you!" She hoped that the brunette wouldn't object. She didn't felt right for Tifa to be involved, just yet. But Tifa gave a short nod and took Aeris by the arm, helping her run out of the lab. Cloud turned to the red wolf. "What's your name?"

The creature's tail twitched in a friendly way, or so Cloud assumed. "Hojo has named me Red XIII. A name with no meaning whatsoever to me. Call me whatever you wish."

Cloud nodded. "Come on!"

Soon as they attempted to leave the lab, they ran into more of the ShinRa's machine soldiers, they took them down without problems and escaped. As they entered the hallway, they figured that they have to get somewhere to get out of the building.

Cloud gave Aeris a check over, "Aeris, you all right?" She found that the Flower Girl wasn't hurt physically anywhere.

Tifa's brow rose at the attention that Cloud gave to Aeris and muttered, "She seem all right, in many ways…"

Red XIII stalked around a bit, sniffing each person and paused at Cloud, giving her a long sniff and gave her a complementing look and sat down on his haunch, it seemed that he was also rising an eyebrow at her as well, "You see, I don't like two legged people. But thank you for helping me out of there anyway."

Cloud nodded at the large red wolf.

Barret peered down over his massive form at the red wolf, "what are you?" He asked, wondering. Red XIII even wore decorative tribal bangles on his front legs and had several feathers sticking out of his shaggy mane around his face. There was even couple of tribal beads as well.

"An informative question." The creature started, he seemed wise, "But difficult to answer. I am what you see; you must have many questions, but first, let's get out of here. I'll lead the way."

Aeris' eyes were shining with starry admiration for Cloud; she had her hands clasped under her chin as she smiled, "Cloud, you did come for me."

Cloud gulped at her and nodded, rubbing the back of her neck. She sensed the voice laughing in her mind and a second one as well. She gave the two voices a mental scowl and they quieted down. "Come on Aeris, let's get out of here." She gestured to the wolf and followed him with the others.

As they reached the elevator, they felt it was best to split up and meet on the sixty sixth floors. Cloud gave some of the cards she had gathered though the trip to Barret and Tifa.

"I better go alone, it's less suspicious, after all, I'm dressed like a Soldier and we all have better chances getting out apart. Tifa, take Aeris with you. I think Red should go with Barret." Cloud explained and the rest agreed.

She watched the women get on the first elevator and disappeared out of her sight. Barret and the wolf got on the second and were gone as well. She waited for the third elevator to open, in meanwhile; she tried to shake off a strange feeling. Shaking her head, she got onto the elevator and turned to swipe the card for the first floor.

A hand reached on her shoulder and she frowned, shrugging it off, "What is it?" She asked as she punched in the code and the number for the floor she wanted to go.

"How about going up to the top floor?" The second person in the elevator suggested.

Cloud froze at the voice; she turned around, recognizing who was in the elevator with her. It was the red-head Turk, Reno.

"You know, since I saw you in the church, I remember you. But something's bothering me, it's like my memory was altered, everything about you." He glanced up to the skylight of the elevator and sighed, "I feel I know you personally. But, I can't sit down over tea with you and try to figure this out. Honestly, I like you, I just know it but I have to do my duty. So, you are under arrest."

Cloud sighed. The memory came again, pieces here and there. Reno was a friend, a roommate, a comedy relief. She felt another presence joined them on the elevator and turned to face another man, a dark shoulder length haired man with Wutaian descendant. He looked so serious and she knew the man wasn't usually serious. Figuring it was being in Turk that changed them all.

"It must have been a real thrill for you. Did you enjoy it?" The man, Tseng asked, not even smirking.

Cloud closed her eyes in defeat. "It was fun while it lasted."

Zack was present in the President's office as the Turks hauled the escapee and rebels. He kept a cold icy exterior, standing beside the President, as a General, he belonged there doing his job, guarding the President, to oversee any prisoners and the procedure. This time around, he wished he weren't the General but with Cloud among the rebels.

He watched Reno hold Cloud's arms in his hands, noticing the red-head's face, reading his emotions. He saw the Turk was torn in between, desiring to let the blonde go. He knew the new batch of the Turks was stronger and faster and it was due to the Mako-enchantment. Apparently, sometime in the last two years, the ShinRa changed their mind and gave Hojo a go to give the Turks Mako-enchantments, but they didn't get the same amount as Soldiers would usually do, but lesser.

Three of them, he knew personally from the past, the red-head, Reno, the dark skinned one, Rude and the female blond, Elena. They all had the same traits, memory alternation. Another Hojo's influence, their memory surrounding Sephiroth and himself were blocked, and somehow they didn't remember Cloud either, he suspected was because Cloud was always around either him or Sephiroth. Reno apparently felt that he should have remembered Cloud more than knowing him as a simple cadet. Perhaps, the memory block experiment is starting to fail, and he hoped it will sometime soon.

He watched Cloud and saw she wasn't giving a fight but being slack and letting the Turk guide her, a bit rough on the side. He noticed that she was also starting to recall some memories and appeared to find some comfort in her captor's hands when they came face to face with the president and Doctor Hojo. She had stepped back in Reno's arms, subconsciously seeking protection from her captor away from the scientist. Her actions were lost on everyone else.

"Stealing ShinRa's property… serious offense…" ShinRa's voice trailed as he watched the Avalanchers with more interest. Zack wondered why they didn't put up much fight when they were caught.

_::I'll get them out. Don't worry, dear friend. Cloud knows this.:: _The voice of quicksilver eased into his mind suddenly but with care that Zack didn't show surprise.

'Sephiroth?' He asked, finding the voice familiar and comforting. Elation rose in his heart. 'You're alive?'

_::Barely… I am holding on by a thin thread.:: _

'You said you're going to help them get out of here… how?' Zack asked, curious and worried.

_::Tonight.::_ Then the voice disappeared from his mind, leaving him empty and missing the presence sorely. He noticed the commotions with ShinRa had came to end, they were talking about the Promised Land, how important it was to him and the three offenders were interfering with his plan, thus gaining more serious offense against the ShinRa.

"Get them out of my face," The President muttered as he waved dismissively, sitting down behind his desk. "General Donovan, prepare for execution in the morning." He sighed tiredly and returned to his work as if nothing happened.

Zack gave a slight bow and pivoted, following the Turks dragging all four Avalanchers out of the room. He knew Aeris was to return to Doctor Hojo alive, after witnessing the executions of the other three. It was Hojo's wish she would witness, desiring to input the fear of escaping in her.

He saw them to the holding cells; they were being separated by twos, including the red wolf, which seemed tame and docile around the Avalanchers. Doing his duty, he placed several guards on duty and finally, he gave Cloud a last look though the glass pane on the holding cell door. He saw her looking back, she had determination on her face and he gave her a small smirk and a wink.

When Cloud woke up, she found herself on the lone cot in the metal room of the holding cell. She found Tifa in the corner, on the other cot, staring at the door with blank look on her face.

The brunette finally spoke, without breaking her gaze, "Can we get out?"

Cloud stood and went to the door; she knew the system of the ShinRa. There were few holding cells on the top floors and usually, they were the best, impossible to escape, they were designed to hold in Mako strength Soldiers. Cloud sighed, recognizing where she was, she was on the floor of the Lab. The cells were placed on the floor for the Soldiers, for cases those who showed berserker frenzy effect from the injections.

It would be impossible for them to escape from the cell, not unless they had Sephiroth's Masamune to pick the lock. She whispered softly, enough for Tifa to hear, "We will get out, somehow." From corner of her eyes, she could see Tifa gave a small nod.

She turned and stretched as much she could in the small dimly lit room. She had lost track of time after she took a nap. She assumed it was past dark, at some point around early morning. It had been a long day, running around and doing rescues.

Her ultra sensitive hearing picked up soft murmuring in the next cell. The wall was thick but there were some air holes drilled in the metal near the ceiling and she could hear voices carried though the holes. Barret and the wolf were in the next cell.

The burly black man was muttering to himself, "Hey, Aeris is an Ancient and the real name of the Ancient is the Cetra…" He packed back and forth in the cell, his massive size only letting him go two steps before he had to turn around again.

"The Cetra know where the Promised Land is and the ShinRa is searching for the Promised Land." Cloud heard him stop pacing, assuming he was at the door and he continued, "I only hear stories 'bout the Promised Land. I don't know if it really exists. Is that right?"

Red looked up from where he was lying on the cot and shrugged.

"The ShinRa believe the Promised Land is full of Mako energy. Which means, if the ShinRa get there, they'll suck up all Mako energy and the land'll wither away. The Planet's gonna get weaker."

The blonde could almost hear Barret frowning in the next cell.

"I can't just leave 'em be. I'm recruitin' new members!" She almost chuckled at his ranting. Barret didn't stop there, "Me, Tifa, Cloud and Aeris too… How 'bout you?"

Cloud heard some scraping of the talon claws on the hard floor as Red stretched. There was no reply from the lion-like wolf. Barret broke silence once again, complaining, "You're so damn boring."

Cloud smirked at the comment, content to know that the fire element creature in the next cell was pretty tame. She turned to the opposite wall, knowing Aeris was alone there.

To her surprise, when she placed her hands on the wall, Aeris spoke, "Cloud, are you there?"

"Aeris, you okay?" Cloud asked.

"Yeah, I'm all right. I knew you would come for me."

Cloud dropped her head, "Hey, I'm your bodyguard, right?"

She could feel the down-to-the-planet girl smile in the next cell, "The deal was for one date, right?"

The blonde pushed herself away from the wall, groaning inwardly.

Tifa looked up from her arms with contempt on her face, "oh, I get it." There was ice dripping from her voice, aiming for the blonde.

Cloud gave a hapless look and waited for a snide remark from the voice in her head, but there were none.

Aeris broke her thoughts, "Tifa! Tifa, you're there too!" The pink girl was also taken with the brunette, she was just too naïve.

Tifa stood up, scowling slightly, "Excuse me, you know, Aeris. I have a question."

"What?" Aeris replied.

"Does the Promised Land really exist?"

There was a soft whishing on the other side; Aeris was shaking her head. "I don't know. All I know is the Cetra were born from the Planet, speak with the Planet, and unlock the secret." There was lengthy pause of silence, "And…" Her voice became whisper, "Return to the Promised Land when the King and Queen reigns."

Cloud's head snapped up to the words and she whispered, "King and Queen, the one told of the Valkyries, also in the Wutaian legend?"

"Yes," came a reply from Aeris, "The Cetera told a prophecy of the two, they will return, after hard trails and redeems us all."

Tifa beat Cloud to the question, "Who are they?"

"No one knows. They're not of the Cetra race, but far older."

"The Valkyries?" Tifa asked again, remembering Hojo's lecture from earlier.

"Maybe… All I can understand… Hojo told me that Sephiroth was the male Valkyries and he's gone, supposedly dead. And he also told me the female he had once several years ago was one too, gone, dead too."

"You mean, those two, dead, are supposed to be the ones?" Tifa asked, sitting down once again.

"I guess, after all… they were the last of the race. There is no hope left."

Cloud was dumbstruck. Deep inside her heart, she knew Sephiroth was out there, somewhere alive and she knew, she wasn't dead, yet a burden weighted her soul.

The conversation died, everyone became silent. She assumed the others had gone to sleep, much like Tifa had done. She sat on the cot and eventually, her body fell into a lying position not long after.

Zack bolted up in his bed and looked over to his side, seeing the clock in the dark; it glowed, indicating it was near dawn.

Getting out of the bed with a nagging feeling he should. He quickly dressed and grabbed his weapon and headed to the elevator. He shifted the sword in his hand; it was a newer prototype version of Buster Sword, called Hardedge.

He reached the floor where the holding cells were, the elevator door opened and he caught glimpse of shadow vanishing around a corner. Recognition stirred inside his soul, he stepped out onto the darkened hallway.

"Sephiroth?" The name uttered out of his lip, as he followed the vanishing shadow of a mere memory. He suddenly stopped as his foot hit something on the floor and glanced down, his violet eyes glowing in the dark. He nearly choked, it was a sight he had seen before, but it still made him queasy.

It was a body of a Soldier, supposedly on his night shift, soaking in pool of dark blood. The cut was too clean from the neck. He knew the handiwork; it belonged to only one man, only one weapon, the legendary Masamune.

Zack looked up and whispered, "Sephiroth, now I know you're alive… but…" He gave the body a disgusted look and continued down the hallway. "What is going on?"

The unnatural glow of emerald orbs lit up the dark corridor for the owner of the eyes, the locks to the holding cells made soft hissing noises as it unlocked. The silver haired shadow swiftly entered the center cell of the three occupied and knelt before the unsuspecting sleeping person.

"_Koibito"_ The native language of Wutai spilled from the lips like silver notes as the gloved hand brushed a blond lock away from the sleeping person's face, wanting to see the blue eyes hidden under the lids. The golden lashes fluttered against the soft cheeks. He sighed, with pain lacing in his voice, "_Itooshi kokoro, ganbatte no tame." _The hand quickly withdrew from the sleeping face as the green eyes looked up, sensing someone was near.

He stood and turned to glance at the intruder and smirked. He gave a bow and like a shadow, he disappeared, leaving behind silver sparkles of dust shimmering in the air.

Zack reached the holding cells and found three of them opened; he knew the three cells held the Avalanchers. He heard whispering and realized they were of Wutai language, almost ancient. He stepped to the middle one and swallowed hard as his eyes met with the sight before him.

The so called shadow he had been chasing gave a bow and disappeared. He sighed, "Sephiroth…" He glanced to find Cloud stirring, waking. He stepped back out and turned to leave, it was best for him to not be present as the Avalanchers escape.

Cloud sighed as the warmness enveloped her in the darkness of her dream. The voice sounded so distant, yet she recognized the language as her father's native language, "Lover, beloved soul, stand strong for me…"

She wanted to reply but couldn't as she felt herself being pulled away from the depth of the dream. Her eyes fluttered open to find the dim fluorescent light above her blinking with discordant pattern.

Sitting up, she glanced around and found the cell door ajar, "The door's open…" She announced a bit loudly, waking up Tifa.

She stepped out with Tifa in tow, to meet with the other confused Avalanchers. Tifa had tugged on her shirt and pointed down the dark hallway. Cloud's eyes followed and saw what the other woman saw, an on duty Soldier sprawled across the floor, soaking in pool of blood. Suddenly she realized as her nose took in the scent, the air was heavy with blood and something of an ancient tang of magic, almost akin to Summon Materia.

Cloud stepped out and went to the body to inspect the fallen man. She found the man's neck was cleanly cut. The man's face had a sheer gossamer color due to blood loss. "Not too long ago…" She whispered as she stood up. The body was still warm when she had fished something out of his pocket.  
The brunette gave Cloud a questioning look.

"Something's wrong. The Soldier's been killed by someone who's professional, someone who wanted us out." Cloud explained, putting up a cover that she knew the plan the whole time and who had done so.

"Who do you think?" Tifa asked, her eyes flittered down the hall to the body.

"Come on, let's go." Cloud waved as she took lead, the others followed her.

They passed the body and Red stopped to take a sniff, "No human could have done this." He commented softly and followed the Avalanchers.

Barret nodded as he heard the wolf, "Let's see what's up."

They went down hall toward the lab; in their wake of path were trails of blood and scattering bodies of Soldiers. The elevator in the lab was nothing more than a gaping hole, as if it was blown away with explosion only by the power of Materia. They noticed the container that held the head of Jenova empty.

Cloud tilted her head at the hole, "Did it get away? Jenova?" She frowned as she remembered the pale alien woman's head, bodiless.

Red's tail twitched with uneasiness, "Jenova Specimen. Scents tell me it went to the upper floor using that elevator for the specimens."

Cloud gave the wolf a questioning look, "Upstairs? You can smell the trail?"

"Yes."

Barret shook his hand, "Wait a minute! Are we getting out of here or going on a chase?"

Cloud laughed softly at his antics, "We have to find out this whole thing. We are getting out of here, but first, we're going up." She gestured for the wolf to take lead.

Barret grumbled as he followed Cloud with the others.

They follow Red up several floors; the rest could see the trail as well because of the blood trailing here and there along with gooey substance of Mako from the Head of Jenova's container. The blood dripped in long line as if it were being dripped off a sword, a long one.

They all reached to the familiar office on the top floor, the President office. When they entered, they all abruptly stopped at the sight, their mouth dropping slightly, gaping.

On the desk, hunched over, President ShinRa looked as if he were simply sleeping but save for a six footed black sword of Masamune protruding out of his back.

Barret was first to recover, "He's dead… The leader of ShinRa, Inc. is dead."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

Translation for language other than English found at the website.


	20. S2:6: Dawning

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Six: Dawning

_We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:_

2 Peter 1:19, The Holy Bible

_On the desk, hunched over, President ShinRa looked as if he were simply sleeping but save for a six footed black sword of Masamune protruding out of his back. _

_Barret was first to recover, "He's dead… The leader of ShinRa, Inc. is dead."_

Tifa gasped softly, "That sword…" She had recognized the weapon, "It must be…"

Cloud nodded somberly, not feeling sorry for the dead President and inspected the sword, it was authentic but something was off here, "Yes, Sephiroth's."

Another gasp, louder from Tifa, "Sephiroth is alive?"

Cloud stood beside the prostrate man, a hand on chin. The word came back to her, playing in her mind like soft music of wind, '_Itooshi kokoro…'_ She shook her head, "Look like it, only Sephiroth can use that sword… but…" Why would he leave it? The question was left unsaid.

"Who cares who did it? This is the end of ShinRa now!" Barret growled and turned to the pillar that stood in the massive office; he reached and grabbed a fat short, balding man.

The man, attempted to escape snapped back into Barret's grip and stuttered, "P-p-please d-don't kill me!" He cowered.

Cloud came to Barret's help, taking hold of the man's arm, "What happened?"

"Se-sephiroth. Sephiroth came!"

Cloud narrowed her eyes at the man, known as Palmer, "did you see him?"

Palmer nodded, "Yeah, I saw him! I saw him with my own eyes!"

Cloud let go of the cowering man, leaving him for Barret to hold. She turned and sighed, "Right…"

"Uh! Would I lie to you at time like this? And I heard his voice too!" Palmer was shaking visibly. Cloud turned back to him and gestured for him to continue, "Uh, he was saying something about not letting us have the Promised Land."

Tifa moved herself from the desk to the shaking man, "Then what? Does that mean the Promised Land really exists and that Sephiroth's here to save it from ShinRa?"

Barret muttered confusingly, "So he's a good guy then?"

Cloud shook her head, unable to make any sense of the whole situation, "Sephiroth, he never was really a good guy because he work for the ShinRa, why would he want to do this?" She asked, more to her self. "It's not simple… I know him."

Aeris came up and touched Cloud on the shoulder, "Personally?"

Cloud sighed and nodded, "Yes, I served under him in the Elite rank… I do not remember much. It just doesn't make any sense."

A lashing voice came to her mind::_Now you are making me a bad person as ShinRa always made me out to be?::_

'_No!'_ Cloud silently retorted back. '_This is not the time! I can't reveal any more to them about you until I find out what is going on.'_

::_One thing I can tell you now, I did not kill ShinRa, though I wish I did::_

Cloud felt him slink back into the darkness, leaving her alone. She heard whirring of the helicopter outside the bay window. Palmer broke free from their grip and disappeared from the office.

She turned to the window, knowing what would come. She glanced to the desk and found that ShinRa was in the middle of a phone call when he was killed. With the landing of the helicopter, she knew what to expect. She released her sword and took a grip.

Barret knew too and swore, "Rufus!"

Tifa and Aeris stood together, curious, "Who is that?" The brunette asked.

Cloud answered as she saw the tall young man step out of the helicopter, "Rufus ShinRa, son of Roscoe ShinRa. He's the vice-president, now I suppose he's here to be the President. Barret, you were wrong, it is not the end of ShinRa, more so, and it's going to get worse. He's a brat."

"I wonder what kind of person he is…" Aeris frowned, "I heard that no one ever seen him bleed or cry."

Cloud gave a small chuckle, "Believe what you want, he bleeds red. But he's more menace than his father was."

They all watched the imposing man step in the office, glancing around with a cool calculated gaze. He wore white attire of pressed pants and trench coats over a white jacket, even his shoes were white. He had pale feature with slick combed back blond hair. His eyes were gray and cold.

Cloud rolled her eyes as she noted everyone else had awe to his appearance. She shifted and stood up, almost in relaxing position. Memories started to resurface in her mind, recalling the esteemed prince of ShinRa; he once hung out with Reno, Rude and Tseng in the Academic days. Suddenly, the dam broke in her mind, the names, place and events swirled from those days. She swayed and gripped tighter on her Buster sword. The action was noted to the other Avalanchers.

They watched Palmer quiver as he whispered to Rufus and skittered away.

"So, Sephiroth was actually here." Rufus said as he looked to Cloud, smiling a cold smile. "By the way, who are you guys?" He asked, keeping his gaze at Cloud.

"We're the Avalanche. Barret Wallace. There's Tifa Lockhart, Aeris Gainsborough and Red." Barret jutted his chest proudly and cocked his gun, twirling the barrel within.

"And you, you're part of them?" Rufus asked, giving a disdainful glance at his father, his question directed at Cloud.

Cloud stood rigid, twisting the sword handle in her hand, "Cloud Strife, ex-Soldier, of Elite rank."

"Ah, right. I know you. How you evaded Hojo's grasp is beyond me. What a crew…" He murmured as he unbuttoned his jacket, letting it fall back, billowing around his knees, revealing a silver double-barreled shotgun. He hoisted the gun up on his arm and grinned, "Well, I'm Rufus, the President of ShinRa Inc."

Barret made a move to retort but stopped as Cloud held a hand up to him, "Barret, get out of here with everyone else. I'll meet you guys soon."

"I'm sure you don't want to hear my speech, but I'll get to the point, it's my company now, I do things differently around here." He turned to the window and smirked as the dark massive dog like panther slithered in, "Ah, Dark Nation." He gave the creature a pat on the head and twirled around suddenly, "I'll start with eliminating pests… like you guys," He suddenly fired upon them as if his shot-gun were automatic, and it might had been.

Cloud jumped, swirling her Buster Sword, deflecting off the onslaught of bullets to give the other chance to escape. "Go! Now!"

Zack saw the rest of Avalanchers escape from the office except for Cloud. He heard the battle within the office and stepped carefully near the doorway, watching Cloud battle with Rufus with skills. She had dodged every bullet until Rufus were out of bullets and Dark Nation started to attack her. With quick swish, she had defeated the creature. Rufus had retreated to the helicopter, grabbing onto the ladder, waving, laughing.

He sighed as he watched Cloud battle with a mechanic robot that lived up to its name, 'Hundred Gunner', but it was no match for her. She had reduced it to pieces and turned to leave the office.

Cloud stopped as she left the office, turning to Zack, "You again… What is your intention in all of this?" She asked.

Zack shook his head, "My intention is with you and Sephiroth, but I am a prisoner here. Go find him, he need your help."

"I still don't remember you… I feel that I should."

"You will soon." Zack said as he tilted his head, gesturing for her to go.

She took the hint and sprinted down the hallway to meet with Tifa who stayed behind to wait for him.

Zack sighed and murmured; "Now I know it is you in my head. You got nasty sense of humor, old friend." He turned and went down back to his apartment in the building, intent to wake up another friend and annoy him.

Cloud and Tifa met with the others on the first floor of ShinRa headquarter. Barret had found a rickety old blue truck that worked out front and Cloud decided to swipe the new motorcycle on display inside the building and roared out onto the street, following the blue truck.

Soon enough, several Soldiers followed, each had their own motorcycles and was chasing them down. It became a race.

Cloud grinned, feeling moment of rush as she manipulated the motorcycle between her legs at high speed, protecting the truck, dodging and battling the other Soldiers, causing them to crash here and there.

Soon as they reached the end of the road, far on the edge of the city of Midgar, a massive robot loomed before them. Cloud rolled her eyes and ditched the motorcycle, "Not another one. How many do they make of those?" She muttered as she swirled the sword in her hand, feeling rather irritated.

Tifa gasped as she motioned for the others to back off, "He's powering up."

"Whudda ya mean?" Barret asked confused.

"I remember my brother telling me about Soldiers having ability to reach their limit break; it's like going berserk at some point and releasing all you have."

"Damn, I am startin' to have enuf with those bastards ShinRa." Barret muttered as he watched Cloud sway in a mystic dance before a monster of a robot, living up to its name, 'Motor Ball'.

Cloud swayed to the silent beat deep inside her body, keeping her eyes trained on the massive robot. Slowly as she started, she twirled her Buster sword, almost as if she was calling the colors to her and swirling about her. Suddenly, with a clench, she leaped and released thousands fold slashes upon the robot and landed back down, feeling elation of power release. She grinned and stood back, swinging the sword back onto its latch on her back.

"What?" Aeris asked as she saw the robot stood still.

"You did nothin'!" Barret shouted and cocked his gun-arm, ready to fire but the robot rumbled loudly, they all stood back and suddenly, it crumbled to bits, falling down around where it once stood. He stared jaw gaped.

"Now, that'll do." Cloud grinned as she turned back to the rest of the group. Her demeanor seemed to change suddenly, as if tiredness took over, murmuring as she gazed to the sky, turning hue of deep indigo to pink of morning twilight. "Sephiroth is alive…" Her voice seemed to betray the true feeling of her heart, sounding hollow, "I… have to settle the score."

_::Settle the score?:: _Sephiroth's conscience lashed with disbelief, sounding hurt. ::_You suddenly remember who I am, almost, and yet you want to settle score?::_

Cloud closed her eyes, "_Oh shut up. Something is not right here and you're not telling me the whole story. I know I have to settle score with someone, for the Planet, somehow."_

_::Oh, the girl figured it out.:: _His voice dripped with sarcasm and she had to smile at that.

"_Please, not now."_

_::Very well, 'see you later'.'_:: He disappeared, leaving her alone in her mind.

"And that'll save the Planet?" Barret asked, reviving her from her thoughts.

Cloud nodded, "Seem like it."

Barret grinned, "Awright, I'm going."

"I'll go too; I have things that I want to find out." Aeris piped in.

"About the Ancients?" Cloud asked, curious as well.

"Many things." Aeris nodded, sensing trouble burrowed deep in Cloud's eyes.

"I guess this is good bye, Midgar." Tifa sighed as she looked back down the highway to the city.

Soon, they all climbed down the rope that hung at the edge of bridged highway, landing on the outskirt of Midgar.

Red paced around few times, "I'm going back to my hometown, and I'll go with you as far as that."

Tifa smiled at the wolf, "I guess this is the start of our journey."

Cloud looked at the crimson-eyed brunette, silently disagreeing. _My journey started a long time ago; you're all just going on for a ride._

The group decided to split up and meet at Kalm Town. Cloud found herself stumped again, having Tifa and Aeris on her side of the group. The three of them agreed to go ahead to Kalm while Barret and Red make a side trip to check up on Marlene.

The journey started as the sun peeked over the horizon; they all split up and went out in different directions. Cloud, Tifa and Aeris silently traveled together on foot toward the nearby small quaint town. The girls felt the need to leave Cloud in 'his' mind, sensing turmoil from him.

The morning faded and afternoon came, as they traveled over the vast plain, encountering numerous of creatures, battling with them. When night came close, they all quickly agreed to set camp for the night.

It wasn't long before night fell and they all settled comfortably around on the grass on their blankets that they had brought with few other equipments. Cloud stood after poking the fire and announced, "I'm going to get some more fire woods."

Tifa and Aeris gave a nod and watched the blonde stalk off into the darkness of the plain away from their warm glow of fire. Their eyes soon fell to the pile of fire woods nearby, it was more than enough to last though the night but they both knew the blonde needed time alone.

"What is wrong with him?" Aeris asked, breaking silence.

Tifa shrugged as she cooked small meat over the fire, "Cloud has amnesia, I found him few days before, lost, no memories of the past seven years, I think. I suppose the last few days had been hard on him, going to places that triggered few memories… especially the ShinRa headquarter."

"I noticed too. He said he worked under Sephiroth one time, do you think there is more to it than it seems?"

Tifa gave a nod, "I remember long time ago, and he used to idolize Sephiroth before he went for Academy. I suppose he did have some sort of relationship with the General, a friend or something like that, I am not sure if it was good or bad."

Aeris sighed as she rested her chin on her fist, staring into the fire, "It seemed much more complicated. Cloud sure sounded like he wanted revenge… on Sephiroth, but I don't think it is just it."

"We'll see soon enough. After all, we're on a merry chase after Sephiroth. Why? I have no idea but it sure does have to do with the Planet and your race after all." Both women silently agreed and went on eating their dinner.

Some distant away, not far or close to the camp, Cloud sat on the grass, cross-legged with Buster sword laid out by her side in case of any trouble that dare to come. She gazed up to the starry sky, comparing to the sky seen in Midgar, it was so bright out in the wilderness, no fog or construction to mar the naturalness of the sky.

Her mind soon relaxed, sorting out the chaos that whirled within. In short time, so much happened, enough to send a normal sane person to asylum, but it didn't faze her a bit, and she knew why, she was trained to deal with situation, and the training had come from being in Soldier.

Several meteorites shot across the sky, streaking with orange flame, it was a beautiful sight, she liked this way, quiet and simple out in the wilderness. Frowning as she recalled Avalanche, how they went though the last few days from one thing to another. They lost three members, gained two more. The heart of the Avalanche was to rescue the Planet by stopping ShinRa's production of Reactors to suck out the life blood of the planet.

The Avalanche, a small rag-tag group's objective changed in the past few days. Currently, they believed their objective was to find Sephiroth and stop him. However, her objective was different, she knew from the beginning she had to find someone and save him, and it was Sephiroth who was the one. She now believed there was someone behind the whole thing, tearing her apart from Sephiroth and her esteemed friend, Zack. She knew there was a lot of people in ShinRa, much like Reno who once was her friend who needed help, he even said so himself to her.

She knew she had to come up with something once they reach Kalm Town to convince the Avalanche. She wasn't sure why she needed them to help her in her journey; she knew she couldn't do it alone. She believed it was fate that pulled them all together.

In the past few days, her memories were slowly coming back, not entirely. But she had enough to fit the puzzle to see where she had come from. She was starting to recall memories of her early days in the Academy. She smiled, remembering that she had originally went to Academy to study Mako Science but her roommates, Zack and Reno, at the time convinced her to join Soldiers and she had enjoyed her time in Soldiers.

The memories became rather spotty afterward but she knew at some point, she was promoted into Class Two and then Elite with the help of Zack and Sephiroth. Everything seemed to fit.

Several revelations in the past few days brought her to tie everything together. The Planet's danger of dying, with the Cetera and the Valkyrie, fitting with herself and Sephiroth, in the end bringing her to the legend of Madoshi and Megamiki. She knew she was somewhere in the progress of herself and Sephiroth's fate of becoming the King and Queen. She just couldn't figure out how things would go up to the future's destination for them. There was still a lot of her memories she needed to recall to understand the bigger picture.

She sighed and rested her chin on her drawn up knees and she suddenly smiled as she felt the ever familiar presence fill her senses, "Sephiroth…"

_::I'm here... koibito.:: _He filled her mind with warm caresses.

"I'm sorry for what I said back there. I am not sure what my intention on this mission is yet… you will have to fill me in sometime soon before I get to Kalm Town."

::_I know. Don't worry about it much. I am not quiet sure myself either. We're in some kind of big mess relating with Jenova and the prophecy with the Valkyries. One thing for sure, you need to get me out of here, wherever I am so we can fulfill the prophecy.::_

Cloud frowned, "Remind me again…"

_::You know we both are the last Valkyries to walk on this Planet.:: _She nodded, _::we are to redeem the people from something and reigns in the end. That is all I can say for now. However, I'm a prisoner of the being that we are to defeat.::_

"If you're a prisoner, how can we communicate? How is it possible?"

His voice chuckled, leaving her with warm sensation, _::We are connected, soul mate, as they say, that's why I am able to communicate with you, no others except for Zack, because he is a friend of our, a close friend. Rather, he is our soul brother. I am able to take control of my captor's body at some times, which is why I was able to rescue you from the holding cells back there. It took so much out of me. It wasn't long before it took over and went on a rampage and killed ShinRa. It felt that Roscoe ShinRa was a nuisance, so it killed him.::_

"I understand, so we're dealing with a bad Sephiroth right now, are we?" Cloud asked.

_::Yes.::_

"I want to see you, just once again…" Cloud murmured and she felt him smile in her mind, soon enough, the air before her shimmered and materialize into shapes, taking form and she gasped as she realized she was staring at somewhat translucent Sephiroth, from his shimmering hair to emerald orbs and down to his black attire. "Sephiroth…"

He smiled at her, a sad one, "Not long, but for you my love."

Reaching out, she tried to feel him but her hand grasped cold air. "You keep calling me that, saying we are soul mates, how did we meet, and fall in love?"

He gave a soft laugh, "It was all Zack's doing. You will remember soon. Just remember this, I love you always. I must go."

"No…" Cloud sighed as she watch him disappear and the presence faded away, leaving her alone, "I love you too…" she said with ache in her heart.

"Cloud."

She turned and saw the fire flickering, recognizing whom it belonged to, "Red, you guys caught up with us."

"Yeah." The reddish wolf slithered around her and sat on his haunches where Sephiroth once was. "Tifa mentioned you went off to get some more woods, but that's not the case. She's worried because you had returned yet."

"Oh." Cloud replied with shrugs.

"Tifa and Aeris are quiet enamored with you, but…" Cloud's blond brows furrowed at the wolf that seemed to grin rakishly, "I take it as they all think you are of male gender."

Cloud gasped which caused the fire element wolf laugh, "How?"

"Nothing can get past my nose. I can smell the difference in genders… At first, I though my eyes were fooling me. You're quiet good."

"That's good to know I can fool simple minded people but not of other creatures."

"I suppose you do not wish for the others to know."

"That's right, for now."

"It is none of my business; I will not say a word unless you want me to. I should not impose, but why?"

"Long story, too long. If the others know, a certain people know, I will be in danger."

"I see."

"Red," She then suddenly had an urge to reach up and starch the wolf behind his ears. "Uhm, can I?" She held her hand out.

He smiled and laid down, placing his head on her lap, "Please do, it has been quiet a while since anyone has done it."

Cloud chuckled and gave him a good hearty scratching on his head. She suddenly felt whole lot better and laughed softly as the wolf purred softly. "I thought you didn't like two legged people."

Red snorted, "I was just saying that. I tolerate few people, and very few I like. You are among the ones I like; even only I have known you for a day."

"Thanks, I like you too."

"You're welcome."

They remained together for a while longer and then returned back to camp to rest before they started out to Kalm the next day.

Reeve sighed as he slumped into the chair at the local favorite bar-restaurant, Asgard. He glared at Zack who seemed to be in upbeat mood after a night of little sleep. He closed his eyes, rubbing them as he recalled earlier when Zack had barged in and shouted at him to get up and about, announcing it was time for breakfast.

He took a swig at a strong drink and muttered, "Okay, you got me here, now what?"

Zack sat back, grinning, "Just feeling good. You know, I feel free for the first time in a long time and I'm still stuck with ShinRa. I guess it's seeing Cloud again last night that makes things seems all right."

"I suppose so. Talking about Cloud, what is it you were trying to tell me about Valkyries?"

Zack leaned closer, "To be honest, there is not much to tell since I do not know much about it. But I already told you that Cloud and Sephiroth are both Valkyries."

Reeve frowned, leaning forward as well, "But isn't this mythical race Valkyries supposed to be all women?"

"Yes and no. I do not have the tome with me, it's somewhere, I do hope it fall in Cloud's hands soon." Zack sat back once again, "I'll tell you simple as it is, they're all women, and yes they do reproduce, only by mating with male outside their race. Few male are born into the race and they are all guardians of sort. If I remember correctly, to this date, seventeen had been born to the Valkyries to this date, the last one being Sephiroth."

Reeve stared at Zack blankly, trying to grasp a concept while Zack banged his head on the table realizing his own mistake. "Sephiroth? The last one?"

Zack sighed as he looked up, red mark formed on his forehead, "My mistake, Cloud is."

Reeve pointed an accusatory finger at his friend, "Liar. I know when you lie, your eye twitches, like it is now. Sephiroth is the last one. And you're telling me Cloud is a Valkyrie, and for a fact I know Cloud is much younger than Sephiroth… Am I missing something here?"

Zack stared with anguish at the shorter man, being caught red-handed.

Reeve's eyes went wide, "Oh… oh… oy. Now I understand… I always though Sephiroth was either gay or a eunuch…"

Zack crossed his eyes in mock horror, "Eunuch, no. Oh trust me, he's well endowed."

"So you're saying Cloud is a Valkyrie, the last of her, yes _her_, kind. And Hojo's Valkyrie sample didn't just die, but escaped… it all make sense now… you and Cloud, you two were together the whole time with Hojo, then you guys escaped, you get caught, got shot to death, she escapes or something like that, they think she's dead. Presto, Cloud's back in the picture and they don't think it's her because she's being a male."

Zack nodded. "She didn't escape; she was there when I died. They assumed her dead because she wasn't physically mobile or healthy at all. I say it's some kind of higher power that kept her safe and alive."

"I'm getting a headache and it's not even noon." Reeve sighed. "It's amazing, what I believed to be a myth is real, ShinRa is doomed… they got two people that are considered omnipotent against them."

Zack nodded once again, "Doomed, now you see why I am happy. Eunuch, geez."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	21. S2:7: The Quest

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Seven: The Quest

_As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him._

Acts 9:3, The Holy Bible

Cloud sat on one of the few beds in a large bedroom in the Inn. They had reached Kalm Town the next day and rented a room at the inn to rest for a night. Every member of the Avalanche gathered around Cloud, waiting for her to give some explanation.

On her lap was the tome, the tome of Valkyrie. No one knew but her of what the tome held. She had requested some time to read the entire book alone and as she had finished, she called them all back, ready to give them what they wanted to know.

By the time she had finished reading the book, her memories came back, nearly everything, with few exception. She felt it was enough for now. She told them about herself, how she went to Academy and how she befriended Zack, the current General of ShinRa, and how she became Elite under Sephiroth's order. She had omitted some information such as her being a female and her relationship to Sephiroth; they assumed 'he' was a friend to the General, nothing more.

She was surprised to the memory of how she met Sephiroth, at the ball and how it went from there. She treasured the memory with all of her heart, knowing that she loved Sephiroth deeply and he returned the same feeling. All it did was give her more passion to set forth on the journey in searching for him.

However, Tifa indulged about what happened at Nibelheim several years ago. Cloud couldn't avoid the story and gave in, explaining about what had happened as if from third person's view.

"I remember some… But I don't remember you being there." Tifa said with a frown on her face.

Cloud sighed, "I wasn't there…" It was a lie; she remembered she had appeared in Nibelheim as a female Soldier, named Sorano.

"There was someone… a woman… strange, she look like you, blond haired with blue eyes. Really nice woman." Tifa tilted her head, trying to remember.

"Yeah, she's from the Women Division of ShinRa, training to be Class One, she was invited on this trip by Sephiroth, a good friend of ours too. Her name was Sorano." Cloud hoped they had bought her story and sighed inwardly as Tifa appeared to accept the story.

"So, what's up with that book?" Barret gestured to the tome.

Cloud glanced down to the book, "This was my book, and Sephiroth gave it to me. It's about Valkyrie." There were collective gasp in the room and she ignored them, "Yeah, we have to keep this out of Hojo's hands. Valkyries are real; in this book has a prophecy which fits in the whole mess we are in the middle of." She sighed as she placed the tome on the bed and stood up, going to the window, "The prophecy is about the two last Valkyries, a male and a female…They're like Madoshi and Megamiki, they are to go though hard trails before they are reunited and eventually, save the Planet, redeem the people and in the end, become King and Queen."

Aeris clasped her hands together as in prayer, "I think I understand now… But the ShinRa are interfering the prophecy, right?"

Cloud turned back to them, "Yes. I will tell you this; few people outside this room know the truth. ShinRa suspected it but they have no proof yet. Sephiroth is the Valkyrie male."

"What? That murdering bastard?" Barret exploded, waving his arms around.

Red rolled his eyes, "Shut up and let Cloud finish."

Cloud gave a thankful smile to the wolf, "We are going to go after him, stop him because he is on the bad side, the one who was using ShinRa as a pawn."

"Whoa, back up here, this is new." Barret frowned at Cloud, slouching down on another bed, "You're sayin' ShinRa is in the middle of this and not responsible?"

Cloud shrugged, "I don't understand it either, there is something greater out there, using Sephiroth and ShinRa to destroy the Planet."

Aeris gasped, "Jenova. Jenova destroyed Cetra two thousand years ago… you're saying Jenova's alive and doing all of this."

Cloud nodded. "Yeah, Jenova was a Valkyrie before she went bad. According to ShinRa, Sephiroth is her son…" She winced and waited for the blow to come. It came, Tifa and Barret exploded in shocked chatter and Red simply shook her head as Aeris gasped. She stood up waiving her hands at them, "Whoa, whoa… I don't think so. Sephiroth was raised in a lab, so he has Jenova cell in him, technically he was Jenova's son but he was actually Doctor Lucrecia Brown's son… don't ask me, I don't remember any details about this but what I just told you."

"We're to go after Sephiroth because he's working for Jenova…" Tifa said as she thought hard, "Jenova is the one who is trying to destroy the Planet, and she's using ShinRa… What I don't understand, how is she destroying the Planet?"

Cloud shrugged, "I don't know. Something to do with the Mako, it has lots of power… I guess."

Aeris stuck her lips out, "If Sephiroth was the Valkyrie male, who was the female? I remember Hojo said she died after she escaped his encampment."

Cloud nodded, "Yeah, she did."

"Who was it?" Tifa asked, curious, suspecting Cloud knew the answer.

"Sorano, she's the Valkyrie female…"

"But if she's dead, then the prophecy can't come true." Aeris explained, worried look on her face.

Red rolled his eyes and slumped on his chest, lying on the floor. "She's dead, Hojo believe there's another one out there." He muttered, glaring at Cloud, promising her that he will talk to her later. Cloud shrugged back at him.

"Oh, okay." Aeris smiled content with the answer.

"I suppose we're gonna after the man… This is some messed up insane mission." Barret grumbled, leaving the room.

"I agree… but we're here for you, Cloud." Tifa smiled and followed the black man out as well.

Aeris shook her head, "Yeah, I suppose I'll learn more about Cetra as well the Valkyrie on the way." She smiled, "I better go and see about dinner downstairs." She left as well, leaving Cloud with Red.

Red waited until the door closed and rounded on Cloud, "Liar. I hate to say this again, you're lying."

Cloud nodded, defeated, "Yeah?"

The wolf swished his tail, "This Sorano you told them doesn't exist. In fact, Sorano is you, and you are the last Valkyrie female."

The blonde nodded, "You guessed right. My full name is Cloud Sorano Strife, and once again…" She put a finger to her lips, "No tell."

"I won't. I'm curious again, may I?"

"One question, and if I decide to not answer, I will not." Cloud lay down on the bed, taking the tome up and reading it.

"You and Sephiroth, your relationship, what was it?"

Cloud tilted her head sideway to look at the wolf beside the bed, "That I can answer you but you cannot tell anyone as well." The wolf nodded, "We're closer than friend, in fact I believe we're engaged… I am not too sure… I don't remember him asking." She returned to the tome, reading again.

"Interesting, the prophecy is going to come true. Another question, if I may, it's more on a personal level." Red sat on his rump and propped his front paws on the bed edge and laid his head on them.

Cloud rested the tome on her flat chest and closed her eyes, "My term still stand, what?"

"The idea of becoming a Queen of the entire population on the Planet, it burdens you, doesn't it?"

She sighed deeply and her eyes opened to stare at the ceiling of the room, "I tried to ignore the idea, but I can't. It burdens me, how can I be a Queen someday, I am a simple person, a wandering ex-Soldier. I'm not magnificent, beautiful or anything a queen should be."

Red gave a soft smile, "I see the quality in you. I will be proud to be your subject." He stood and with a flicker of his tail, he sauntered out of the room, leaving Cloud to think over their conversation.

After Red left, Cloud closed her eyes for about ten minutes before her rest was interrupted, "Cloud?" She opened her eyes to find Tifa in the doorway, a concerned and curious look on her face.

"Yeah?" She watched the brunette enter the room and sat on the bed next to her.

"In Nibelheim, I was hurt badly, was I?" Tifa asked.

Blue eyes narrowed at the other woman, "Yeah, you were sliced open in the chest."

"How… by the Masamune, I think I remember now. He cut me, I was angry at him because he killed my father." Tifa looked at her wringing hands on her lap.

Cloud sat up and turned to face the other woman, "Tifa, uh. I don't remember much… when I learned of the news, it was pretty much hushed, and the entire town was destroyed. You're one of the few survivors who made it out of Nibelheim. Anyone in ShinRa Academy and Soldiers from Nibelheim's memories are erased, your brother think you're dead."

Tifa looked up, a tear fell out of her eyes, "No wonder, when I came to Midgar, I wondered why my brother hadn't found me. The tome, Zanagan told me to hold on to it until someone asks for it. I never dreamed it would be you. To be honest, none of this makes sense."

"I know."

After the party had rested, they all gathered and purchased few supplies for their next leg of journey. They even bought cell phones to keep in touch with each other in case they separated once again, the phones, called PHS were military models, designed to work in areas that most phones will not work.

Barret had learned where Sephiroth was headed, surprised as a farmer told them about a strange man with matching description no other than Sephiroth, heading east across the grassy plain. Cloud told them they would be heading into Zolom's lair that way.

Several miles outside east of Kalm, they reached a chocobo ranch, famously known as Chocobo Bill. Bill told them that they could have the chocobo they wanted if they could catch them personally, it became a half day of chasing and capturing the gigantic yellow birds that had speed to cross land faster than locomotive. They were the only creature that could carry them across the Zolom lair safely.

Cloud, as she had caught her bird, sat on top, holding the rein, looking eastward to the mountain range where they would head, "Guys, I don't know if you know of the Midgar Zolom," She saw the Avalanchers' face telling her they didn't know much, "It's one nasty monster, impossible to evade without the birds, I believe if he is heading there, he might be using the Mythril Mine pass beyond the Zolom lair."

They rode out without delay and reached where the grassland ended and sand filled land at the base of the mountain, it stretched for several miles before the Mythril cave. Without haste, they rode across the sand, never stopping because if they stop, the Zolom creature will come and attack them before you could blink. The creature was like a giant snake, a very old beast that lurks in the sand and it was very fast, slithering under the sand's surface and attacks before anyone could blink. The only way to evade the Zolom is to ride upon chocobo's back across the sand.

"Whoooa!" Cloud yelled as she reared her bird as they reached ominous sight. "Oh man…" She muttered as she stared up the massive wooden stake, fashioned cruelly out of tree and stuck on it was the Zolom itself. It rose before them nearly fifty feet tall. It indeed was a giant snake, its head rested, impaled on the top while it's body coiled around the stake and onto the ground.

"Did Sephiroth do this?" Aeris asked her voice timid as she stared at the horrendous sight. "He's capable of doing this?"

Tifa's jaw was slacked, "Amazing…"

They were just before the mouth of the Mythril Mine, they all decided it was safe enough to continue without the birds and let them go.

"Let's get goin'…" Barret said with determination as he gazed back to see the birds disappearing beyond the sands to the grass. He then turned to join the rest into the Mine pass.

"How far is this pass?" Tifa asked, glancing around the dark caves, they all each carried portable flashlights, bright enough to give them sight to get though the mines.

Cloud shrugged, "I don't remember… I think about five miles to the other side, that is, if we don't make wrong turns."

"Are we going the right way?" Barret grumbled, feeling the moment to not trust Cloud.

Cloud rolled her eyes at the bigger man, "The mark on the wall are the directions to get to the other side," She pointed to white paint slashed on the rocky wall, forming crude arrows and there were some more marking below the arrows, naming different tunnels they passed.

Red snorted, "Just listen to him, I trust he know where he's going." He was the only one who didn't carry a flash light because his constant flaming tail gave him enough light.

As they neared the end of the tunnel, they all put the flash lights away, seeing light from the outside. Tifa had expressed her relief after several hours in the dark pass, she was becoming claustrophobic.

They greeted the waning daylight and moved to continue, debating over where to camp for the night.

"Just a second!" A voice rang out; they all stopped and turned to find the red-headed Turk standing on the boulder above them outside the mouth of the cave.

Tifa glared at him, snapped, "You again! Who are you supposed to be?"

The red-head was joined by a dark skinned, bald man who quietly asked, "You don't know who we are?"

Cloud nodded as she held a hand out to quiet her party, "You're all Turks. Rude," She inclined to the dark skinned one and turned to the blonde female on the ridge above them. "Elena," then another man came from the entrance with long black hair and red dot on his forehead, "Tseng and lastly," She turned back to the red-head, "Reno. You seem to be the leader now, isn't the job supposed to be Tseng's?"

Reno nodded as he lazily slung his electro-rod around, "Well, you see, he's still leading the group but I'm the one who's to talk. Cloud Strife, what happened to you?"

Cloud shrugged, "I am not so sure, that's why I am here."

"Good, that makes things simple for us." Reno leaped off from the boulder to land beside Tseng while the two other did the same, "Just leave Sephiroth to us, it's our job to go after him, not you all. You," He pointed his weapon toward Cloud, "Should follow your best-friend's action, stay behind and leave it alone."

Cloud narrowed her eyes at him, "Reno, I am sure you know me. But, I'm sorry, I will not back off and let you all go after Sephiroth."

Reno sighed as he tilted his head down, his dark sunglasses sliding down to expose his green glowing eyes, "Mm, why, tell me, why are you after Sephiroth?"

Cloud noted the other Turks' eyes were also glowing with dim hue of Mako. Reno's seemed brighter than the rest, but not bright and ethereal like Sephiroth's or her own. Elena's gray eyes glowed odd color of hazel while Rude and Tseng's brown eyes became black with hint of green. She answered with mocking tone, "Why, oh should I, tell you why? No. I do not think so."

Reno chuckled, "You've always got gut, and I always admire you for that. If it suits you, stay out of our way and we'll see who get to Sephiroth first."

Cloud tilted her head, "Very well." She smirked as she held an ace in her arm, "But, I feel that you already knew our reasons, is that right, Elena?" She turned to the blonde Turk.

Trap was set and she fell for it. Elena opened her mouth and out it came "You're after him because you want to stop him before he destroys the Planet…" She tucked her hair behind her ear, moving into a lecture pose, "We're after him for a different reason; he has what we wanted…"

Rude growled under his breath while Reno moved to her side and smacked her head.

Tseng rolled his eyes, breaking his stoic façade, "Elena, you talk too much." He turned to Cloud, "Nice try." He glared at her. "There is no need for them to know our mission. Didn't you have other things to do?" He asked directly to Elena and saw out of corner of his eyes that she nodded and retreated, "Now go, don't forget to file your report."

Elena snapped rigid, "Right! Very well, Rude and I will go on ahead after Sephiroth, who's heading for Junon Harbor."

Tseng closed his eyes, annoyed, "Elena… you don't seem to understand."

She gasped, "Oh! I'm sorry…" She quickly retreated with Rude.

Cloud chuckled softly as she watched the Turks, "Elena's a good woman, but a big mouth on her."

Tseng growled at her, "Stay out of our way." He turned and went after the two other, leaving Reno behind.

Reno shook his head, ready to follow but stopped beside Cloud, "That girl, she may be cut out to be a Turks, but I still think she is better off as a Soldier, much like you." He smirked, making Cloud flinch slightly as she watches him leave with a proud stagger.

Barret grumbled, his arms crossed, watching the Turks depart, "What's with them?"

Cloud was already fuming, "Who cares? Let them go, at least we know where we are to head now."

They left the area and went across another plain toward the jungle on the other side, "We need to get though this jungle to get to Junon Harbor." Cloud explained, "its relatively safe here… if you know how to handle the creature here." She recalled few missions she had went on with Zack though the jungle and smiled at the memories.

Soon, they started to scout the area and they found a spot to camp for the night. Tifa sat on a log, soon followed by Aeris, both looking exhausted, not used to traveling.

"I'll set the tents." Barret started to unpack the few packs they had brought with them. Cloud nodded as she went to check the inventory among the packs.

"It's getting dark soon. I'm sleeping outside." Cloud announced as she finished with the inventory.

Soon, Aeris and Tifa went into one tent and Barret took another, inviting Red to share with him. The wolf had gone off earlier for firewood and returned with decent pile. Soon, the fire was started.

"Good night." Aeris called out from the flap of her tent. Cloud waved back and turned back to the fire with Red. The rest had gone to bed earlier.

She stared at the crackling flame, Red laid beside her, dozing. She wondered how she had come to trust the fire-element wolf, it seemed that he keep finding her secrets one by one quickly, exposing her too much. And yet, he did not utter them to the others, proving his loyalty to her.

"Hey, Red." She called out to him softly.

He stirred and looked up, "yes?"

"Are there other like you?"

He looked away, sighing, "I hope so, I have not ever seen another like me."

"That's sad. Maybe someday you will find someone like you."

"Perhaps, how about you? The Valkyries."

"What do you mean, you know there are only two left." Cloud turned her head to the wolf.

"Left to walk the Planet, but do you feels as if there are others like you, with your power?"

"Power? I do not have any power, I am much like any of them," She gestured to the tents.

Red sat up, shaking his mane, "No, Aeris is an exception, she's a Cetra by nature, and it's her power to heal… It will grow. But you, you have hidden power within yourself, waiting to be released. We've seen it."

"I don't understand."

"Your battle, you released enormous amount, destroying that robot back in Midgar."

"Oh, you mean my Omnislash? That's just standard limit break for Elite."

"How many Elite had you known to achieve this Omnislash?" Red asked.

Cloud thought about it for a while and finally answered, "Three, Sephiroth, Zack and me. Zack was never able to achieve a true one, but something closer."

Red nodded, "Anyone can achieve it if they train, I am sure it took him years to be able to do it. But you and Sephiroth did it, as if it were a second nature."

"So, what are you saying?"

Red nudged the bag beside Cloud with his nose, "The tome, open it." He watched Cloud take out the tome and open it and he used his paw to find the page he wanted and pointed, "There. Valkyries and their power."

Cloud frowned as she read the passage Red had shown her, "It says Valkyries has ability to tap in the power of the Planet much easier than the Cetra. Anyone with the Cetra can but not as much because they are not pure blooded of the Planet."

"Exactly, your blood connects you to the Planet more than anyone; you can call up on power stronger, faster and smoothly, have you always wondered why you used Materia with ease when you first use them?"

Understanding came to Cloud's face, "I see."

"If you hold a summon Materia, you're potently dangerous, you can use the Summon's ability though yourself without using the Summon element, you need to be careful, you are untrained, unsure, it will backfire."

Cloud closed the tome and placed it back in the bag, "Why do you know all of this?"

Red smiled, "I learn from a wise man, my grandfather is a scholar in everything, even he knows of this Valkyries. It will be beneficial if you meet with him, he would love to meet you. It had been his dream to meet a Valkyrie."

"Thank you, I'd like to learn more about myself, what I can do. If you say I can be powerful, then I better learn about it so I can keep control. I wouldn't want anyone to find out, especially Hojo."

"I agree. You are welcome." Red stood and swished his tail before he went into the tent, "Good night." The flap closed and the tents glowed with his fire tail and soon diminish, Cloud knew that was when the wolf was asleep.

Cloud shook her head and sighed, so much to think about. The wolf was helpful; she wondered if it was fate they met him. She flipped the blanked over and climbed into her bed and soon she fell asleep beside the fire.

_::You really think you should trust that fire wolf?:: _He asked with skepticism.

Cloud smiled as she turned to him, reaching out and sighed as she felt his solid figure, "He found out about me, beside, he's just going back to Cosmo Canyon once we pass that area. His grandfather is student in Valkyries."

Sephiroth nodded, holding her close, smiling at her radiant, she looked beautiful in simple white gown that hugged her figure, her long flowing golden hair shimmering. Sighing sadly, only if he could hold her like this outside the dreamscape. _::All right.:: _

She rested her head on his torso, feeling the hard muscle under the silk of the tunic. She noted it was dark blue, nearly black, accented with silver and gray on the hem. Looking up to meet his emerald gaze, "I got a question."

Sephiroth smiled, _::Fire away… oh, sorry, bad pun. Ask away.::_

She smiled, "Where are you, really?"

_::Cloud, I honestly don't know where I am as of now. I'm here, then I'm in my captor's body, without control, then I'm somewhere in between…::_

"Hm, you're heading to Junon Harbor, right?"

_::Junon Harbor… no, well, my captor's body is.::_

"Who is this captor of yours?"

Sephiroth shook his head, _::You better wake up, someone's stealing your bag.:: _He stepped back, trailing her cheek with a finer and then disappeared.

Cloud sat up, dazed, blinking away the cobweb of sleep. She was lost for a moment where she was and realized she was in the jungle near Fort Condor and someone was rustling around in Avalanche's packs, she sensed it wasn't one of the members of Avalanche.

Still in sleeping daze, yet her training made her sharp, her hand snapped to enclose someone's slim wrist. The person yelped, "Yah!" Cloud suddenly deducted it was a young female with a familiar accent.

"You better leave what you found." Cloud told the intruder with low voice, sounding dangerous.

"Nuh, huh!" The girl snatched her wrist away and stepped back.

Cloud stood up, her eyes quickly adjusting to the darkness, she could see the intruder, a young teenager girl, shorter by a head, skinny on the side with brown hair and silver hazel eyes, and she appeared to be Wutaian. The girl's eyes were unfocused, unable to see well in the dark.

Cloud took a little more time to study the girl before her; she appeared to be a ninja, more on a thief side. She has a nasty weapon, which Cloud recognized to be an overly large shuriken, and the girl was standing in a stance, ready to fight and she knew the girl know how to use her weapon.

"Come on!" The girl egged Cloud on, her weapon ready in her hand.

The blonde shook her head, "What? You go though our stuff and steal few things and now you're asking me to fight you? I have a better advantage than you, I can see better in the dark, and you can't."

The girl gave a sneer, "Come on, and fight me! So I can keep the stuff!"

Cloud scoffed, "You think that's honor? Steal stuff and then egg someone into a fight so you can keep what you have stolen?"

"Shut up!" She lunge her huge weapon toward Cloud. Cloud suddenly drew the Buster sword and they went into a quick blinding battle. Cloud had an disadvantage, she was trained to hurt when she fight and she didn't want to hurt the girl, so she decided to knock her off, using the flat plane of the sword, she swung and knocked the girl away, making her lose her weapon as well.

The girl panted, peering up to the man before her, holding a large sword, "Man, I can't believe I lost!" She gasped as she saw the person hold out a hand to help her up. She took it and stood up, brushing her shorts and green top, knowing she would have a huge bruise on her side. She stomped her foot in temperament, "You, you spikey-haired jerk! One more time, let's go one more time!" She shook her fist at him.

Cloud had to smile at the girl's antic, "No, beside, if I fought you for real, you'd be maimed in several places." She tilted her sword so that the glint of the moonlight reflected off a bit.

The girl didn't look like she was having a second thought, but rather, taunted instead, "Thinkin' of running away? Stay and fight! Come on! Fight me!" She made jabbing punches in the air, "C'mon… what's the matter? Chicken-head… or, chocobo-head."

Cloud rolled her eyes, "You know, that's rather of a compliment because chocobo are known to be a good fighter, and smart."

The girl sneered, "You're pretty scared of me, huh?"

Cloud closed her eyes as she puffed the drooping strand out of her face and drawled slowly, mockingly, "Petrified…"

It fueled the girl's anger, causing her to scream and stomp her foot like a spoiled brat, "Come on!"

Cloud decided to do something before the girl went any redder, she latched the sword on her back and grabbed hold of the girl and twisted her until she was on the ground, almost hog tied. "Seriously, you're gonna lose again."

The girl huffed, her face in the ground, her hands and feet bound in the blonde's grip.

Her ranting earlier had woken the entire camp and soon, the fire came on, giving light to the area.

"Yo, what's with the kid?" Barret asked, looking at the skinny girl in Cloud's grip.

The blonde shrugged as she let the girl go, "She stole some of our stuff, and wanted a fight to keep them. So I gave her one, she wanted another one." She turned to the teenager, "Kid, you're looking at a really losing situation. So, give back our stuff and we'll be on our way. We can't waste our time with you since we have more important matter to deal with."

The girl snarled, "What important matter do you have other than longing around in the jungle?"

Cloud rubbed her face and groaned, "Kid, get out of our way so we can go after Sephiroth."

The girl's face changed into surprise and curious, "You mean, General Sephiroth? Isn't he like dead?"

Now, Cloud was surprised that this Wutaian girl know about the General Sephiroth, "Uhm, yeah. He's alive, running rampart around the planet. We're to stop him."

The girl shifted and hoisted her shuriken onto her back strap and crossed her arms across her chest, "Now, to think of it. I want to go after this Sephiroth."

"Hey, this is not some kind of mission you'd think you will go on. This is dangerous; it's matter of life and death. So, get out of our way!"

"Oh, are you sure? I mean, I have this…" She held up a small black bag, dangling in her hand.

Cloud stared at the girl, her mouth gaped and with her foot, she kicked her pack up and searched though it, looking back to the girl, "Hey! That's mine, give it back!"

"Ooo…" The girl drawled and then started to work on the complicated knot on the bag, "What's so important in here that you want it back badly?"

The blonde stared at the girl, feeling lost for words or idea to do anything. She didn't want anyone to know the object in the small black bag. The thing in the bag poses a threat to reveal her gender to the others.

The girl opened the bag and frowned as she poked though, "Huh?"

The Avalanchers behind Cloud was suddenly curious what the girl had found in the bag that could make the tough and might Cloud scared.

"Tampons?" The girl pulled out one and held it up.

Cloud frowned and searched her pack again and found another similar bag and sighed with relief, "not mine."

Tifa suddenly turned red, "Hey! That's mine! What the heck you were thinking of going though people's bag and stealing stuff! You know, if you needed it, you could have asked!"

The girl tossed the bag to Tifa and stuck a pose, her nose in the air, "Hey, I am not stealing stuff! They call me, 'Materia Hunter'!"

Cloud laughed, "Materia Hunter, hah! Seriously, now why did you want to go after Sephiroth?"

The girl stepped back, "You know the Wutai War?"

Cloud nodded, suddenly understanding, "I'm sorry… lost someone in that war?"

The girl shrugged, "lots, my father told me he's a monster, nearly destroying Wutai. Am I in, or not?"

Deciding to humor her, "Whatever, you could be useful." Then she turned to the rest of the party and noticed they all had packed up and was ready to go.

The sun had risen past the horizon already. "Well, let's mosey on." She walked past the party toward the edge of the jungle with them following behind.

"Oh, all right! Wait for me!" The girl yelled and ran after them, "Hey, you didn't even ask for my name!"

"So, what's your name?" Cloud asked, not looking back.

"I'm Yuffie! Good to meetcha!" She smiled her wide grin, which soon Avalanche learned that was her trademark expression.

Cloud jerked her thumb to each member, "There's Barret Wallace, the leader of Avalanche, Tifa Lockhart, Aeris Gainsborough and Red XIII but call him Red. I am Cloud Strife."

"You'll find me useful," she smiled at 'him'.

Cloud nodded and went on toward Junon Harbor.

The growing rag-tag group of Avalanche reached Junon Harbor and did their best to evade attention from the Naval base and stowed away on a ship they had learned the Turks were on. At least they were going in right direction, Sephiroth wasn't exactly stopping in Junon Harbor, he was in fact passing though to get to Costa Del Sol, the docking town on the other side of the sea.

Cloud had suspected Sephiroth was heading to Nibelheim for some reason and she wasn't sure. She hadn't had any contact with the silver haired man in a while and was starting to get worried.

Aeris found Cloud leaning on the rail of the ship deck; it was a bit hard to distinguish anyone from Avalanche and the naval troop on the ship because the Avalanchers wore white naval uniform. Only Barret and Red were easy to spot because of their size and color.

She found the blond fighter and stood beside 'him', noting 'his' quiet mood, sensing a new turmoil within, "Cloud, what it is?"

Cloud turned to Aeris and smiled at her, "Nothing much, just feeling empty, that's all."

"All right, Rufus is on the ship as well with the Turks, apparently he had joined in with the search for a bit." Aeris said with nonchalant, leaning on the rail as well. "I hope Barret is not doing anything stupid…"

Cloud gave a small chuckle and looked to the top deck, finding the massive man crouched down under the bay window, eavesdropping on Rufus and Heidegger. She pulled out her cell phone and speed-dialed Barret's number and watched him jump with shock and fumble with the phone, grumbling, "Barret, what are you doing?" She whispered.

Barret looked around wildly before spotting Cloud on the lower deck and waved slightly, "Shh, it's Rufus and Heidegger, they're this close and we can't do a thing to 'em!" He muttered darkly.

"Hey, when we figure out things, we will do something about them soon. But first, let's focus on where Sephiroth is going and what he is doing."

Barret shot a dark look across the boat to the blonde, "First, the mission was simple, getting the ShinRa to stop sucking the Mako. But now, it's complicated, having us to go after Sephiroth, none of this makes sense. What do you make of this?"

Cloud looked up and blew the blond strand out of her eyes, "It's easy to forget what our mission is about. After all, it is related to the Planet. Yes it is simple as stopping ShinRa, but it gets worse, so it all adds up. ShinRa is after Sephiroth because he got Jenova." Cloud squeezed her eyes shut trying to make it all clear in her mind, the sea-sickness wasn't helping. "I believe, honestly, he is heading to the Promised Land… with the head of Jenova."

"Why?" Barret asked, slumping to the floor on the top desk.

"I am still not sure… all we know the Promised Land is full of Mako."

"Yah, yer right, it's easy to forget. But still, what are we supposed to do?"

"Stop Sephiroth before the ShinRa get to him."

"Right." They hung up and suddenly the klaxon alarm went off.

"_Emergency alert! Report of a suspicious character found! Those not on details search the ship. Report when found!"_ The alarm repeated itself over several times before going into a loud whine of red alert.

Barret got up and scrambled off the first deck to the lower, meeting with Cloud and Aeris, "Damn, did they find us?"

Cloud shook her head, "I don't think so. Let's find the others."

They went to the main deck and met up with the rest of the party, the girls was clamoring, worried if they were all right and asking what was going on.

Barret took a quick look around the party and found everyone accountable, "Everyone's here, which means…"

Cloud nodded, feeling the familiar chill up her spine, "Sephiroth is here."

"Damn!"

The blond fighter gave each member of the party a look, "We got to find out why he is here. ShinRa is up to something."

Red stepped forward, "It's the most logical thing to do. Then, who's going to go? Only few of us can without getting caught." The fire-element was right, the Avalanche had agreed to the policy they had set long before they grew in number, always to keep the party at three and split up so they could cover more ground when situation like this come up.

Cloud glanced around and pointed, "I'll take you," she pointed to Barret and to Aeris, "You too."

Tifa turned to Red and Yuffie, "All right, let's look on the top deck while they go below."

Barret and Aeris followed Cloud down to the engine room, they soon found several naval troops lying all over the place, much like back at the headquarter. The alarm kept going, whining its shrill sound.

They reached the control room and found the Captain. Cloud mustered up courage, "Sir, is it Sephiroth?" She asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

The Captain turned slowly and Cloud stared at the man's face. His face was blank and his eyes glazed over, he suddenly fell straight down to the floor with a dull thud.

Cloud stepped back, shaking, "no… not Sephiroth…" She inwardly screamed to Sephiroth and found herself alone, frustrated with him disappearing out on her when she needed him.

Aeris saw troubled look on 'his' face and sensed there was something going on. She felt something was coming to them and pulled 'him' away from the Captain body. "Cloud, look!" She pointed to where the Captain once stood. The figure, like a ghost rose out of the floor and stood there, looking down at the trio.

Cloud gasped, "Sephiroth!" She stared in the hard jaded eyes.

"Who are you?" He stared back at Cloud, actually showing he was giving a thought, "You…"

Cloud's resolve hardened, "What are you doing?" She spat, knowing fully well it wasn't the real Sephiroth they are confronting.

The former General's face blanked out and his voice went monotone, "… the time… is now…"

"What are you saying?" Cloud asked, tensed as she felt a battle coming on.

The General rose slightly off the ground and went forward, crashing into Cloud and disappeared. The trio fell back at the phenomenal force from the General and looked up, where the General once stood, there a monster with familiar face of Jenova.

Barret stood up, helping Aeris up, "Damn! That's Jenova."

_::Correctly, Jenova-Birth, a part of her.:: _Sephiroth spoke in Cloud's mind, filling her with relief.

She gripped the Buster sword, "Jenova-Birth. Part of the real thing, Sephiroth left her behind to stop us."

They all stood back, their weapons drawn out and soon as Jenova made first attack, they all battled, the rest of Avalanche appeared soon but didn't join, just staying back, watching.

"What is it?" Tifa asked as she reached the bottom step, she heard battling going on down below and figured that's where all the troubles were going on.

Red twitched his tail and crept around in front of Tifa, "Jenova, Sephiroth was here."

"Oh, ew!" They both turned to see the teenager girl grossing out, "That's so gross…" She winced as Cloud sliced a part of Jenova-Birth and the battle was over, leaving behind a pulsating limb.

Tifa stepped forward to inspect, "I've seen this somewhere before…" She frowned as she knelt before the limb, appearing to be an arm.

Cloud stood beside Tifa, "The arm of Jenova, which was part of her." She frowned as the arm stopped pulsating and suddenly took on a grayish color, drying up quickly and it fell to ashes. She suddenly felt a pity for Jenova, who once was a Valkyrie, she was sure she was a beautiful woman over two thousands years ago.

"Ow, damn. What's going on?" Barret rubbed the back of his head where during the battle, a tentacle had whipped him.

"The time… is now?" Cloud repeated, wondering.

Aeris looked over Cloud's shoulder, watching the ash blow away, "I don't get it either, can you explain to us?"

"I am not sure. Sephiroth obviously came here looking for something that ShinRa has stowed on the ship. He killed ShinRa when he got the head… If he wanted the body, he would not leave the arm behind. There's something else."

_::I know what he wanted.:: _Sephiroth whispered in her mind, reminding Cloud that he was still with her.

The intercom beeped, "_Dock worker: We will be docking in Costa Del Sol in five minutes. Prepare for docking." _It repeated two more times.

Aeris place an assuring hand on Cloud's shoulder, "Maybe we shouldn't stay in here anymore." They all agreed and went to the top deck.

Cloud looked back, trailing behind the Avalanche, "_Sephiroth, you got some explaining to do. Your captor looks just like you."_

_::Yeah, well I can't stay longer; I can't hold on much longer, it's taking too much for me. All I can tell you this, it is looking for you, it knows about you and wants you.:: _ He shimmered out of her mind, never failing to leave her with a loving caress behind.

"How long will it be before I actually find you, koibito…" she whispered to no one.

The ship docked in Costa Del Sol, a sunny beach resort and everyone had gotten off the ship, the Avalanche slipped and escaped unscathed, glad to remove the naval uniform.

"Damn! Sure is hot here!" The big man complained, "But I sure feel better now that I can say good-bye to this sailor suit." He grumbled as he tossed the suit into a nearby trash can.

Aeris smirked at him and turned to Tifa, mock-pouting, "Oh, too bad, I liked Barret's sailor suit, he looked so cute."

The gun-armed man pretended he didn't hear that, "Yo, listen up. Y'all be sure to mingle like regular folks here! Me n' Spikes are gonna get some room at the inn for us all." He grabbed Cloud by the shoulder and dragged her away toward the inn. "What'd she mean, cute?"

Cloud cracked up, "Barret, why don't you use that sailor suit for pajamas?"

"What the hell?" She dodged his swinging arm and laughed more, feeling burden lift from her shoulder, even for short time.

"Heh, heh. You look like a bear wearing a marshmallow."

Barret swung once again and hit home across her skull, "The hell's supposed to mean? This happens to be the most comfortable, so shu'up!"

Cloud bit down on her lip to silence her snickering and followed the man from behind.

Rufus looked around the dock of Costa Del Sol and turned to the bearded man, "Heidegger, you messed up big time."

"What do you mean, Young President?"

"Cloud and the others were on board, they slipped though. But be fortunate, they handled Sephiroth this time."

The purple uniformed man bowed his massive head, "I'm ashamed of myself."

Rufus rolled his eyes and flipped his hair away from his face, "Is that all you can do? Give one word answer and apologize for everything? Make sure you don't mess up this time around. You're fortunate enough I allowed to let you stay on after my father's death."

Heidegger stepped back from the young president as he grabbed hold of the ladder from the helicopter that roared overhead, "Do something useful around here. I expect report tonight." Then he was gone to the sky.

Heidegger snorted and pushed few Soldiers out of his way toward the town, grumbling under his breath, "Snotty brat. I'm just going to let them slip this time and have the Turks handle them. I am taking a vacation now."

Cloud sat on the stool at the bar below the inn, drinking a soda, it fizzled under her nose, in strange color and contortion, she suspected it was mixed with powder sweet drink and some sort of candies as well, fizzing and popping here and there. The girls had told her that they were going to check out the beach and swim for a while, Red had found some shady area to nap and Barret was off somewhere doing whatever the omnipotent know.

"Hey…" She turned her head to find a class three solider sitting beside her, "You're Cloud, right?"

Confused as she nodded, "Yeah."

The man's eyes widened in surprise, "Whoa, remember me?"

She shook her head, "I'm sorry, brain's a bit fuzzy."

"Ah, don't worry, I'm Luke, we've met before, here when we first joined up. Wow, I heard you were dead and yet you are sitting here alive."

Cloud tilted her head, trying to remember, "Luke… oh, that guy from Gongaga?"

"Yeah, that's me. I see you had made it to Elite before you supposedly 'died'. I'm stuck in class three."

"Sorry about that. You here on vacation or what?" Cloud attempted at conversation.

Luke shook his head, "Mission, ShinRa sure changed a lot since the new President took over, everything's screwed. At least I still have my job."

"That's good."

The bartender appeared before them and interrupted, "Hey, you the one with the big man?"

Cloud gave a nod, "Barret?"

"Dark skin, with sailor suit? You two came in and got some rooms upstairs."

"Oh, yeah, what's up?" Cloud frowned, curious.

The bartender looked annoyed, "Get him out of the john, he's been in there and the other people needed the john."

"Right." She hopped from the stool and turned to Luke, "Nice to see you again."

"Yea, you too."

She went over to the bar's restroom and pounded on the door, "Hey Barret, I'm getting some complaint about you, get out!"

"What? Oh, it's you." Barret opened the door and Cloud tried to hide a smile, he was wearing the suit again.

"Cloud!" Aeris called from the entrance, waving to them. "Tifa wants you out on the beach, we found someone."

Cloud and Barret followed her out to the beach and found Tifa and Yuffie standing together. Soon Tifa grabbed Cloud by the shoulders and steered 'him' around the beach and stopped, "Look!"

Cloud scanned the beach and saw several good-looking ladies surrounding a familiar man. Deciding to humor the brunette, "That girl in the yellow binki?" She soon received a slap on the head from the brunette.

"No! It's Hojo."

Cloud went to the mad scientist and stood in front of him, making sure she was blocking the sun.

"Gods! You're blocking the sun." Hojo snapped and the girls around him looked up at the blonde and gasped.

Cloud rolled her eyes, "Open your eyes; jerk." She snapped, feeling great dislike for the man. She cringed inwardly as some memories lingered back to her. She had no idea what the doctor had done to her but she knew it was something unforgivable.

The greasy haired man flipped the dark shades from his wire glasses and sat up from the lunge chair, "Oh," He smirked at her, "It's you."

"Hojo." Cloud regarded the doctor, crossing her arms across her chest.

"It's been a while, Cloud. Mm, you should do something like this," he gestured around him, hinting a vacation.

"What?"  
"It should be obvious, getting a tan."

Cloud stared at the man as if he had two heads, he was pale, sickly thin with greasy black hair, "what are you doing here?"

"Ah, we're both after the same goal."

"You mean, Sephiroth?"

"Yes, did you see him? After all, you two were like peas in a pod, not to forget that guy, what's his name… the General now."

"Zachary Donovan." Cloud gave him the answer and glared.

"Funny, this girl… name evades me, look lot like you…" Hojo wagged his finger at Cloud, "You know her?"

Tifa gasped, "You mean, Sorano?"

Hojo gave a quick glance to Tifa and shrugged, "If that's her name, are you two related?" He grinned, "I know who you are. Now, you see, I am not after you anymore, in fact, I'm just tagging along. Sephiroth will get you when he is ready; it's nice when your plan fall into motion."

Cloud's hair stood on the back of her neck, she suddenly felt cold under the hot sun. She remembered Sephiroth's warning. Whoever this 'it' was after her now, or rather, she's falling into its trap.

"Do you have an urge? I mean, something calling you? Or you have to visit some place?" Hojo asked, curious with evil glint in his eyes.

Cloud stared at the doctor with spite, she realized he was right. Ever since she arrived in Costa Del Sol, she had a feeling she had to go somewhere and meeting this phantom Sephiroth on the ship fueled it more, for some reason, it keep steering her instincts to go north. "I'll go anywhere Sephiroth is at, to put end to all this!" She spat at the man.

Hojo smiled as he stroked his pointy chin, "I see… this could be interesting. Oh yea, you were in Elite… would you be my guinea pig?" He crackled as he circled Cloud.

Cloud gripped the sword from her back, snarling at the man.

"Oh, now what?" The doctor mocked fear.

Tifa ran up to Cloud and placed a hand on 'his' arm, "Stop, Cloud! I know how you feel about him, but you mustn't."

Cloud stepped back, letting the sword handle go, glaring as Hojo laugh.

Then Hojo turned to face Aeris, "The Ancient… I have no use for you; after all, with everything falling in motion, you'll be useful to your end." He smirked.

Aeris frowned, "You know something."

Hojo shrugged, "ah, you all will find out soon enough, not from me. West looked good to me…" He mumbled and sat back down on his lounge chair and flipped the shade back down on his glasses.

Aeris, Tifa and Cloud stared at the man and Cloud decided it was enough, "Let's go. Beside he never takes off that lab coat, even in the heat. I guess that's the mark of something they call 'intellectual'." She turned and left the beach with the girls following closely behind her back to the inn.

"I'm going to turn in for the night. We're leaving early tomorrow to Mt. Corel." Cloud announced as they stepped into the bar.

"Cloud, why Corel?" Aeris asked following the blonde to their rooms.

Cloud kicked her boots off and slumped on a bed, "I just have this feeling, after all, it's westward, like Hojo said recently. Something's going to stir there." She glanced to the nightstand and saw the calendar, the date stood out to her. "It's been four years…" She said quietly under her breath.

Aeris frowned, "Three years, what do you mean by that?"

Cloud met her green gaze and shook her head, "it's nothing. Just something happened four years ago tomorrow at Gold Saucer near Corel, it's just a special date for me."

"Oh, all right. I'll leave you to sleep. Good night." Aeris bowed and left the room. Cloud turned over to her side and closed her eyes, letting sleep overtake her.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	22. S2:8: Disengagement

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Eight: Disengagement

_And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?_

Matthew 27:46, The Holy Bible

Cloud, being tall for a woman, easily mistaken for being a male, stared down at a large overstuffed pink mog with a stuffed cat riding on its back. The object came up barely to her waist and the cat on the top did not really add any height.

Her face was blank because it had told her its fortune for her and decided to make itself a member of Avalanche in all span of less than five minutes, just because it wanted to see if the fortune went though.

Avalanche eventually reached North Corel and followed the trail to Gold Saucer. Sephiroth had apparently appeared at the colorful casino-amusement park but generally did not do anything except searching for a Black Materia, a prized possession of Dio of Battle Arena. By then, they soon crossed path with this odd mog.

Aeris frowned at the cat, ignoring the pink blob of a mog, "What are you talking about?" She couldn't help but find the voice of the cat familiar, and she was not the only one.

The black cat with a corny crown upon his head shrugged, "I got to see if my fortune actually follows though, though it never came out like this before… I think I am broken." He started to knock himself on the stomach and then knelt to knock on the head of the mog he was standing on.

Cloud, lost between anger and amusement shook her head, deciding to just let it slide, "Who the heck are you and what is this 'What you pursue will be yours. But you will lose something dear.' supposed to do with me?"

The cat tilted its head then danced in a small jig and posed, "Hey, the name's Cait Sith and I have no idea how this is supposed to work."

Cloud suppressed the urge to either roll her eyes or whack the cat off the mog. She settled to stare at the cat, thinking she had recognized the voice.

"I am going with you, no matter what."

Cloud gaped at the pink and black pile of weirdness, "Hey!" She shouted, becoming offended as Cait Sith went around introducing itself to the rest of Avalanche and amusing them with its little fortune telling act. She muttered under her breath darkly and headed for the Battle Arena, followed by Yuffie and Tifa.

Yuffie tugged on her shorts as she followed the fuming blond fighter, "I guess it means there's more of us to go after Sephy."

Cloud growled, "His name is Sephiroth."

Tifa held the teenager back, "I wouldn't call him that if I were you." She whispered.

"Okay…" Then she bumped into Cloud's back as 'he' stopped.

Cloud stared at the scene before her, the guards at the entrance at Battle Arena lying around and sighed, "This sight is getting a bit tiresome, Sephiroth." She whispered and went to one of the fallen men and knelt, frowning as the man's back seemed to be tattered and torn, bleeding in pool of blood.

Tifa frowned as well as she turned the other man over, "Gunshot wounds. I never heard of Sephiroth using guns."

Cloud nodded, "He told me long time ago he wasn't good with guns. Sephiroth didn't do this."

Aeris and the other Avalanchers showed up, "What happened?"

Cloud stood, "I'm not sure. This doesn't look like Sephiroth or the ShinRa, there is someone else involved." She went into the Battle Arena's lobby and glanced around, "Sephiroth was here, but he didn't kill anyone this time around…"

"How can you be sure?" Tifa asked as she looked around too.

Aeris gasped as she heard some moaning from a corner and found a young man, nearly dead, "Hey, you all right?" She knelt beside him.

Cloud appeared by her side, "What happened?"

The man coughed, blood spilled from his lips, "Uhg… a man with a gun… on his… arm…"

Aeris gasped and found Barret wasn't with them at all, "It can't be…?"

"Hold it right there!" A loud voice froze them; Cloud twirled around and found Dio, the owner of the Arena. The massive man held a hand up, "Stay quiet!" he pointed accusing finger at them, few guards followed in from behind him, "Did you guys do this?" He frowned as he surveyed his lobby.

Cloud shook her head, "No, it wasn't us."

Dio's face became darker, "I must've been wrong…" He studied the small groups standing before him, three women and a male with an odd mog, they all were suspects in his eyes yet they did not seem to be the guilty party.

Yuffie swallowed hard as she stood by the blond fighter and Cait Sith, "Uh, Cloud…" She murmured as she tugged on the back of 'his' shirt.

The cat seemed to read the teenager's mind, "Hurry and run, it's gonna get ugly."

All Cloud could do was to agree, she turned and fled up the stairs into the Arena, the others following close on her heels. "Oh man…" She muttered as she reached the center and found they were trapped. More guards appeared on the other side.

"That's far as you can go." They turned to find Dio on the high platform above the Arena.

"Wait!" Cloud sputtered and was interrupted by the cat. She looked over her shoulder and found the cat pointing to three large robots heading their way. The next thing she knew, the robots had seized them all and she was knocked unconscious from to a blow to the head.

"One more to go…" Cloud opened her eyes and gasped at the dark hole below her; she gave a struggle and failed as she realized she was in a death grip by one of Dio's robots.

"Yes…" Dio gestured for the robot to drop the blond fighter.

"Hey! Wait, I got something to say!" She shouted and gave another attempt to trash around in the grip.

Dio shook his head, "There's no need to listen. Pay for your crime below!" He nodded at the guard on the side, "Do it!"

The guard pressed a button and the robot dropped Cloud down the dark hole, which was a long tunnel down to Corel Prison below.

Yuffie whined as she landed hard on the bottom along with Tifa and Aeris, she rubbed her head, "Where's Cloud?" She asked as she was being helped up by the russet-haired healer.

Aeris shrugged and leaned to look into the dark tunnel above them, "I think he's coming."

They gathered at the hole and they heard faint cursing coming toward them, the cursing became louder and obscene and finally the hole opened up to reveal tumbling and angry Cloud.

Tifa's eyebrow rose at Cloud, "Are you all right, Cloud?"

"Seesh, that hurt!" she muttered, rubbing her blond hair and stood up, "Where are we?"

The black cat hopped closer, "A desert prison… Corel Prison."

Cloud snapped her head to the cat, "What? Oh man."

"What is it?" Aeris asked, concerned.

Cloud sighed and waved her hands to the area around her, "This prison, established by the ShinRa in a convenient spot, no one can escape here. The prison is surrounded by quicksand for miles."

Cait's head bobbled in agreement, "That's right. The only way is up, and that's not possible." He pointed to the hole above them, it was closed, "Mytrhil alloy, hard to break, once you're in, you're in and the tunnel is nearly straight up with only a slight incline, impossible to climb even if you ever get past the door."

"You seem to know a lot about ShinRa…" Yuffie narrowed her eyes at the cat and poked it, "Are you sure it's not a spy?" She turned her head to the blonde.

Cloud frowned, "I'll deal with the cat later." She looked up to find Aeris standing beside someone in the shadow.

"Barret." Aeris reached out to the dark man, "You're here."

Barret stepped out of the shadow with blank look on his face, "Stay back. This something I gotta deal with." He waved his hand and sighed, and then he rubbed his gun-arm. That was when Cloud realized, they all had their weapons. She frowned, thinking it was strange to put prisoners in prison with weapons. She fingered her sword on her back.

"He looks dangerous…" Cait Sith muttered.

"Cloud!" Aeris rounded onto the blonde, "What should we do? Barret is obviously upset."

"We're all here, let's find out." She walked after the dark man out of the building they had landed in and found themselves in the hot desert, there were no fences of any sort and several of the buildings around them looked worse for wear. There were people walking around, huddled in groups or alone.

As they made their way though the area, they learned by the gossip going around that there was another man, much like Barret with a gun-arm. This man had found a way out and gotten himself into Gold Saucer. Apparently this man had gotten permission from the prison leader, Mr. Coates, however it was impossible to get permission unless you do something in return.

"How the heck do we get out of here?" Yuffie whined and glared icily at one of the muggers that were approaching her.

Cloud ran her hands though her hair, "First, we've got to find Barret and then we will figure how to get out. We all got into this, we're all getting out." She said with a tone that means no buts.

They found Barret near the edge of the prison area, sitting, looking over the deep canyon that stood between them and freedom.

"Dyne. It was Dyne." Barret started, not moving from his spot. Cloud went to his side and crouched beside him. "He was a friend of mine, you see… he's Marlene's daddy. A long time ago, we got into a fight, and then he fell, like it was here, down in the canyon and died. He was suicidal."

"Why?" Cloud asked, knowing it was best for the man to talk about it, to get it out of his system.

"He lost everything, his wife died of illness after lil' Marlene was born, and then the ShinRa closed our town down. Yer see; it was our business that keeps the power running, just minin' them coals. Then them ShinRa found better power sources, Mako. That's why North Corel's a slum now, nothing to go on for."

"I suppose it was a shock that you find out he's alive after all those years." Cloud pointed out.

Barret stood up and Cloud followed suit, "Yea. He's been here the whole time. Now he's gone and escaped… You saw what happened in Battle Arena? I ran into him, and then he went crazy, shooting everywhere."

"So it was Dyne that killed all those guards up there?" Cloud asked, "What is it that he wants?"

"Same thing I want, revenge on ShinRa. But I am sure he's doomed… he's not right in the mind." He tapped his head and sighed, "Yeah, we better get out of here."

Cloud smiled at him, "That's the idea. Now, let's go and see Mr. Coates and make a deal, how about that?"

"Sound good." Barret nodded.

It was exhilarating, the wind rushing past her, her hair and clothes flapping against her skin, clutching against the downy yellow feathers at breakneck speed. Suddenly, it was the only time and place in the entire world where she actually forgot all her problems and the heavy burdens on her shoulders were all replaced with adrenaline and ecstasy.

Glancing to her sides, she chuckled freely as she saw that she had gone ahead, faster than anyone, even she had passed Teioh, the Gold Saucer champion on a black chocobo. She was a natural rider, simple as that, the bird under her was a wild one, yet it took a liking to her as she raced for Avalanche's freedom.

The joy of laugher was bursting inside her, desiring to be heard aloud, and as she finished the first lap she let a loud whoop loose and let go of the reins, letting the chocobo run on its own for a while. It was her moment of peace, yet she suddenly felt lonely, looking to her side she half expected someone to be racing alongside her, but she found she was alone.

"Sephiroth, I wish you're here with me…" She whispered to no one and took reins again. Her short moment of freedom and peace would soon come to an end. She leaned forward and ushered the bird to go it's fastest and it obliged.

The race came to end with her winning, breaking all records. She slipped off the chocobo's back and led it back to the stall. Ester, the manager was there, waiting for her with big smile on her face.

"Congratulation! You're free!" She smiled as she clapped 'him' on the back. "Pity you can't stay and become one of our team racers."

Cloud handed the rein over to the stable boy, "Free..." The word sounded empty as if there was no meaning for her. With so many burdens on her shoulder, she felt as if she would never be free.

Ester turned back to Cloud before she could leave, "Oh yeah, the owner told me to give this letter to you when you won."

She took the letter and read it with a frown. It was from Dio, he had given Avalanche a full pardon and gave them a gift for their journey. "A gift?" She asked and jumped as her cell phone rang, fumbling for it, she managed to flip it open and held it up to her ear, "Yeah?"

Aeris' excited voice came though the phone, "Cloud! Isn't this great? We got a buggy! Now we can cross the desert and rivers with no problem!"

The blonde smiled, "All right, I'm coming now."

"Great, see you soon!" The girl hung up.

Cloud chuckled, "How can she be so cheerful at time like this?" She headed out of Gold Saucer. She gave another glance at the letter and saw there was more to it, she stopped and read it, "P.S. I just recently met Sephiroth. He must have a lot of fans with boys your age. Why don't you get his autograph? It seems he's headed south of river, toward Gongaga." Puzzled at the letter, "Sephiroth…" She took off her gloves and glanced at her ring, "I already have your autograph and I ain't giving it away." She chuckled and hopped on the trolley out of Gold Saucer.

Zack had a large grin on his face as he watched the events though Cait Sith's eyes. Cloud was arguing with Barret and Tifa about driving the buggy. He was glad he could join them, even though not physically, anything that allowed him to be close to his little sister was good.

"Cloud figured wouldn't get motion sickness if she drives." He laughed as Cloud clocked the black man, surprising him.

Reeve rolled his eyes, "I think I might want to stay out of her way… She may be tiny but she's tough."

"Don't I know it?" Zack laughed.

Barret rubbed his jaw, surprised but not at least hurt; the others were shocked as well.

Cloud scowled as she rubbed her knuckles, "I said I am driving, seesh! Do you want me to barf all over you?"

Yuffie was jumping in glee, clasping her hands, "Get him Cloud!"

Barret shot her a dirty look, "Shaddup girl!"

Yuffie returned with a pout, "I hear he's real good on a motorcycle, and evidently good on a chocobo."

Cloud suddenly smiled a sly one, "Well, that was fun… but how did you drive that rickety blue truck?" She retorted to the black man.

Tifa and Aeris paled at the memory of the ride, "Uh, I think you better let Cloud drive!" Tifa suddenly changed her mind, siding with Cloud. She had remembered the frightful journey in the truck when Barret drove it, recalling the moment she had lost her lunch at the time.

Aeris nodded, "Yea, maybe Cloud isn't so bad driving the Buggy."

Barret threw his arms up in the air, shaking with fit, "Gee Gods! You drive but if you do anything…" He shook a finger at her, "I'm clockin' ye back!" He shook a fist in her face and climbed into the back of the buggy, grumbling.

Cloud scoffed, "Whatever, let's get in." She climbed into the red wooden vehicle that looked like a cross between van and a boat; it was large enough to fit up to eight people in the back.

The three females climbed into the back with Barret and helped Cait Sith on as well. Red took shotgun, sitting in front with Cloud.

The trip toward Gongaga was just a day ride, they've crossed a small river and stopped few times to stretch and fight few monsters that crossed their path, to brush up their skills. They eventually camped overnight near Gongaga.

The town of Gongaga wasn't as Cloud thought it would be. Glancing around the small town, almost in ruins save for people living there, "Gongaga is not supposed to be like this…"

Red came to her side, "You have been here before?" he asked.

"No. A friend of mine came from this town, Zack. He was always telling me about this town."

Aeris snapped to Cloud, "You know him?"

Tifa then asked, "You mean that General back at ShinRa?"

Cloud realized Tifa and Barret was the only one who had seen him at the ShinRa Headquarter and turned to them, "Yes, that's him. Yes Aeris, he's alive, he's a General now." She saw the Flower Girl's questioning glance.

They entered the town, curious to what happened. Earlier, they had crossed the Turks' path. To Cloud's surprise, they were idly talking about who they liked, and Tifa and Aeris happened to be mentioned in the conversation. They soon noticed Avalanche, giving them a small fight before they left. There were other familiar faces from Midgar visiting the old reactor near Gongaga, Scarlet and Tseng were looking for rumored Materia, a very large one, strong in power. It worried Cloud when she had overheard their plan of a powerful new weapon.

The party decided to split up, explore the town and restock on supplies for the journey. They were running low on rations and needed their weapons sharpened.

Cloud poked around, asking people if they had seen Sephiroth, she had gotten very little information that was not much help. She decided to give up and return to the town's center, finding Barret and Tifa there, and waiting for her.

"Hey, they've been sayin' da reactor exploded, many townspeople died." Barret said as he saw Cloud approaching them.

"Yeah, I came across a couple asking about their son, maybe you know him because they mentioned he was in Elite several years ago."

Cloud gasped, "Where are they?" She realized who they were talking about, "I got to see them."

Aeris was strangely quiet though the whole conversation.

Tifa nodded, "Zack Donovan's parents. Come on."

No one noticed the cat jerk in surprise. They all followed Tifa to a small house; it looked as if attempts had been made to restore it.

Everyone hung back as Cloud went to the fence. The man stood up from the table from inside the house and stepped outside, he appeared strong and tall, with graying hair, and he had familiar facial features. Cloud noted that Zack must have gotten his handsome looks from his father.

The man was first to speak, "You… I've heard so much about you. You're Cloud Strife, aren't you?" He held no malice in his voice.

Cloud bowed her head, "Yes…"

The man smiled as if he had seen his child for the first time in a long time, "Zack wrote to us, telling us about you and the other guy… Honey, who was it?" He turned to the woman who had joined his side.

The woman smiled and Cloud saw that Zack had gotten his infamous smile and dimple from his mother, "Ay… I think it was… Sephiroth… that chap."

Cloud heard Tifa gasp and she turned to the brunette, "Tifa, I need some time alone with them. Go on, pack the buggy and get extra rations."

Tifa ushered Avalanche away, not noticing Cait Sith had slithered away and remained behind, hiding in the garden.

The man bowed his head in sadness, "Zack, our son, he left us to join Soldier so many years ago. He came home every once in a while when he could get off. Each time he did, he would tell us stories about you and Sephiroth. I assumed you guys were his best friends. He was happy with you both. But, in the last three years, we've heard nothing. What happened?"

Mrs. Donovan invited Cloud into her home and gave her something to drink as they all sat at the table together.

Cloud took the drink and chewed on her lips, unsure where to start. She couldn't remember what happened in the last three years, she was sure something big had happened and she only could understand a little. Maybe it was the best to give them what she knew; she saw out of the corner of her eyes a cat slithering in the corner, behaving much like a house cat.

She placed the cup down and folded her hands together, "Well, I lost a lot of my memory of the last seven years and I just went though ordeal of regaining them recently, but not all of them, I am missing the past few years. Yes, I am this Cloud that Zack spoke of often, we all were best friends, Zack took me in when I first joined Academy, he was the one who encouraged me to join Solider after a while, he became like a brother to me, very dear."

"Oh, it's very nice to meet you, it's like meeting a daughter that we never met," Zack's mother smiled at Cloud's shocked expression, "I know it's a secret, Zack felt it was safe to tell us what happened a long time ago. He felt as if you were his sister, well, a brother at first, and in time, we felt you had become our daughter as well after hearing from him so much about you. We couldn't help but feel you are part of our family."

Cloud smiled at them, "Thanks. All I know that something big happened to us couple years back. Some of my friends, the one you saw outside, they gave me a newspaper clipping about my hometown, Nibelheim, being destroyed with no survivors. Zack, Sephiroth and I was on the mission there, the three of us and ShinRa declared us all dead because we got into some kind of mess and didn't come back. I can't explain why I am still here, why I am after Sephiroth, who is appearing all over the place at random. It's a real mess."

The father nodded in understanding way, "We heard about that, but never to dream that our son was part of it. After that happened, Zack just stopped writing to us, we assumed the worse and yeah, it was."

Cloud glanced to the cat in the corner, staring at her with its robotic intelligent eyes; she saw it nod, as if it were giving her permission. "Zack would like for you to know that he's alive." She said at last.

Zack's parents gasped in surprise, "Really, where is he, how is he?"

Cloud smiled softly, "I am sure he'll like to speak to you for himself." She gestured to the cat to come at the table and it did. "This is Cait, he's a robot. Zack is controlling him from Midgar, is that right, Cait?"

The cat nodded, "How did you figure it out?"

"Your voice was too familiar. Go on, talk to your parents." She held the cat on her lap and smiled as she saw his parents getting tearful.

Reeve watched Zack as he pushed away from the control panel, "Zack?"  
"My parents… they're alive… it's nice to talk to them again." Whispered Zack, a tear rolled down his cheek.

"It took a lot of risk, but I think it's worth it."

Zack nodded, "I'm gonna go… I have other things to do." He stood and left the lab.

Reeve sighed, running his hand though his tousled hair; he knew what had happened to Gongaga some time ago. The Reactor had overloaded and blew up, destroying half of the town and leaving it pretty much ruined, little more than rubble.

One thing had bothered him as he had observed Zack when he was controlling the cat; Zack had deliberately ignored the woman in pink and red dress. From what he knew, Aeris had been Zack's girlfriend at one time, a first love or something like that. He wanted to know what had gone wrong between them.

It wasn't until nearly nightfall that Cloud finally returned to the group, meeting up with them for the night outside the town. She came back with Cait and a basket given to her by Zack's mother containing homemade bread and some dried fruit, which would be better than the rations they were eating.

"You're back! Yay, they were stating to think you ran off." Yuffie bounced toward her with enthusiasm and took the basket to place it in the buggy.

"Really? What gossip did they tell you about me?" Cloud asked, amused.

"Nothing much, the big guy says your brain is full of nuts, Tifa say your heart is big and strong, while Aeris says you're a bodyguardian… what does that mean?" Yuffie asked, her speech hinting her Wutaian origins.

Cloud shook her head and patted the teenage girl on her head, "Just don't listen to them, you will learn and have your own opinion about me soon enough. Barret's saying I am crazy, Tifa's saying I'm kind while Aeris saying I'm a Soldier, she's half right, I was one."

"Like Sephiroth?" Yuffie asked her voice small.

Cloud was taken aback, "Yeah… Tell me, how did you know about Sephiroth? The Wutaian War was before you were born."

Yuffie looked down, sighing and scuffing her shoe in the dirt, "My father told me all about him, saying he was a monster, killing thousands in one blow and everything. All I know is that he has fire green eyes, no soul and a terrible sword made in hell… A demon from hell."

Cloud chuckled, "Yuffie, will you hate me if I told you something?"  
"What is it?"

"The Sephiroth you know is not the Sephiroth I know, in fact, he used to be my best friend."

Yuffie gave a confused look then suddenly she changed into awe, "Oh, you must be brave to be a friend to a demon. Are you sure you don't have nuts for brains?"

Cloud chuckled, "Come on, let's go and see the others."

Yuffie nodded and bounced off with burst of energy, shouting to the others that Cloud had returned.

Before she could make any move to join, Aeris got up from the fire and walked toward her, "Cloud…" She took 'his' arm and gestured to the buggy.

Cloud took the hint and helped Aeris climb into the buggy and soon joined her, they both sat in front, "What is it?"

Aeris looked as if she was burdened with the world on her shoulder, "Tifa was telling me that you lost your memories for a while, I didn't notice until when we got to Kalm and that when you started to get most of your memories back, you changed, you were starting to show your true personality."

Cloud frowned, unsure where this was going, "Aeris, what is it?"

She turned to Cloud, her green eyes shining, "Zack, I knew him and I am glad to meet you, someone else who knew him. I miss him sometimes, and it hurts. You remind me so much of him."

Cloud closed her eyes and tilted her head down, "That's why you asked for a date?"

"Yes…"

"Tell me, how did you two meet?" Cloud asked, suddenly curious.

Aeris laughed softly, her voice like a bell as she remembered, "Hmm, I was fourteen; we bumped into each other when I was in Wall Market selling flowers. He was surprised to see someone as young as I in such a place. I am sure he told you his opinion of the place. Then we met again, he fell into the church, much like the way we met too." Cloud nodded, not wanting to interrupt. "He bought my flowers, but he never took them. He told me they were all for me. I never expect to see him again, since he was in Soldier, busy all the time, going on missions and all that. At the time, he was in Class Two."

Cloud smiled, remembering Zack in her own fashion.

"Well, I was surprised when he came back the next day, offering to take me out to lunch. I agreed there was something about him; he was so kind, sweet and funny. Soon, he started to come around, taking me out to lunches and dinners, then, we officially started dating." Aeris sighed, smiling sadly as she gazed out of the window of the buggy, watching the sky sparkles with stars.

"Zack, he's a nice person." Cloud said, "He took me in, became my brother, so I understand how you feel about him, he's easy to connect with."

"Yes, we dated for about two years, and then he came to me one day, excited about his promotion to Elite, so thrilled because from what he told me, no one was ever to be promoted into the Elite unless they defeated the General in a mock battle. I guessed he did."

Cloud nodded, "I remember that, I was promoted to Class Two then, he helped me."

Aeris gave her a brilliant smile, "He told me about you, but I didn't know it was you until today that it was you he always talked about. I guess I just forgot your name. Anyway, it was when he started to take more and more missions that I barely see him anymore. I was shocked when he came to me one day, it was almost two years later, he asked me, if he ever gets out of ShinRa military, and would I marry him? He practically went down on his knee and proposed." Aeris started crying, tears streaming down her face.

Cloud was surprised; he had never known Zack had gotten around proposing. She wondered why and kept it in her mind to ask him about it later.

"What happened then?"

Aeris shook her head, "I turned him down." She hiccoughed and wiped her face, "I told him I couldn't marry him, he was upset, wanted to know why, I never told him because I ran off, and that was the last I heard from him. From what I understand, you guys went on a mission the next day somewhere and never returned, ShinRa declared you all dead by the end of three days after that. I remember the newspaper, I remember I cried myself to sleep for a long time after, I was so upset."

Cloud found herself holding Aeris while she cried on her shoulder. "It's all right… helps to talk it out." She felt the Flower Girl nod on her shoulder.

"I never told him why… " She whispered, "I had a dream, a bad dream… it predicted his death and everything but it was so vague, and to this day, I still don't understand it." She looked up, her emerald eyes sparkled, "I dreamed of fire, a man in the fire, and the one with black clothes and silver hair, and it had to be Sephiroth, was it?"

Cloud's eyes glazed over as a memory assaulted her, it was like a movie before her eyes, the fire roared around her, the intense heat, she saw Sephiroth standing in the middle of the fire, gazing back at her with cold eyes, challenging her.

"Cloud?" Aeris asked and 'he' snapped out of 'his' daze, "You remembered something?"

Cloud nodded, "Only a little, yeah, it was Sephiroth, what else did you dream about?"

Aeris sat back, letting go of Cloud, "The Planet crying, Zack shot to death, it was horrible. And I remember a woman; she was in green pool of something, so beautiful, so lifeless… She had long beautiful golden hair. I felt so sad for her. She lost her children… It was horrible."

Cloud felt a chill down her spine and another flash came to her mind, but it was only greenness she saw then a face in the distance, one with long black hair, mouthing something to her and writing in the green, as if writing on a glass between them. She blinked and found herself back in the buggy again.

"There was something about this woman I felt when I dreamed of her." Aeris turned to Cloud, facing 'him' full on. "The Planet was calling out for her, calling her name, I can't remember her name. Then, I heard a man calling out as well, the funniest thing; he called her 'Cloud'. It baffled me until we got to Kalm Town and you told us about this woman, Sorano. It all fit, my dreams came true, didn't they?"

Cloud shuddered visibly, "Maybe."

"Sorano's dead. But it doesn't make any sense; I had a dream last night." Aeris became slightly frantic then she calmed down, "I dreamed of her, beautiful, like an angel, with Sephiroth and they were both so happy and at peace. I felt so much peace, despite the Planet crying out all the time."

Cloud closed her eyes, "Don't worry, Aeris. We're here to save the Planet."

Aeris smiled a sad one as she nodded. "Yeah, I suppose…" She glanced out of Cloud's window and gestured to the fire where everyone else sat waiting for them, "We should get back to them."

"Yeah," Cloud couldn't help but feel Aeris wasn't telling all of her dreams; she got out and helped the woman out as well. She knew Aeris has a special ability and the dreams she had told her so far all had came true, but it nagged her to the core why she couldn't recall the rest of her memories.

When she joined the rest at the fire, Red sat up, "Cosmo Canyon is in the area, you promised I'd go back when we pass the area."

Cloud smiled at the wolf, a bit sad that he would leave the group, "That's right. North of here, right?"

The wolf nodded, "Stay for a couple days, I am sure my grandfather would like to talk with you."

Cloud shrugged, "I suppose so, and we still have to find out where Sephiroth is headed to next, with him popping up all over the place." Everyone murmured in agreement. They soon all turned in for the night, eager to continue the next morning.

They broke camp the next morning before dawn broke, traveling though the wild jungle of Gongaga, heading toward the dusty desert region of Cosmo Canyon. The buggy was mostly either quiet with soft snoring or a mix of arguing between Barret and Tifa and chatter between Aeris and Yuffie. Red either napped or gave in some of his wise input when it was needed. Cloud was silent though the entire time, busy driving and deep in her own thoughts.

At one point, she had searched for her mental link with Sephiroth but found nothing. It disturbed her greatly, giving her a feeling of foreboding. She even discovered there was another link, but weaker than she had with Sephiroth, discovering that it was to Zack. With the link being weak though, she opted not to use it often so as not to stress it, but she could feel his emotions from time to time and assumed he could feel her emotions as well.

Barret and Tifa went back to arguing again, about battle strategy against the monsters in the area. Cloud grinned as she listened to them idly, content to just drive. She glanced up in the rearview mirror, noticing that Tifa had given up arguing and started playing game of Rock, Paper, and Scissors with Aeris. Barret had turned to argue with Yuffie about the scores from the game. Red was ignoring the whole thing, apparently catnapping. Cait Sith was in the passenger seat beside her, the Mog and the Cat appeared to be sleeping but she knew it was turned off, it was an agreement between her and Zack that the Mog would be turned off during the ride or at any time it was not used.

Her thought strayed to her own questions. How long had they been traveling together? She wondered idly and decided to humor herself by counting the days and weeks; she had come to conclusion at the end that they were traveling nearly three months. Most of the time spent walking, camping or staying at towns they passed through. They would stay for several days, even up to a week, but nothing more. They had spent their energy, questioning people, gathering Materia to boost their ability and trading information on ShinRa. They had also been collecting weapons as well, stronger and better ones to assist them in their journey.

Their income wasn't much; they get paid whenever they get into town for defending their area or by how many monsters they've killed that crossed their path. Sometimes they even did services in town if mercenary work was needed. The group was glad for any income they could get because it helped them to pay for inn rooms, clothing, weapons and food. They even did a little trade; whatever they found in one town could be salable in another town, and for a tidy profit. It was the best they could do.

Cloud shook her head, seeing there were several rivers in their path; she stopped the buggy and turned to the party in the back, "I think we should rest here. We've been going for most of the day. We need to do some maintenance on the buggy soon."

Barret looked up and climbed to the front, looking out of the window, "Yea, getting dark soon. We should camp fer the night." Then he crawled back, opening the back doors, the others piled out, helping him with camp.

Cloud turned to the Mog and poked it, "Hey…" it clicked and whirred once she clicked the button on its belly. She grinned as the mog powered up in a fashion similar to waking up.

The cat, being robotic still had cat-like quality; it stretched and yawned, blinking, "What? Where are we?" Cait turned its head around, taking in the scene with its camera eyes.

"Still in the jungle, south of Cosmo Canyon, I think we'll be clear after those rivers." She pointed ahead.

"All right, you guys are setting camp for the night?" Cait asked as it sat on the top of the mog's head.

Cloud nodded, frowning, "Who are you?" She asked when she realized the voice was different, not like Zack's.

Reeve blinked at the screens, Cloud's face was so close that he could see how blue her eyes were, and he adjusted the small microphone that hung near his mouth, "Who am I?" He saw Cloud's head bob up and down, still glaring at him. "Why do you ask?"

"I know Zack's voice, and I know for a fact he's sleeping right now."

Reeve was dumbstruck, "How… oh never mind that. I am the creator of this Cait Sith," He saw Cloud sit back, content with the answer but not yet satisfied, "My name is Reeve."

Cloud frowned, recognizing the name, "From ShinRa…" She had half of a mind to yell at Zack in her mental link but decided to wait and see, "How can I be sure you're not spy for the ShinRa?"

She heard Reeve sigh, "I'm not, in fact, you can consider me as your spy on the ShinRa. I may work for them but I do not follow their beliefs, it's absurd right now. I am also a good friend of Zack's."

Cloud shrugged, "He never mentioned you. Well, you've been with us since Gold Saucer and you haven't set the Turks on us yet, so I guess I should trust you too. But if you cross me once, you're gonna get it, one way or another." Cloud left the threat hung in the air.

Cait nodded, "Sure."

Cloud pointed a finger with a pensive look on her face, "One question, what was that fortune about?"

"No idea, I designed the machine to be a fortune teller, and that's what it does and more."

"Right." Cloud tapped her nose and glared at the mog before she climbed out of the buggy, "Remember what I said. I am sure Yuffie would love to have a new stuffed toy to sleep with at night."

The robotic cat seemed like he was swallowing hard. Cloud chuckled to herself and walked over to the camp. She stopped before the ninja girl and patted her on the head. Yuffie looked up and her wide smile grinned, "Hey Cloud! What's up?"

"Nothing much, where's my pack?"

The teenager scrambled around, searching though the Avalanche's things and pulled out a military pack with label 'Strife' on it and tossed it to Cloud. She watched Cloud dig in the bag and took out a small black bag and opened it to take an object out, she recognized it immediately, "Ooh, that's an Escort Guard, where did you get it?"

Cloud gave the teenage a smile, "I got it as a gift when I first promoted into the Elites." She slipped it on her wrist over the glove and fitted it halfway up her arm. Feeling the cool metal against her skin, she sighed and tossed the pack back where Yuffie had found it.

At first glance the band appeared to be an Escort Guard but in reality it was an altered version of a Minerva Band. Only Escort Guard worked on males while the Minerva Band was for females. Cloud remembered Sephiroth giving it to her when she went on her first promotional mission for Elite, he had it secretly made and designed just for her, a gift of congratulation. It was precious to her much like her ring. Only she wished she could remember Sephiroth proposing to her.

It was the band that caused her fright when Yuffie first stole the esteemed bag. Anyone who touched it would have known what it was. She glanced around the camp and wondered when she had found friends such as these. She liked them and they liked her in return but it wasn't strong enough for her to let them to know who she really is. It was enough that Hojo knew and was putting her in line of danger. She did not want the Avalanche to know just yet or else they would be in danger as well.

What would happen if they've found out her secret? Surely, they would have some sort of reaction. Tifa would be pissed because she knew the brunette has a crush on the male she thought Cloud Strife to be. Barret, she wasn't sure what he would do. As for Aeris…, she shook her head. No, Aeris would understand but pity her as well, she doesn't want that. Yuffie was a handful already; she did not need someone who would annoy her about it all the time. No, she would not tell them, not just yet.

Avalanche believed they were going after Sephiroth the villain, but Cloud knew in truth that it was a rescue mission for her esteemed lost love, to rescue him from the grip of evil that posed a threat to the whole Planet. From what she could gather, Sephrioth's soul was being held by a captor that had the similar body of his. Perhaps a clone or some sort and this 'Bad Sephiroth' must be in league with Jenova.

"Aaaggghh…" Sephiroth screamed as he clutched his head, "No! Leave me alone!"

"You are mine." An icy voice floated around him, taunting him, "You've always been mine."

Sephiroth winced as another onslaught of pain coursed though his head, "Jenova! Leave me alone!"

The voice chuckled, sending shivers down his spine, and he shuddered, curling his knees into him, rocking back and forth, "Come, my son."

He looked up, shaking, feeling his energy flow out of him like molten lava. The face appeared out of icy blue darkness, glowing alabaster skin, eerie black eyes looking down at him.

Mustering strength, he snarled, "I am not your son. I never have been."

The woman's body appeared as well, her long lithe body, pale skin and gown that seemed to make out of crystals. She tossed her long, transparent silvery hair, causing it to glitter as if it were a starry sky. She looked beautiful in appearance but her eyes held a cold soulless evil, "Yes, you are, in spirit."

Sephiroth shut his eyes, trying to avoid looking into Jenova's fathomless eyes. Jenova had somehow captured him, breaking him away from his hold in reality though his body and the links with Cloud and Zack, bringing him to this cold freezing place.

Feeling exhausted, tired, he whispered, "Leave me alone, let me go…"

Jenova chuckled as she fingered Sephiroth's hair, "oh, so beautiful…" She frowned as Sephiroth started to fade, becoming transparent. "Hey! Where are you going? You belong to me!"

Sephiroth looked up, half smiling as sweat seemed to roll down his face and a tear fell. He was getting tired of being a prisoner without body, a prisoner in spirit to this Jenova, "No, I never belonged to you. You are not Jenova." He knew he had hit true, the true Jenova had passed on and whoever this was had merely stolen her name and her appearance.

She snarled, "Who is this woman that has hold over you?" She grabbed Sephiroth's long silver mane in her claws, her feature transformed into something horrendous and ugly.

Sephiroth ignored her, shaking his head. In spirit, she could hurt him as if he had a body. With no connection to his body, he knew he was dying some how. His body was lost somewhere and the clone of himself was being controlled much like a puppet by this Jenova, a woman who once was a Valkyrie two thousands years ago. Up to recently, he was able to house in his clone's body, even if he could not control it, he was able to travel to either Zack or Cloud's minds until he was found. Now however it was pure torture not to be able to have any power over himself or anything else.

"Damn it! I will find out who she is and destroy her!" She snapped and disappeared in the darkness, leaving him alone in the coldness, his 'body' half transparent, slowly fading to somewhere else.

He laughed quietly to himself as he curled on the hard cold floor. Laughing to himself, pathetic and weak like a child, scared and alone. Then he suddenly stifled a sob, he knew Cloud was calling for him, he could hear and feel her tug.

He had almost gotten out of Jenova's hold again. He wasn't able to get out of his prison to visit Cloud lately. Jenova had recently found and placed a stronger spell around him, making him weaker and in turn, making his bond to Cloud and Zack weaker. He could feel her coming closer and fading away.

He knew he was somewhere, someplace cold and icy, but he was too tired to think where he could be. He rested his head on his arm, attempting to find some small comfort, curling his body into a tight ball and fell into a spirit sleep.

Spirits do get tired, feel pain and eventually, he knew, would die too. Jenova wouldn't let him die however, only suffer. He allowed his mind to drift, dreaming of warm blue and golden silks.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**


	23. S2:9: Destiny

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Nine: Destiny

_Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God._

Hebrews 12:2, the Holy Bible

Cosmo Canyon was a beautiful place in its own way, desert surrounding with rocky red mountains that rose out of the ground like pillars. The sunsets and sunrises were different here, with more colors, as if they held more glory than any other places.

Avalanche had reached Cosmo Canyon at last and Red, also known as Nanaki was happy to be home, with his human family. The Cosmo Canyon people were friendly, kind and welcoming, they gave them rooms to stay in for free, and they were eager to trade and fill their bellies with their delicacies.

When night fell, it was a sight to behold, the sky never looked so bright, full of stars and even you could point out planets in the solar system. The small group of Avalanche sat around the large warm fire, the ever-burning Cosmo Candle that had never died since the Planet was born. The fire was legendary much like the Planet was herself.

Cloud stared in the flame, digesting what Burgenhagen; the wolf's grandfather had told them when they first met. She knew the others were thinking along the same line.

Burgenhagen was a short old man, long white beard and blue robe. He appeared wise, ancient and mythical at once. He was the elder of Cosmo Canyon and had an observatory on the top of the rocky pillar in the town. The observatory was a wonder to the Avalanchers, the machine within scanned the skies, stars and everything else within the galaxy beyond the Planet's blue sky.

She remembered a long time ago that she had heard of this infamous Cosmo Canyon observatory and at one time wanted to visit when she was in the Academy. She even recalled that Burgenhagen wouldn't allow anyone from ShinRa Academy to visit his observatory unless they were given lengthy interviews and were chosen; only very few get the chance to visit.

"Reaching up into heaven, threatening to snatch the very star from the great city of Midgar. You've seen it, haven't you?" Burgenhagen's voice floated back to her mind as she recalled the first meeting. The man asked such odd question that addled her thinking, to add her discomfort; the old man peered close to 'him', grinning like he had opened a birthday gift.

Cloud frowned, confused at his question, "What?"

The old man still smiled and jumped on the table to increase his short height so he was eye leveled with the Avalanchers. "Well, that's the bad example. Looking up too much make you lose perspective." He shrugged and waved his hand around to dismiss the idea, "When it is time for the planet to die, you'll understand that you know absolutely nothing."

Cloud became thoroughly confused, "When the planet dies?"

The old man laughed, "It may be tomorrow, or a hundred years from now… But, it is not long off."

She shook her head, trying to comprehend what the old man was saying, "How do you know this?"

The old man looked down to the tabletop for a moment and finally looked up, his icy blue eyes darkened, "I hear the cries of the Planet." He looked up; the observatory room became dark, surrounding the group in darkness. There was a low sound, becoming eerie loud. It was long and beautiful, chilling the bones of the listener, it sounded like whale song.

"What was that?" Tifa asked, awestruck.

Aeris cringed and closed her eyes, "The Planet."

Burgenhagen rapped his cane on the desk, "You hear it all the time, don't you?" He cracked a knowing smile at the russet-haired woman.

Aeris nodded, "Yes. It's painful."

"That was the songs of the stars in heaven. While this goes on, planets are born to die. This song especially sings about this very planet, mourning of what to come. Hear this." He waved his cane around and another song came, similar to the first but even more mournful and sorrowful, sounding so painful that it clenched the heart of the listener.

The light flooded the room and Cloud appeared pale.

The old man hopped down from the table and walked around the group, "That," He finally stopped at Cloud, peering up at her, "Was the scream of the Planet."

The red wolf stood up on all four and trotted to his grandfather, "They have come here on a journey to save the planet."

The old man nodded, "I know." He returned to the table and hopped on it again, he waved his arm, gesturing for them to come closer, "Come, come, let me show you something." He frowned and sighed, "I can only bring up to three people up in my observatory loft at a time. Who shall be the first?"

Aeris held a hand up, "I'd like to go first, I am sure Cloud would too." She glanced 'his' way and saw 'him' nod.

Nanaki stood on his hind legs, his front paws on the table, "Me too."

Burgenhagen hopped off the table and led the three to a door on the other side of the room; they went up the stairs and entered a large round room. Aeris gasped as she stepped in the room, "Oh my, it's like the real thing." She clasped her hands together, looking around. The room looked like a large miniature model of the solar system.

Cloud stared at the sun and the planets that swirled around them, the wall and the floors were black, much like the galaxy, there were lights shimmering around them, which were the stars. Her hand reached out and passed though the models of the planets making her realize they were holographic.

Burgenhagen crackled, "yes, this is my laboratory; all the workings of spaces are entered into this three-dimensional Holographic System. This is sought after by the ShinRa."

Cloud nodded in understanding, "I see why you're picky about who enter here. I'm honored." She bowed to the short old man.

"Ah, none of that," Burgenhagen waved his staff and tapped the floor with it, and soon, the holograph started to move and the whole room seemed to come alive, dancing around them, the stars twinkled and a streak of light shot by them.

"A shooting star!" Aeris giggled.

Burgenhagen's face grew serious, "Ah yes, a comet…" He moved to the console hidden on the side of the room, checking the data, "Well, let's get to the subject." He turned to them and hobbled to the center. The three joined him and they were lifted on a hidden lift above into the dome, surrounding by the bodies of the planet and the stars around them.

"Eventually… all humans die." He began, the darkness enveloped and the space sparkled with stars, evolving, showing the planets forming. "What happens to them after they die? The body decomposes, and returns to the Planet. That much everyone knows."

The single planet became larger, showing details of its formation, land formed and water ran.

"What about their consciousness, their hearts and their souls?" Burgenhagen continued, they all watched the as people started to show up on the planet, it was as if they were large as Gods, watching the miniature people growing and evolving on the planet.

"The soul too returns to the Planet, and not only of humans, but everything on this Planet. In fact, all living things in the universe are the same." The old man raised his arms as the solar system whirled around him, becoming smaller to show the rest of the universe, "The spirits that returns to the Planet, merge with one another and roam the Planet, converge and divide, becoming a swell, called the 'Lifestream'."

Green light appeared on some planets, like cracks, glowing green, "Lifestream… in other words, a path of energy, of the souls roaming the Planet, its blood." He lowered his arms, the planets faded to normal, the green glows disappearing, "Spirit Energy, a word that you should never forget. A new life… children are blessed with Spirit Energy and are brought into the world. Then, the time comes with they die once again, return to the Planet. Of course there are expectations, but this is the way of the world."

"I've digressed, but you'll understand better if you watch this." He moved aside and waved his arm. The solar system shifted, narrowing the focus to one planet. They saw the evolution of the planet, trees and lands changing. Humans being born and roaming across the lands then die. Their bodies become into masses of light that swirled, and then they streaked across, merging with others. The planet revolved, showing another side, showing streaks of energy, glowing in different colors, merging into different forms of new beings. Trees, flowers and animals flourished and faded into lights, and so on it repeated in different pattern.

"You see, not just living things. But Spirit Energy makes it possible for the planets to be planets." He held out a finger, the energy streaked and stopped at his finger, making it glow. "What happens if that Spirit energy were to disappear?"

The Planet floated by him as the three watched him, all the energies from the planet crumbling into a huge chunk of rock, floating off in space.

He bowed his head, "There, that's the basics of the Study of Planet Life."

Cloud watched the scene of the solar system disappear and returned to normal room except for the Planet that still hovered before them, lights of different colors streaming across the sphere.

"Spirit Energy is efficient because it exists within nature. When Spirit Energy is forcefully extracted, and manufactured, it can't accomplish its true purpose."

Aeris frowned, "You're talking about Mako energy, right?" She asked.

"Everyday Mako reactors suck up Spirit Energy, diminishing it. Spirit Energy gets compressed into the reactors and processed into Mako energy. All living things are being used up and thrown away. In other words, Mako energy will only destroy the Planet…"

Cloud pointed to the model of the Planet, "Those lights, the white, green and blues… they're people but who are they?"

Burgenhagen chuckled, "Sharp eyes you have. You know the green are humans of the Planet. The blues," He turned to Aeris, "Are the Cetra, not native to this Planet but adopted, welcomed." He turned back to Cloud, "While the whites are the Valkyries, the true daughters of the Planet."

Aeris gasped, "So they're real?"

Cloud stared at the planet, watching the green and the white grow fewer and fewer as the Planet moved across time. "They're fading…" She whispered and she noticed the green started to increase in numbers until the process stopped, as if frozen in time.

Burgenhagen noticed this, "Ah, the program is only up to today." He peered closer to the planet and smiled, at least, they didn't die out." He pointed to three spots of white and two blues. "I believe, this one represents you," He had his finger on the blue and looking at Aeris; "You're a Cetra?"

Aeris nodded, "Yes. But who are those three others?"

Burgenhagen glanced at Cloud, "Who knows…"

Cloud saw glows of reds here and there on the planet, "What about those?" She pointed to them.

"Summons, natural formed Materia, created by the Planet itself. Useful thing if you know how to use them. You have some, am I right?" He gestured to Cloud's bangle on her wrist.

She looked down and took two red spheres out of its slot on her bangle, "Shiva and Ifrit, Ice and Fire." She had come to favor the two summonses and almost always wore the two materias all the times.

He nodded and the lift lowered back to the floor. "I wish to speak to you alone."

"I'll go out and tell them what you said." Aeris offered, smiling and bowing respectfully to Burgenhagen. Nanaki followed after her after giving Cloud a wink.

As soon they left, Burgenhagen turned to Cloud, "You're a Valkyrie." He pointed out bluntly.

"How can you tell?" Cloud asked, taken aback.

"I am old, and a Cetra. Aeris is young; she is untrained in sensing others. I had met a Valkyrie a long time ago; I never forget soul like hers. You have the same kind."

Curious, Cloud knelt to his level, "Who was she?"

Burgenhagen closed his eyes, "Mm… It was long ago, she told me her name was Lucrecia Crescent."

Cloud frowned, finding the name familiar, "Lucrecia? I heard that name before too… Sephiroth's mother, but her name was Lucrecia Brown."

Burgenhagen smiled, "Yes. She came to Cosmo Canyon, seeking out the other Valkyrie and that was when I met her. Sweet woman she was, beautiful as well but her soul was in a lot of pain. She cries for her sisters."

"Did she ever find the others?"

"I do not believe she ever did. But she had stayed here in Cosmo Canyon for a year, taught me everything about Valkyrie that I could absorb. I see you're the daughter of another."

Cloud nodded, finally settling down on the floor, cross-legged, "I came from Nibelheim, my mother was Freya Serenity Strife, from what I know, she was younger than Lucrecia."

"Ah, I remember her. I met her too, a sweet little girl. I once went to Nibelheim, curious about the mountain where the Valkyries originated from. There she was, pretty little girl, blue eyes and golden hair like yours, but curly. I see it now, you got her looks."

Cloud smiled, "Yeah."

"Tell me, has the prophecy come true yet?" Burgenhagen asked his tone serious.

Cloud stared at him, "Part of it so far."

"Ah, there is another Valkyrie like you, and you mentioned, Lucrecia has a son, Sephiroth, is that him?" He saw Cloud nod. "I see. You're looking for him." He waved his hand and the Planet appeared before them, the lights shimmered across its sphere, "Three Valkyries…" He pointed to two of them and tapped his finger on the dots, "Your names are entered, the third, I am not quiet sure who she is, but her Life Energy is faded, had been for a long time, about thirty years, I believe."

"Could it be Lucrecia?" Cloud asked, hoping that she would be alive as well.

"Perhaps. See here," He pointed to a black spot, it glowed unnatural, absorbing lights that came near it. "That's the illness of the Planet, it's growing."

Cloud gasped, "Jenova?"

"Oh, it has a name?" He narrowed his eyes at the black spot, "According to the database, it's been around for over two thousands of years, came to the planet a long time ago by a meteor." He waved his hand and the Planet shifted, showing image of the comet whizzing toward the planet, plummeting on the northern part. "Strangely enough, this was once white at one time, a Valkyrie."

"That's what happened two thousand years ago?" Cloud asked her eyes wide.

"Yes." He waved his hand once again, the Planet returned to as it is now.

Cloud looked up and pointed past the Planet, "What is that?" She stood and moved to the other holographic image, it appeared to be a large comet, much larger than the last one, "It's coming to the planet…"

Burgenhagen frowned, "Oh dear me," He hobbled toward the computer console and clicked at few keys, "You're right; it is heading to the planet, but much too slowly. If it keeps its rate, it will miss us entirely by several days but surely, the sky will light up for a while."

"What would happen if it collides with the Planet?" Cloud asked, pointing to both and meeting her fingers together, "Will it destroy the Planet?"

"Entirely so. Just be thankful that's it's missing us." He returned to his computer and it beeped, "Interesting, the meteor will pass the Planet's path in less than a year, nine months to be precise. Unless…" He looked up and to the door where Aeris disappeared, "A power stronger calls it to this planet." He clicked on the computer and the model showed the Meteor whizzing faster than its normal pace and it collided with the planet with a blow, smashing a huge hole right exactly where Midgar would had been.

Cloud gasped, "What power?"

"There are two Materia, rare in this world, a black and a white. I am not entirely sure what they do, but they hold tremendous power, power enough to do anything, if the holder wishes it. It is rare objects of the Valkyries; it should be in the book."

Cloud stared at the repeating image of the meteor crashing into the Planet. She felt sick.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud looked to the sky, the stars shone like diamonds, a beautiful sight yet it didn't help her troubled mind. The others were shown the same thing except for the part she saw alone. They were humbled, understanding the crisis of the Planet.

She reached into the pack and pulled out several marble sized spheres in colors of yellow, green and blues. A few were purple as well. "So, this is what's hurting the Planet." She whispered to herself and turned her bangle to show the red ones. "Why would the Planet make you as well?"

Yuffie was red eyed, sniffing as she held a bag, which was full of Materia she had somehow stolen from everyone except for Cloud's. Guilt wracked her; her favorite thing had been the source of the Planet's pain.

Aeris' voice shook them all out of their deep thoughts, "Yeah, I learned a lot, and I am sure you all did too. It all comes together like a puzzle. The elders taught me many things." She looked up, looking across the flame toward Cloud, meeting 'his' blue eyes. She smiled at him, "The Cetra, the Promised Land and the Valkyries." Her eyes gazed to the sky, "I am alone, alone now since Burgenhagen is old, and I am almost the only Cetra, but the Valkyries have chances, there are three of them out there."

Tifa stood up, her arms across her chest, "We know Sephiroth is one of them, and the two others are lost, I don't think there are any chances for them either."

Aeris smiled a knowing smile, "We'll see. All we have to find them as well."

Cloud nodded, knowing there was only one she would like to find other than Sephiroth.

Cait Sith's black head tilted sideway, "It brings back memories…" he said with almost whisper.

The blond fighter turned to the cat that happened to be next to her, "Zack?" She whispered and saw him nod. She smiled and held her hands out so the cat would jump into her arms and curl up on her lap.

Barret stood up, pacing slightly in his spot; he took in the surrounding around him, "I've been here before… this was where Avalanche was born, Biggs, Wedge, Jessie. We came together, promising to save the Planet from the ShinRa." He shook his head, finally pausing in his pacing, "I wonder, will they ever forgive me?" He sighed and sat down at last. He looked to Cloud, pointing a finger to 'him', "Again, again and again, Avalanche's born again and so on! You will get us through! We'll do it for the Planet; I don't care if it's for justice or revenge, or whatever…"

Cloud nodded, stroking the cat as if it were real, she knew it was on her behalf, since the cat couldn't feel it, but it made her feel close to Zack.

Tifa looked up from studying her boots, "Cloud… the bonfire; it brings back memories… doesn't it?"

Cloud stood and moved to Tifa's side and knelt besides her, still holding the cat, "What is it?"

"Five years ago… wasn't it?"

Cloud realized where Tifa was going, it was coming back to her, the entire memories. "What is it you remember?"

Tifa shook her head, "Oh, it's nothing."

Cloud placed her hand on the other woman's shoulder, "Come on, and tell me."

Tifa looked up into 'his' eyes, her crimson eyes boring deep into the blue, "Cloud, it's like… feels like you're going far away…" She looked down again, a lone tear rolled down her cheek. She suddenly smiled, wiping the tear away quickly before could see, but Cloud had already. "You're really, really you? Are you, right?"

"What do you mean by that?" Cloud stood up.

Tifa shook her head, "I guess, my memories are confused, you and this Sorano."

Nanaki's tail flickered silently behind him as he laid before the fire, staring into it, "The flame is legendary, and it makes us all remember memories of some sort…" He sat up, shaking his head, "My parents, my mother, I respected her with pride and joy. Yet, my father, for the longest time, I felt betrayed every time I thought of him…"

Cloud gave a sad smile as she sat back down in her place. Recently, she had accompanied with Red and Aeris down the cave of Gi near the town. The journey was nearly a whole day while the others stayed behind, learning from Burgenhagen. They had gone deep in the cave to the other side, discovering the truth behind Nanaki's heritage.

The journey had been a trial for Red, battling against the ghost of Gi, proving his strength of mind. The place of the battle was a great legacy where Nanaki discovered who had killed the vengeful warrior Gi Nattak, of the tribe that had threatened the sanctuary of Cosmo Canyon, the warrior had been his father, Seto.

That changed the wolf's perspective of his father. For the longest time, he had thought his father had run off and abandoned him, but the truth was, he had been there the whole time, watching over him. The unfortunate battle Seto was in had turned him into stone thanks to one of the Gi's poisonous arrows.

Burgenhagen then had asked Nanaki when they returned, to stay with Avalanche, to save the Planet. He agreed, to carry on his father's legacy to protect Cosmo Canyon, yet another burden had been added, he was to help and protect the entire planet.

Nanaki stood up, his tail straight with pride, "I am Nanaki, of Cosmo Canyon, the son of the warrior, Seto!" He tail twitched as he left the circle. The others looking on as he made his way up the Cosmo Mountain where his father stood, frozen as a stone.

Aeris stood up, "I am going to turn in. The buggy should be fixed in the morning and refueled." Tifa and Yuffie got up and followed her. Barret shook his head and wordlessly left as well.

Cloud rested her arms on her knees, gazing into the fire, thinking of a certain person. Her blue eyes flickered with reflection from the flame. She tried to call Sephiroth in her mind again, yet to find herself alone. It was becoming frustrating and lonely lately. "Where are you?" She whispered, forgetting she wasn't alone.

"I am here." She looked to find Cait, stretched beside her.

She smiled at him, "Zack. I was thinking of him, he's been gone from my mind for so long. I'm worried."

"Me too. I miss him too but we will find him. We're working hard on our side, the Turks are not having much luck either."

"That's good. I think we're going to Nibelheim soon. I suppose its good place as any."

The cat nodded, "It's not far from here."

"I know. Just due north, I can see the Nibel Mountain from here." She gazed over the fire into the far distant; she could see the jagged outline of the crude mountain ahead. "Its like I am being called there… Tifa's starting to suspect."

"I noticed. We have to be careful. I think it is best for you to leave the Tome with Burgenhagen, he will keep it safe."

"I'll give it to him before we leave. We better turn in soon." She stood up and picked the cat up in her arms, "It's nice to know I am not entirely alone in the world, there is hope for me."

The cat smiled and curled up in her arms, "Good night, love."

Cloud watched the cat power down, settling into position of deep slumber. "You will have to tell me what happened soon. Something happened after Nibelheim and I need to know, Hojo did something to me, something unforgivable."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Reeve entered the room, finding Zack turning the computer and screens off. "Zack," He handed him a file from the pile he had brought with him; "I found something. These are the document and files from Hojo's lab. Some of it's missing, well, most of it. It's from around twenty-five years ago up to recently. Sephiroth… boy, he was the center of the whole scheme Hojo was going on about, including Jenova."

Zack took the file and got up from the chair, letting the other man sit in it.

Reeve turned to the control and checked it over, "Why don't we rest and go on tomorrow morning?"

Zack watched Reeve take control of the mog, manipulating it to go to the buggy and power down in the back of the buggy. "Yeah, it's getting real late. Good night."

Reeve sat back as he turned the control completely off. He watched Zack flip though the file.

"Look like I am in for a late night reading, this is getting interesting. Here it says that Sephiroth's biological father was last seen in Nibelheim and something happened to him. I think this next part is one of the missing parts. I remember when Sephiroth and I searched the database for his father, we came to one conclusion."

Reeve nodded, resting his chin on his intertwined hands, "Yes, read on, there's more. I have every reason to believe that he is still alive as well."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The buggy stopped at Nibelheim gate. Cloud and Tifa, being in front of the buggy stared with wide eyes at the scene before them. They quickly climbed out of the buggy and stood there, their mouth gaped.

"What…" Tifa looked around, shocked speechless.

Cloud had similar expression but with confusion.

"This was all supposed to be burnt down, right?" Tifa turned to Cloud, whining nearly evident in her voice.

Cloud nodded, "I thought so too…" She frowned, suspecting something foul behind the whole scheme before her eyes.

Nibelheim stood before them in its quaint glory, people bustling around, minding their own business.

Tifa pointed to a house that was supposed to be her childhood home, it looked exactly as it did before the fire in their memories, "Then, why? My house is still there too…"

Cloud's house also stood as if nothing ever happened next to Tifa's house.

"Something strange?" Aeris tapped Cloud on the shoulder with slight accusation in her voice.

Cloud jumped and turned to her, nearly shouting, "I'm not lying!" She shook her head, trying to clear up the confusion that was cluttering inside her head. "I remember…" She paused, realizing that the others knew she had heard the news, not had actually been there, Sorano was. "It was all burned down, nothing left." She walked to the center of the town and found a bench, she sat down, confused.

The others decided to leave her be, went around town, to explore and shop a little.

A stranger walked up to Cloud and greeted her. She realized that no one in town was familiar, at all. They were all strangers and she found it was odd that the people didn't react to her color make-ups. "This town was supposed to have burnt down five years ago. What the heck is going on?" She stood up, startling the stranger.

"Sir, don't say such awful things. I was born and raised in this town, what you say never had happened."

Cloud frowned, "What about Mayor Lockhart, the Strife family? Don't you remember them?"

The man shook his head, "You're fooling yourself, and we never had Mayor Lockhart. The mayor of this town is Mayor Lokison, had been for ten years."

Tifa appeared by the man's side, "You're lying…" She growled.

"Excuse me, that so rude. If you're going to be like that, I am going have to ask you to leave town." The stranger walked off, leaving Tifa and Cloud stumped.

Tifa turned to the blond fighter, "Everything is different here, even though it looks same. The people, I don't know them. It's as if we don't exist anymore."

Cloud nodded and saw Aeris coming toward them, waving at her, "Cloud! There's someone in a black cape over here, come and hurry!" She grabbed Cloud's hand and dragged 'him' over to where she found someone in the black cape.

The person shrouded in the black cape stopped walking and turned to Cloud, "Can you hear?" It rasped, "The voice of… ahh… Sep…hi…ro…th…"

Cloud noticed something on the man's hand, a number twelve tattooed on the back of the pallid skin, and then the man seemed to collapse, leaving nothing but pool of black material. Cloud frowned as she knelt beside the material, picking it up to find nothing but ashes and a bottle of elixir. "The voice of Sephiroth? What the heck?"

Tifa and Aeris looked on, confused as well. Barret and Nanaki came around, joining them, bringing a pack that they had collected from several other black shrouded caped strangers much like the one before Cloud.

"Them all over!" Barret explained, "Strange, they're saying something about Sephiroth then disappearing."

Cloud stood up, finally understanding, "Reunion. They're talking about the Reunion. I am not sure; Hojo hinted something about it in Costal Del Sol, feeling the call. It's not making any sense yet but it's getting clearer." She took the pack and inspected the things in it, she found few useful things. "They're the equipment for Soldiers. Maybe the answer is in the Mansion." She turned to face the looming abandoned mansion before them.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack rubbed the back of his neck as he watched the monitor of Cait Sith, "Tifa and Cloud are right. The town burned down. Something fishy is going on here."

Reeve nodded and turned his chair around to face Zack, "ShinRa did this. I remember, but I didn't think about it until now. I remember it was a top secret matter of ShinRa, right after the town burned ShinRa ordered it to be rebuilt. It was as if they're trying to hide a secret from the world."

"Yeah, the secret being Sephiroth, their famous General going insane. Didn't want to spook anyone, that's why no one thought of it."

"Those people, the ShinRa asked them to move in shortly after, paid them large sum of money to keep their mouth shut, act as if nothing happened. None of them knew why, didn't bother to ask."

Zack's mouth dropped.

"Tifa and Cloud are apparently the only true Nibelheim people who are aware of what happened in the past. As for the others, their memories had been altered."

Zack nodded, regaining his composure from short shock he had, "Yes, the papers, you gave them to me last night. I finished reading though them all, I see the connection between the gaps."

Reeve looked at Zack with interest, "And?"

"The rest of them, they must be in the ShinRa mansion where Hojo had his lab."

"You…" Reeve gaped, realizing Zack was saying something.

"Yes, I remember the lab. Everything, I remember everything." Zack stared past Reeve somberly, the memories playing in his mind.

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Cloud led Avalanche into the Mansion. The ominous feeling of the place crept down her spine, chilling her to the bone, "Something's wrong here…" She went deeper into the ancient house, leading them upstairs like as if she knew the way. She turned into the room with the hidden passage.

They all followed Cloud down the winding stairs and deeper underground into the hidden basement. Yuffie shrieked as she stumbled over some bones that were in the tunnel, yet no one bothered to pay attention to her, "Sure, leave me to freak out…" She muttered, keeping close to Barret.

"Someone's here." Cloud murmured as she entered the laboratory in the basement. She held out a hand for everyone to stay behind her and she treaded closer to the hallway leading to the office from the laboratory and gasped, "Sephiroth!"

At the other end of the hallway, at the entrance of the office Sephiroth stood there in his ebony and silver glory. A cold smile graced his lips as he gazed only at Cloud.

Cloud shivered under the gaze, they weren't familiar or warm as she expected them to be. She searched with her mind for the link and found none; Sephiroth she knew wasn't there, only an empty shell before her with evil lurking within.

"Being here brings back memories." The cold voice reached their ears, "Are you going to participate in the Reunion?"

Cloud narrowed her eyes, "I don't even know what the Reunion is!"

"Jenova will be at the Reunion. Jenova will rejoin the Reunion, becoming a calamity from the skies."

She drew back, finally getting a hint what the Reunion was about, "Jenova, a calamity from the skies… the meteor." She murmured and glared at Sephiroth before her.

Aeris gasped behind her, "The illness…"

"I see." Sephiroth turned away slightly, his eyes downcast as he was in deep thought, "I don't think you have the right to participate, but you should be part of it," with inhuman speed, he moved to Cloud's side and leaned down, taking her chin with his finger, whispering, "You will be the next queen, the Queen of Calamities." He stood back, letting her go, "North, past Mount Nibel, if you wish to find out… then follow… I will be waiting for you." He smirked at Cloud.

Cloud snatched herself away from his presence, "I will not be part of your plan." She snarled.

Sephiroth's arm flashed as he threw a green Materia at Cloud. She fell back at the impact of the stone hitting her, she looked up, for a brief moment, and she saw familiar Sephiroth, giving her a brief flash of regret. Then, the man disappeared. She picked the stone up and turned it around in her hand realizing it was a gift from her true Sephiroth and she pocketed it, no one needed to know, just yet.

"Cloud?" Aeris knelt by 'him', concerned look on her face, "What is going on?"

"I am not sure." Cloud stood up.

"You got the Materia! Can I have it? Pretty please?" Yuffie bounced around the blond fighter.

Cloud glared at the teenager, "No!"

Yuffie stopped bouncing, just in time to be grabbed by Barret, "Poo! Put me down!"

"Yo stop da bouncin'!" Barret growled, irritated by the overly hyperactive youth.

Nanaki muttered due to a paper in his mouth, "Cloud, this is strange." He tilted his head to give the blonde the paper. She took it, "I found it on the floor, there's so many around, it looked like some kind of files on science experiment, if I didn't know better, it's Hojo's writing and this place reeks of him."

Cloud nodded as she read the paper, "Hm, it reads, 'I must get rid of all those that stand in the way of my research, even that one from the Turks. I scientifically altered him, and put him to sleep in the basement, if you want to find him then search the place'." Cloud tilted her head as she read on; the group watched her in interest, "'But, this is merely a game I thought of. It is not necessary to participate if you don't want to.' Huh? This is weird and this is Hojo's writing, I am sure of it."

"Sounds like a kooky man." Yuffie piped.

Aeris knelt as she gathered few papers from the floor, "Look, there is another letter." She handed it to Cloud.

"Move the dial on the safe carefully, but quickly. You have twenty seconds. You cannot go past the number while turning. The four hints for the numbers are…" Cloud read out loud from the paper.

Barret started to throw his usual fits, "Damn this! A waste of time! Let's get goin'! Da man said north of Mount Nibel! Get goin'!"

Cloud shook her head, "No. We will find the clues and see if the person's alive or whatever. No one should suffer from Hojo's bizarre experiments." She replied, stopping the large man in the middle of his fit.

"Why? Why should you?"

"Somehow, I think I know what it is to be one of Hojo's guinea pigs." Cloud frowned and picked up another paper. The paper wasn't anything relating to the clues but it was dated twenty-five years ago and it looked like a personal diary.

"Hm, here's something else of Hojo's. 'A son was born to my co-worker, how I wish to call him my own though he is not. He is beautiful and so desirable to be made into something powerful. Yes, I can see it in his eyes; he will be powerful, yes! What does this mean?"

Aeris leaned against Cloud to see the paper better, "Hm, sound like Hojo was sane once. Who is this son that he wanted to call his own?"

She flipped the paper over; it was blotched with what it looked like Mako liquid. She struggled to read the words and gasped, "It's… Cait Sith! Have this scanned and go around and find the rest of the papers to go with this, in fact, get all the papers."

The cat took the paper and nodded, "Sure will! You guys go ahead and find the clues to unlock the secret of the poor soul trapped here."

Cloud gave a curt nod and assembled the team into two groups to find the four clues. The team broke apart and scattered upstairs, intent to search all over the mansion.

Several hours later, dusty and tired, they gathered together, having found four clues, Cloud led them to a room with the safe, "let crank this stuff open," She gathered the clues together.

"Better be something worth comin' outta this." Barret grumbled as he watched the blond co-leader, wondering how in the world he left the leadership burden to the spiked-head.

"Right thirty six…" Cloud started to crank the dial, the others drew out their weapons, getting ready to see whatever will come, with experience, and they knew they would have a fight on their hand first. It was a hard lesson they had learned, anything with Hojo, it was bound to have some sort of nasty surprise he left behind.

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The printer beeped, announcing the finished job, Reeve grabbed the paper and handed it to Zack as he worked the Mog to gather the personal information that Hojo left behind.

Zack took it and read it, "ooh, geez. Talk about a love triangle that Hojo had gotten himself into. He's jealous! No way…" he came to a page where Cloud had stopped at, "The boy is…" He shook his head, "I knew it."

Reeve looked up and took the paper from Zack, "Huh, who?" He read the paper and sighed, "No way… it is him! Damn Hojo, he's messing everything up! I hope Cloud can get that Turk out of this mess, if he's alive. He deserves to know what happened to his son."

"You're right. He's one of the best Turks around, a legendary one."

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"Yeew! That was sneaky!" Yuffie slumped on the floor after the battle with a nasty creature known as 'Lost Number'.

Aeris picked up the Summon Materia in the safe and handed it to Cloud, "Another Summon Materia, it should help us."

"Here's the key." Barret picked up the key, "Look like the key goes into the door next to the basement." He murmured, recalling the old door on the way down there.

"Let's go." Cloud announced after wiping her sword clean of the monster's goop.

"Aww, not even a rest?" Yuffie whined, failing her skinny arms about.

"We will get it soon enough, little girl." Tifa helped the youth up.

As soon they returned to the basement, they found the rusty old door, almost hidden out of sight near the basement laboratory, they tried the key and the door opened.

"Ooo, scary. There are coffins here," Yuffie peeked in from behind Cloud, clutching tightly on 'his' shirt.

"Look, there's only one closed, there's inscription on it." Tifa went to the center of the room where the closed coffin laid, "To wake me from the nightmare," She looked up at the blue-eyed fighter.

Cloud gave a head incline, "Let's open it." Cloud helped Barret to open the coffin, the top was not too difficult to open; yet it was heavy, as if to prevent someone inside coming out.

Yuffie stared with jaw dropped.

A man dressed in red and black with a golden-clawed arm lay inside the blood red lined coffin, sleeping peacefully. He looked pale, almost beautiful in mysterious way; his long wild black hair surrounded his face like halo. He looked almost vampiric. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open to reveal crimson orbs, he sat up, startling everyone away from his coffin, "Who is it?" His voice deep as he rubbed his eyes with his good hand then glanced around. He found himself staring back at the group of Avalanche.

Cloud swallowed hard, mustering up courage, hoping the man wouldn't be evil, "You were having nightmare. A long one."

The man stared at Cloud, his face blank devoid of any emotions, "Humph, nightmare? My long sleep had given me time to atone." He swept the mess of silken black hair away from his face.

"What are you saying?" Cloud asked.

The man narrowed his eyes at Cloud, "I have nothing to say to strangers. Get out; this mansion is the beginning of your nightmare."

Cloud stiffened, lowering her head, she watched the man, "You can say that again."

The man sat back up when he was about to lie back down, "Oh, really?" He leaned on the side of the coffin.

"Like you said, this mansion is the beginning of a nightmare. I have been here before and nothing ever good came from it." Her blue eyes bore into the floor as the memory came back. "Once before Sephiroth lost his mind when he found the basement laboratory."

The man stood up suddenly, revealing how tall he was. He stood regally and tall, the red tattered cloak swished around him while his wild hair fell down his back, "Sephiroth, you say?"

Cloud stared up at the man, peering into his face, which was half hidden with a red bandanna and the cloak covering his mouth. "You know him?"

The man crossed his arms at his chest, "You start first, how you knew him?"

Cloud raised her eyebrows at him, "I knew him from ShinRa Academy and Soldier, and he was my friend. How about you?"

"I know of him, but how, I can't say. Though he is part of my sin."

"I'm disappointed." Tifa commented, "We're after Sephiroth because he has taken many lives and is seeking the Promised Land. Come with us and you will know the story of how it all began and help us, perhaps?"

The man tapped his chin as he gazed at the group of Avalanche.

Cloud moved to the door, "At least tell us your name, if you decide not to go with us."

The man's eyes followed the blonde, "I was with… the ShinRa Manufacturing Department in Administrative Research, otherwise known as the Turks… Vincent Valentine."

"The Turks?" Cloud spun around and stepped up to Vincent, "You, a Turk?"

"Formerly, I have no affiliation with the ShinRa now, and you?"

"Former ShinRa Elite Solder, Cloud Strife, served under the former General Sephiroth."

Vincent's eyes went slightly wide, "General, so he became a General. You were also with the ShinRa… then do you know Lucrecia?"

Cloud stepped back to him, peering up to his face, "She is no longer with ShinRa, not since twenty-five years ago, but I do know of her, I am of her kind." She whispered the last part, "the others do not know of her or this."

He gave a slight nod, indicating he understood. Cloud saw the sadness in his eyes and realized exactly who he is, suddenly recognizing the familiar form of the eyes and the fine nose. Even the height was the same.

"What happened?" Yuffie piped, drawing attention to her, "I mean, this Lucrecia you're asking about."

Vincent turned to the teenage girl, his eyes went soft, "She was an assistant to Professor Gast," He heard a gasp from the russet haired woman and turned to her, finding her familiar, "You are his, aren't you?"

"Yes, he was my father."

"Interesting party here you got, Cloud Strife. Anyway, they worked on the Jenova Project…" He paused as he saw their faces, "I take it you know about it."

"Yes and then some, it is the reason why we are here." Cloud explained.

"Very well then…" He sighed, "Beautiful Lucrecia, she fell to Hojo's experiment and her son, became his."

"You're saying Sephiroth was a human experiment?" Cloud asked.

"There was no way to cancel the experiment. I couldn't stop Hojo, which was my sin. I let the one I loved, the one I respected the most, to face the worse."

"So, the punishment was sleep? That's weird." Yuffie pointed out.

Vincent gave her a scowl, "If I go with you all, will I meet Hojo?"

Cloud shrugged, "Dunno, we're after Sephiroth, you're bound to find Hojo as well, I guess, sooner or later."

Vincent nodded and followed the rag-tag group out of the basement and out into the world of living for the first time in nearly three decades. There was only one thought on his mind, Lucrecia.

Barret grumbled to himself, Avalanche had added a new member, a new weirdo. He had enough of Cloud being sullen and moody and now there was another person who was much worse, this Vincent Valentine.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Reviews, please?_


	24. S2:10: The Black Materia

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Ten: The Black Materia

_How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which dist weaken the nation!_

Isaiah 14:12, the Holy Bible

A little pinkish orange plane floated on the vast ocean, it has a ShinRa logo on its tail and lettering across the sides saying 'Tiny Bronco'. The plane was two seated but both seats were occupied, as was the wings, with several people who in fact were the members of Avalanche.

On the left wing, Cloud was kneeling with her hands flattened on the wing, near her knees and she was banging her head on the wing. "I knew it! I knew it…" She went into strings of obscene cursing and then muttered, continuing banging her head, "I can't believe we're stuck out here… stupid ShinRa, stupid planet, stupid everything!" And she kept repeating, adding in some new curses in her native tongue of the Valkyrie here and there.

Tifa was on the opposite wing, her back turned to everyone as she grumbled. Yuffie held onto Aeris' arm, both women gawking at Cloud banging 'his' head repeatedly.

Barret and Cid, the supposed pilot of the little plane, occupied the pilot seats, both cursing back and forth about pretty much everything. Vincent sat near Tifa, watching everyone with his crimson eyes, almost studying them. Red was next to him, his tail draped over the wing, nearly touching the water occasionally causing the water to sizzle as his tail tip touched the cool surface.

"How the hell did we get out here?" Cloud banged her head once again. Cait Sith opened his mouth to reply but Cloud suddenly slapped him. The cat found the blazing blue eyes boring into his own black eyes. "Don't even tell me!" She growled under her breath, "This is your fault!" She finally screeched.

"How is that his fault?" Yuffie asked and realized her mistake when Cloud shot her an angry glare.

"I'm blaming him because I want to!" She snarled at the teenager.

Vincent's black eyebrow rose hidden under his bandanna, finding Cloud interesting. Over the short time he had been traveling with the group, he had come to find Cloud a mystery, yet likable. Ever since he had learned that 'he' said he was of Lucrecia's kind, he wasn't sure what the blond meant, but he assumed the young fighter meant family or something of the sort, he was curious to find out soon. He could see there was something about Cloud that nobody else knew, except perhaps the red wolf who sat next to him.

Deciding it was the most logical thing is to ask the wolf of anything about the blond fighter, "Is Cloud usually like this?"

The wolf chuckled under its breath, "Pretty much."

The former Turk nodded and looked back to Cloud who now was strangling the cat, screaming about the cat's fault and being with the ShinRa government. He shook his head in amusement and glanced around to each Avalanchers, they were quite different characters, coming together to form an odd rag-tag group. He had learned how they came together, and their goal of going after the esteemed Sephiroth who from what he could understand, was intent on finding a place called the Promised Land.

He had come to conclusion that everyone's goal was pretty much the same except for the blond haired fighter that led them. Everyone was on a mission to stop, perhaps put an end to Sephiroth, however Cloud's intentions seemed deeper than that and he assumed Nanaki was the only one who knew more than anyone else and made sure it was kept that way. The blond didn't trust anyone, maybe the robot cat more than anybody but at the moment… He decided to chuck that theory, watching Cloud maim the cat with her bare hands.

Over the short time traveling with Avalanche, Vincent had grown to dislike several members. Barret was for one, he was loud and sometime egotistical, often getting into a verbal argument with anybody available, especially Cloud. Tifa was a woman that turned him off completely, she had a slightly stuck-up attitude and he could tell the woman was constantly jealous, of the other woman in the pink dress. The only thing Tifa was useful was her strength and her fighting skills.

The one he disliked the most though was Yuffie, the young teenager. He found her an annoying, immature ball of energy, constantly yapping and complaining, even after they won a battle. He found her to be a source of amusement as well, teasing her with his stoic manner because they would often clash with each other.

He felt more comfortable around the rest, but he preferred to keep company with the red wolf, who appeared to have more intelligence than most of the other members. Aeris was sweet to him, though it he quickly learned the woman was always kind and sweet, no matter how cruel anyone was to her. She had a forgiving personality and he could sense deep within her that she has tremendous power as yet untapped.

Vincent watched the blond with keen interest as 'he' gave up strangling the cat and slumped down in defeat.

"Geez!" The cat rubbed its neck and returned on top of the pink stuffed mog, "Better watch out, and try to not damage my body. Kill me, I'll come back and haunt you!"

Cloud scoffed as she waved her hand to brush him aside, "Whatever, already got enough to haunt me." Vincent found this information curious and stored it in the back of his mind to analyze later.

Aeris squeaked quietly, "Cloud?"  
The blond fighter grunted and gave a nod.

"What do you think we're going to do? We're stuck here, no where to go, no idea what direction to chase after Sephiroth." The peacekeeper of Avalanche asked as she moved to Cloud's side, wanting to comfort 'him'.

Cloud sighed as she thought back on the last several days. They had left Nibelheim with Vincent and went north, getting to the small military base, Rocket Town. The town was an interesting sight because, like its name, there was a towering rocket that stood in the center of the town, leaning slightly to the side. The rocket itself was ShinRa's property and was for the Space Program, however it failed to launch.

They met with the man who was supposed to fly the Rocket into space for ShinRa, Captain Cid Highwind, a loud-mouthed man with scruffy appearance. He dressed like a typical pilot and was devoted to his precious rocket, the plane they were sitting on and the airship that ShinRa currently held control of.

They ran into Rufus and his henchmen when they came into town, getting into a fight with the fat man, Palmer, who they had encountered before at ShinRa Headquarters. Palmer proved to be a dirty and devious fighter, using the technique of taunting his opponents.

In the end they stole the plane and the pilot as well, but they didn't get very far, failing to get all that far out over the ocean before the damage from being shot at brought them down, leaving them in their current condition, floating towards nowhere.

Yuffie crawled over to the former Turk and sat by him, gazing up at him with wide innocent eyes, "Can I sit by you?" She asked quietly.

Vincent was surprised at her request, unexpected by her sudden change and shrugged, "Whatever."

"Thanks." The younger member drew her knees up and hugged them as she gazed at the calm ocean ahead.

"She won't fly anymore." Cid announced, "Need some fixin'." He grumbled as he ran a hand though his short pale dirty blond hair.

Cloud stood up and walked over to the pilot, looking down at him, "Can't we use it as a boat?"

The older blond scowled at Cloud, "Dammnit! Do whatever you want!" He slumped himself back down in the pilot seat, grumbling as he lit another cigarette. Barret was sitting behind him, his good arm draped over the side, trailing in the water, his face set in a deep scowl.

Cloud squatted down, still facing Cid, "Highwind, what are you going to do now?" She rolled her eyes, "granted that we did kidnap you."

The older man's gray eyes, almost blue looked up, "Dunno, I'm history with ShinRa and I've given up on the town."

Cloud was taken aback, "What about your wife, Shera?"

Cid's eyes went wide, "Wife? Don't make me laugh! Just thinkin' 'bout marryin' her gives me the chills. She's an assistant. So, what you guys doin'?

"We're going after a man named Sephiroth. We'll have to get Rufus ShinRa someday too."

Cid grinned around his cigarette and stood up, "I don't know about any of that, but… What the hell! Sign me up!"

Cloud smirked and stood up as she turned to everyone, "How 'bout it, everyone?"

Tifa stood up from her end of the wing, "Of course, no problem."

"Glad to be aboard, numbskulls!"

Cloud turned to Cid, "Numbskulls?"

"Yeah, anyone stupid enough to go up against ShinRa nowadays, has gotta to be a numbskull! I like it!" He slapped the young fighter on the back, causing her to nearly buckle under the force. "So, where are we headed? Heard Rufus was goin' after Sephiroth toward the Temple of the Ancients."

Cloud's eyes went wide, "Really? Where is it? That Temple of Ancients?"

The pilot shrugged, "Dunno. That numbskull kid was tellin' me he was headin' the wrong direction, so maybe it's off this way?" He turned and pointed into the general direction that seemed to be south, slightly off to the east.

Yuffie jumped up and started to bounce with her usual excitement, "No! No! Look, look!" She pointed toward west.

Everyone turned and saw dark shapes that looked like land looming toward them.

Vincent stood up and walked away from the young teenager, knowing where they were heading.

"It's Wutai!" She exclaimed, "We have to go there! It's my home!"

Cloud and Barret gave each other a look and nodded, thinking of the same thing, a chance to dump the girl.

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Zack laughed so hard that his gut felt like it was bursting, "You got to be kidding me! I leave for several days on a mission and I come back and find all of this has happened? Man, I would have loved to see the whole thing!"

Reeve gave a tight-lipped smile, "I know." He was half scowling and half smiling, he wasn't happy that Cloud nearly broke the cat. He shrugged, "Yeah, that little Yuffie was something else all right, quite a thief."

Zack had left several days ago, around the time the party had reached Rocket Town, on a duty trip to Fort Condor and returned to find Avalanche had escaped from Rufus's grasp and landed in the middle of the ocean.

After that, Avalanche reached the shore of Wutai only to have their entire collection of Materia stolen from them, causing them to go after the youth who had stolen all their valuable stones and was forced to play hide and seek all over the village of Wutai. They eventually encountered Yuffie's father, finding out that he was Lord Godo, and eventually learning a bit about Wutai and its problems.

Unfortunately, they also ran into the Turks who were vacationing on the large island. They even learned that they were actually heading to the Temple of Ancients and found the correct direction with help of Elena's tendency to making slips of the tongue.

It was an eventful few days, not only they ran into the ShinRa, they even ran into Don Coreno, who had briefly kidnapped Yuffie and Elena for his sick pleasure. The Avalanche eventually rescued the two women and the Turk, Rude, pushed Coreno off Da Chao Mountain to his death. The Turks left without a fight but a promised one in the near future.

"So, they're heading toward the Temple of the Ancients?" Zack asked as he heard the entire story.

Reeve nodded as he pointed to the map that was pinned on the wall, it was the map of the planet, showing every continent, and there was pins stuck here and there, showing the places where Avalanche had been to along with several black pins indicating locations where Sephiroth had appeared. There were also pins for the ShinRa and the Turks as well.

"I found the exact location and gave it to them. Here…" He stood and pointed to a white pin on a large island south of Junon.

Zack slapped his hand on his forehead, "Whew, that's pretty far, and rather secluded."

"Yeah, also a great place to pick up exotic things. " Reeve noted and returned to the monitor to see where the group was. They were still sailing over the ocean in the repaired Tiny Bronco.

"Let me know when they get there." Zack said as he turned to leave.

"Wait, they're almost there. The temple is deep in the forest, mostly hidden from sight offshore."

Zack returned to Reeve's side and watched the monitor, "Look, its there." He pointed to the far bottom left of the monitor screen where the robotic cat was looking. A jagged stone peeked above the jungle's canopy.

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"There." The cat pointed to the hidden wall not very far from the group's left. They had landed on the beach of the large islands of the Southern Isles and ventured off into the jungle. They followed the cat and found the crumbling ancient wall of the temple.

Cloud looked over to Aeris and sensed something, like she should get everyone out of here. She shook her head, it was important that they came here. There was an object inside the temple that would cause ultimate destruction and Cloud knew it.

For a short time, she and Burgenhagen had discussed about things that were written in the Tome and he had explained to her that there was several objects belonging to the Valkyries. All of the rare and special Summon Materias once belonged to them, but it wasn't mentioned in the tome why and how the Summon Materias came to being. Burgenhagen told her of two rarer Materias that causes polar effect of each other, one being a black and one being a white one. The black one would bring destruction upon the entire planet if it ever falls in the wrong hands.

Cloud, as she was studying with Burgenhagen, she had image of a large black sphere with dark aura, absorbing light into it. She was surprised to find that she had access to her Valkyrie genetic memories. The image came with feeling and the feeling was foreboding and she knew, the object was dangerous. Also, the link between her and Sephiroth had given her link toward the 'Bad Sephiroth' and she learned he was also after the object as well. It became the Avalanche's next goal to find it and they learned they weren't the only one who was also searching for it, the ShinRa was too.

"All right, everybody. We're not going in now; we all know where it is. We're going to rest and go in early tomorrow morning. Looks like we beat ShinRa here." Cloud announced and moved away from the entrance after they had arrived the island and found the temple.

Nobody else complained, they wanted their deserved rest. They've been traveling and searching all over the forest for the temple. The party broke up once they reached the beach and made camp.

Cloud silently slipped away from the party and ventured into the jungle to have time to herself. She wanted to be alone to think, recollectiong what had happened in the past few days. She found she liked to recall memories and resort them, making senses of them, it had became a habit for her to go off alone and think. It gave her sense of peace knowing she still have her memories.

Before the Avalanche came to the island, Reeve told them that they had to find an artifact, rather a key to enter the temple. They had redirected their trip toward the small island off the coast northeast of Gongaga and met with a weapon maker. The man told them of the artifact, the Keystone and it had been sold to a collector who happened to be Dio, the owner of Battle Arena in Gold Saucer.

When they made their second trip to the Gold Saucer, they met with Dio and Cloud got to take a look at his collections. He also had a large black sphere and Cloud found it was a fake. The entire time, Avalanchers did not know they were really after a Black Materia, only they were aware that there was an object the ShinRa and Sephiroth was after and they had to get to it first. No one asked question but agreed to the mission.

Dio refused to sell the Keystone. Cloud spent several hours with Dio over the price and in the end, he made a deal, wanting her to entertain him in a private viewing of her battle ability in the Battle Arena. Cloud agreed and did several rounds in his arena and in the end; she obtained the Keystone with a promise to return it after they were done with it.

The downside to the entire trip was the trolley back to North Corel was broken and they were forced to stay overnight at the Ghost Hotel. Cloud scowled at the memory and remembered they were ahead of the ShinRa this time around, even if they had been delayed at the Gold Saucer.

In her secluded spot not far from the camp, she was able to hear Yuffie and Cid arguing over the tents, chuckling at the amusement of their argument. The sword rested on her crossed legs as she sat on a rock and she pulled a rag out of one of her many hidden pocket of her pants and started to polish the sword. She chuckled at the memory that came to her of the night at the Gold Saucer.

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The Ghost Hotel, famous for its gimmick of being a haunted house moaned eerily as the Avalanche stood in the lobby, waiting for Cloud to pay for a few rooms. Yuffie had screamed at the sight of the hangman behind the counter when he dropped down. She also screamed as Vincent clamped his cold, clawed hand on her shoulder, only intending to calm her down.

The reaction resulted in the opposite of his intention causing Vincent to smirk behind his collar, enjoying the unexpected reaction from the girl. He figured it would be fun to scare her once in a while, her reaction was entertaining.

Avalanche was stuck with Yuffie after they left Wutai because her father had disowned her and she had nowhere else to go. Cloud buckled under peer pressure and allowed her back on the team. She figured, she would be an good asset someday and she had to admit, Yuffie was a good fighter and holding well on her own. She knew the group needs a comic relief.

"Oh! Leave me alone, you vampire!" She shouted at the tall ex-Turk and went to hide behind Cloud's back.

"Very nice." Nanaki chortled as he sat on his rump next to Vincent.

"I didn't mean to. I only wanted to calm her down." Vincent replied.

The wolf looked up at him, grinning, "Then why do I hear a hint of glee in your voice?"

Vincent glared at the wolf and turned his attention back to Cloud who was about to announce to the rest of the team. "Look like we'll have to stay overnight, we will leave in the morning." Cloud said and glanced down at the paper in her hands, "We got few rooms but we will have to share some of them." She looked up, "I am not sharing with anyone tonight but Cait Sith may power down there."

Tifa masked her distress quickly and with false happiness, she latched onto Aeris' arm, "I'll room with her."

Yuffie joined their side, "Me too, I'm not staying with anyone else since there's no other women." The three of them took the key from Cloud and went up to their room.

Barret went over to the lounge area nearby and whomped his fist onto Cid's head where he was dozing off in a chair. Cid jumped with a start and looked around, brandishing his javelin, "Who did that?" He spat.

Barret laughed, "Come on. Jes get up to our room so ya can get da beauty sleep." Cid punched Barret's arm as he passed by him to the stairs.

Cloud turned to the remaining two of the group, "One more room, you two are going to share?" Vincent and Nanaki nodded together and they received the key from her. She had noticed the two of them seemed to be developing some kind of bond as much Barret and Cid was too, finding common interests and personality among them.

Cloud soon followed them upstairs and went to her room and slumped on the lone bed, she had gotten the big room, out of her own expense. Cait Sith had hobbled to the corner of the room and the Mog powered down while the cat hopped off and went over to the large bed and curled up at her feet.

"You had to pick the room where Sephiroth stayed the night when we first came here for a mission?" The cat asked.

Cloud smiled, "You remembered, didn't you Zack?"

The cat sat up, "Yes, you didn't come back until morning; I was surprised that you guys didn't do anything else but kiss and talk."

Cloud shook her head, "I wasn't ready and I rather not to until after marriage." She sighed sadly, "May never get to anyway, it's a life and death journey we are on." She sat up and picked the cat to hold it on her lap, she stroked its black fur and chuckled slightly as she felt it purr and knew it was just the motor running inside the cat, "Zack… I'm curious."

"What is it?"

"The ring," She took off the glove and held her hand to his face to show the silver ring with green-blue stone in it, "It's from Sephiroth, but I don't remember how I got it. Do you?"

The cat shook its head, "I don't either. My memories, as much I have them, are still foggy."

Cloud nodded, "Right. Well, anyway."

"You know what it is in the Temple of the Ancients, don't you?" The cat asked as it turned in her lap to look up at her.

Cloud looked down to his black eyes, "I think so. The Black Materia, the real one, is there. We have to get it before the ShinRa get its hands on it, or even Sephiroth. Burgenhagen told me of the two rare Materia in the world, a black and a white, they both hold great destructive power. I don't have any ideas about the white but the black one is known."

"What can it do?" Zack asked, curious.

Cloud frowned, remembering the illusion of the meteor impacting on the planet, "I think it is powerful enough to call upon anything in the universe to destroy the Planet. Whoever unleashes it, will draw destructive force to the Planet."

"Intense. I agree we have to get it and keep it safe."

Suddenly, their head turned to the wall; there was some shouting in the next room. Cloud scrambled up and leaned against the wall from the bed, "Sound like Aeris and Tifa." She murmured and saw the cat's ears pivoted to the wall as well, knowing it could hear clearly in the next room and she was glad she had Mako-enhanced hearing as well.

"No way! You're not going to get Cloud and go traversing around Gold Saucer tonight!" They heard Aeris yell.

"Like if you wanted to do it yourself! He's my friend and I deserve some time with him alone!" Tifa yelled back.

Cloud rolled her eyes at the cat and sighed.

"Can't you two see it? He wants to be left alone! He doesn't care about you!" Aeris voice yelled, and two gasps came from Yuffie and Tifa.

"How could you say that?" Tifa asked, wide eyed at the so-called peaceful Avalancher.

Aeris looked down at her hands, "Oh my, I didn't mean for that to come out. But it is true, he doesn't care about us. All he cares about is Sephiroth."

There was some silence.

"Ouch, cat fight between Tifa and Aeris?" The cat asked as he sat back down.

Cloud laughed softly, "That's weird, and then they had it coming. Ew, they both have crushes on me? If they knew, they'd flip!"

"Why didn't you tell them?"

"I can't, not yet."

"Hojo knows. I am sure Reno did too… I can't be too sure yet. But why not them?"

In the other room, Aeris sat down on her bed while Tifa did the same on hers. The brunette asked, "So, you want him too?"

Aeris nodded, studying her hands, "But at Costa I figured there'd be no way. He had his mind and heart set on one thing, perhaps his soul as well."

Tifa sighed, "Yeah, Sephiroth."

"But that doesn't mean you can still try to go after him after that. He wouldn't stand for it."

Tifa growled and leapt toward Aeris, knocking her down onto the ground, "Dammit, that's goes for you too! I can tell you're planning something!"

"Get off me you bimbo!" Aeris yelled, struggling against the taller girl's grasp.

Yuffie bounced on her bed, "Ooh!" she yelped and laughed at the two women going at each other, pulling at hair and clothes, scratching wherever they could.

"Ow! That hurt!"

"Damn you, flower bitch!"  
"Take that back, busty!"

They kept going on for some time until Yuffie opened the door, "Oh, hi Cloud! They're fighting over you." She grinned cheekily.

Tifa under Aeris looked up from the floor, their hair disheveled, a few red scratch marks adorning their faces and arms.

Cloud kept a straight and bored face even she was laughing on the inside, "I heard. Can you two be quiet? The others are trying to sleep." She then turned away and went back to her room, chuckling under her breath at the looks on their faces when she had told them that.

Yuffie slapped her mouth, stifling her oncoming laugher.

Tifa and Aeris blushed and moved away from each other, straightening out their clothes and hair.

"It wasn't what it looked like!" Tifa yelled at the wall between the girls' room and Cloud's.

"I know! But it did look like it!" Cloud yelled back, "Have fun!" At that, they both blushed deep red.

Aeris turned her back to Tifa while the brunette crawled into her bed.

Midnight approached; soon the fireworks would go off outside the hotel windows, most likely waking up half of the guests that had opted to stay there that evening. It was quiet throughout the hotel except for the eerie sound effects broadcast through the building to maintain the atmosphere.

Cloud stood before the window, watching the dazzle and sparkle of Gold Saucer below. She turned to the door as a soft knock rapped and she went to answer and found Aeris standing there, looking sweet and innocent, a little guilty look crept into her face.

"I am sorry about earlier, I was mortified when you heard everything.

Cloud gave her a lopsided grin and gestured to the cat curled up on her bed, "Me and the cat."

Aeris dropped her head down, "Tifa would be so upset if she finds me here. But I was thinking…" She looked up and smiled, "How about we go on a date?"

Cloud smirked in amusement, trying to cover her mild shock, "Uhm?"

"Well, you promised me one when we first met."

It hit the blonde hard as she remembered, she groaned, "Oh, right."

Aeris stepped into the room and looked around, "Oh, it's so dreary here, but very nice…"

Cloud shrugged, "Suited my tastes for now, don't worry, it's out of my own pocket anyway. I guess I'll take you up on your offer. I am not tired either, but remember, no strings attached."

"Right, I figured that we would go out tonight, maybe we'll talk?"

Cloud grabbed her boots and sat on the bed to pull them on. Aeris watched the blond fighter strap the boots on, her brow creased lightly in a frown, almost unnoticeable. She saw that 'his' feet were small, unusually small and delicate, even covered with socks. She remembered Zack had large feet and she saw Cloud's hands, they were covered in gloves, even if 'he' removed the gloves, they would be still covered with the thin black gloves that were under the brown ones.

It started to occur to her that she had seen Barret and Cid removing their shirt while dealing with difficult tasks during their travel and Cloud had never removed farther than the black shirt 'he' wore under the tank top. Even, 'he' never removed the gloves at any time, even in sleep. She sighed, concluding that Cloud was even more of a private person than she had thought. 'Who is 'he', really?' She asked herself.

"Ready to go?" She snapped out of her thoughts and smiled.

"Yeah," she took 'his' offered arm and they both silently left the hotel.

It was 'Enchantment Night'; all of the attractions were free. They ended up going on several rides and events. They even got into the theater and got roped into being a part of the stage presentation. Aeris got her lines wrong and punched a guy in the face then she knocked the actor in dragon outfit off the stage.

After that, they went on to the gondola. It was a ride that took them high above the Gold Saucer and around it.

"Wow, how nice." Aeris beamed as she looked out of the window. Cloud sat on the other bench opposite from Aeris, "Oh! Look, Cloud!" She started to lean too far out of the window.

Cloud winced as a flash back came to her mind, she was seeing herself, a younger self in blue and white dress leaning dangerously out of the window, exclaiming about the chocobo races that were below them.

"_Oh look! Chocobo racing is on! I can see all the chocobos!" _She heard herself squeal. Then she felt the warm hand grab her waist and she sat back down, staring into the green warm eyes.

"_Please do not do that again…" _He admonished lightly, smiling at her.

"_You forget, I have a strong grip, all that training from Soldier."_ She remembered laughing.

"_It is easy to forget you were ever in Soldier when you are in a dress…" _He had replied. The memory faded however, leaving her with painful heartache.

"Cloud?" Her eyes cleared from daze, finding herself looking in a different set of green eyes, concern flittered across the owner's face. "You seemed out of it just now." She sat back down, the little cabin stopped above the Gold Saucer as the fireworks started to go off.

"Oh, it's just nothing." Cloud shrugged it off and looked out of the window, watching the fireworks. She heard Aeris sigh.

"I am trying to figure you out. You are a total mystery to me, perhaps to everyone else."

Cloud turned back to her.

"You remind me so much of him, the way you walk, the gesture; it's almost that I could see him in you. But you two are completely different people and I know that."

"Zack, right?" Cloud asked, knowing it was him.

"Yes." She nodded.

"He was the one who taught me everything. Even my sword once belonged to him. Maybe I did pick up some mannerisms from him."

Aeris gave a soft smile, "At least you know him. It is nice to know someone else who knew him."

"You know he's alive." She saw the other woman nod. "Why don't you want to talk to him or something?"

She looked away, "I… I am not ready."

"But, anything could happen to us on this journey." Cloud said.

"I know. I have a different destiny and I don't think it would do any good." Aeris murmured. She glanced to the sky; the firework went off, shooting sparks of colored embers. "I'm trying to figure you out." She turned back, meeting her green eyes to Cloud's blue, boring gaze, "I want to meet you…"

Cloud was taken aback; she had thought the entire time the Aeris was flirting with her, trying to win her over. But it was something else and she realized the other woman was serious. "I am here." She replied.

"No." Aeris shook her head, her hair swished along. "The real you, the one you hide from everyone. The real you who know Sephiroth. You just don't want to kill him but to find him. Perhaps, save him?"

Cloud broke their eye contact and glanced to the floor of the cabin they were riding in, "I am sorry. I cannot let anyone know the real me."

"Does Zack?"

"Zack do. He is my soul brother, so he knows everything about me."

"I see." The cabin reached ground and Aeris stood, opening the door, "Thank you, I am glad we had fun tonight. See you in the morning." Then she left.

Cloud sighed and stepped out of the cabin as well. She frowned as she watched the Cetra woman disappear; she had dug too deep, too close to her secret. At least she stopped and left it alone.

Aeris reached her room and entered, sighing as she leaned back on the door. She would eventually find out, and soon.

The next morning, Cait Sith had disappeared, stealing the Keystone. Cloud had searched all over the Gold Saucer in a rage and found him. She had then learned that someone broke in the lab back in Midgar and taken control; it was suspected that there was someone else at the ShinRa doing the Turks' dirty work. Cloud was able to retrieve the keystone and kept it hidden on herself. Zack and Reeve had rebuilt the control of Cait Sith and installed it on a laptop so it would be safe and hidden.

Unfortunately, Avalanche learned a ShinRa employee was behind Cait Sith and wasn't nearly as trusting toward the cat anymore. Cloud couldn't do anything but stand on the sidelines. And the location of the Temple was revealed and they were off.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Avalanche stood at the entrance of the temple gazing into the area. There was bridge leading to the building surrounded by a chasm that looked so deep it appeared to be bottomless.

Aeris knelt to the ground, gasping, "This is… the Temple of the Ancients… I.. I know… I feel it… the knowledge of the Ancients."

Cloud knew what she was talking about, she could feel it too, but not as powerful as Aeris could, after all, Aeris was a Cetra. The Valkyries had stronger bond with the Planet than the Cetra but not the same kind of bond as the Cetra had with the spirits of their own people. She suspected the Cetera also had genetic memory as well, passing down generations.

Aeris kept whispering in prayer, "You could become one with the Planet, but you're stopping it with the strength of will, for the future? For us?" She asked to no one.

Cloud knelt to Aeris' level, "What are you saying? Do you understand them?"

The russet-haired woman didn't reply but got up and ran across the bridge and into the temple. Cloud and the others ran after her, watching in caution. They found her at the stairs that led to the top; she was looking up, her face troubled.

"You're uneasy, but happy?" Confusion crossed her face then; she twirled around, as if she was looking at something around her, not seeing the group, "Because I am here? I am sorry, I don't understand."

Yuffie crossed her arms across her chest, huffing as she leaned against Cid, "I don't understand either."

Cid grunted and shoved her off, irritated with her. She punched him in the arm and proceeded to ignore him.

Cloud could feel the air crackle with electricity and knew it was the spirits surrounding them, communicating with Aeris. "She's talking to the Ancients, her kinds. She can hear and talk to them; they're in the lifestream, in the Planet." She explained. She watched Aeris while she searched with her mind, searching for a familiar presence, she called out, _'Sephiroth, are you here?'_ It bothered her that he didn't reply; he hadn't in a long time.

She snapped back with strong force, he was there, he was inside the temple and she knew it. He was deliberately ignoring her. The link in her mind was severed but she could still feel him.

Aeris finally took noticed of Avalanche before her and crept up to Cloud, "I want to go inside!" She exclaimed with fresh joy.

Cloud gave a nod and they all climbed the stairs to enter the Temple. Just inside however they found a Turk slumped against an altar.

Aeris ran to him, "its Tseng."

The Wutaian Turk groaned as Aeris helped him to sit up. Cloud watched closely, "Tseng?" She asked.

Tseng coughed, blood spilled out of his lips, "Uh, I've been had." Then he slumped down on the altar, "It's not the Promised Land… Sephiroth's searching for…"

Cloud narrowed her eyes, something was amiss here, "Sephiroth, he's inside." She stretched out her senses and found him deep inside the Temple, he was trying to avoid her, yet there was something else, something that chilled her to the bone.

Tseng raised his hand toward the altar, "Look for yourself…" His hand fell to his side, weak and spent, "Damn…" He looked up at Aeris and smiled sardonically, "Letting Aeris go was the start… of my…" He coughed some more, "Bad luck… the President was wrong…"

Aeris frowned at the Turk, "You're wrong; the Promised Land isn't what you imagined." She turned away from everyone, "And, I am not going to help. Either way, there is no way ShinRa could have won." She stalked away, letting some steam off.

Tseng struggled to get up, "Pretty harsh, sounds like something… you'd say." He pointed to Cloud, "The Keystone you have, place it on the altar." Then he dragged himself off to a corner and slumped down there.

Cloud turned to Aeris and gestured for her to come, as the woman came closer, she saw her face, "You're crying?" She reached to wipe the tears off.

"Tseng's always been part of the enemy, the Turks, but I've known him since I was little…" a muffled sob escaped her lips, "There's not a lot of people I can say about that, in fact, there are probably only a handful of people in the world who really know me."

Cloud nodded, understanding the dilemma, she herself was the same way. "Let's put the Keystone in." She turned to the altar, taking the Keystone and fitting the strange object into the matching crevice in the stone, like the key its name implied it to be. The altar glowed bright blue, turning the whole room bluish tint. The floor started to rumble and shift. Everyone braced themselves as the floor lowered to another level, deeper into the temple.

Aeris turned around, gasping. The other did the same, finding themselves into a maze underground. "Words… feelings… so many of them here," She whispered, the air crackled.

Tifa stepped up to Aeris, "What a strange place, do you think we're welcome here?"

Aeris shrugged, not able to answer but took Cloud's arm, "Cloud! I know it's going to be tough, but don't give up! We can do it."

The group started to navigate though the maze, it wasn't really all that complex but still it was strange. A creature ran across their path, it looked like some sort of strange rabbit and Aeris suggested Cloud catch it. They went after the creature for a while and finally caught up with it.

Aeris knelt down, "Phew! We finally caught up to you. I am sorry, you waited for me." She spoke to it. She looked up at the rest of Avalanche, "Those are the spirit bodies of the Ancients, and they've been away from the Planet for so long, to protect this Temple. Over many years, they've lost the ability to speak." She tilted her head, finger to her chin as she thought, "Actually, they didn't need words from the beginning because there was only one objective for those who were left in the Temple." She turned to the creature, "Please talk to me."

Cloud watched the Cetra, frowning. The rest were clueless.

"No good, I don't understand the rest. Are you afraid?" Aeris asked. Then Cloud was caught by surprise, "Is it because Sephiroth is in the Temple? Or something else?" She turned to the blond fighter, "Cloud?"

Cloud swallowed, "Yes, he's here. But something's wrong. Let's go." "He' helped Aeris up.

They went though the rest of the maze, encountering with few similar creatures and several difficult obstacles. No one complained but it was real difficult for them physically and emotionally because they could feel the vibes emanating from the building around them. Cloud could feel more than the rest, much like Aeris; however the Cetra took the full brunt of it yet was still holding up on her own.

At the end of the maze, they found a hallway that glowed purple, the light coming from water surrounding a stone platform that they could cross. In the center Aeris knelt at the edge of the stone platform. "Whoa, we did it." She sighed in relief as the emotionally burdening vibes left them.

Cloud turned to the others, "Everyone all right?" She asked, receiving affirmative answers from them all.

The light around the hallway flashed briefly. Aeris jolted and pointed, "Cloud, come quick!" She shouted frantically, "Hurry, this way." Everyone followed and entered a room that glowed bright purple. Aeris looked up, her arms spread out, "it's full of knowledge of the Ancients. No, not knowledge… consciousness… a living soul…" She raised her arms higher, "It's trying to say something," And then she knelt down by the pool that was in the room. "I'm sorry, I don't understand."

Cid nudged Vincent and whispered, "Is it me, or had she gone wacko?" He wagged his finger near his head, signing 'crazy'.

Vincent gave him a glare with his hard crimson eyes, saying 'shut up'.

Cloud had heard Cid and shook her head.

Aeris leaned closer to the water in the pool, "What? What is it?" After a while, she finally stood up, "Danger? An Evil… consciousness… Cloud knows?" She turned to Cloud, "They're saying you know of this consciousness."

Cloud was taken aback, "I sense it too. But I am not sure what it is. It's new to me." She looked around the room and tried her link with Sephiroth again, it was so weak but she understood.

Aeris stepped to Cloud, "Cloud, there's something you're not telling us."

Cloud snapped back to Aeris, "You're right. I had a link with Sephiroth the entire time, but lately he's disappeared from my mind."

The rest of Avalanche gasped. Tifa stepped up to them, "How can you? We've been following you all over the planet and now you're telling me, you knew where Sephiroth was the entire time?"

Cloud shook her head, "No, that's not it. I said I had connection with him, but nothing more."

"How can we trust you?" Tifa asked.

Cloud couldn't answer and Aeris tugged at 'his' arm; "They're going to show us, look," She pointed to the pool.

The pool showed image of Tseng in the background, in a room deep in the temple, the wall around them had intricate murals. He was studying them. Elena soon came running in.

"Tseng, what is this? Can we find the Promised Land with this?" Elena asked.

Tseng turned to her, "I wonder. Anyway, we have to report to the President."

The blond female Turk nodded and started to leave, "Be careful, Tseng."

The man smiled, "Yeah… hey Elena, how 'bout dinner after this job over?"

Elena smiled, "Thank you very much, if I may be excused…" And she was gone.

Tseng looked down for a moment and then returned to studying the wall, "Is this the Promised Land? No, it can't be…"

The pool flashed white and they could see a transparent form of Sephiroth float in behind Tseng. The Masamune was unsheathed, raised. Tseng turned around; his eyes went wide with surprise and fear, "Sephiroth!"

Sephiroth's face was cold and calm, "So, you opened the door. Well done."

Tseng stared at the former General, "This place… what is it?"

Sephiroth tilted his head sideway slightly, "A lost treasure house of knowledge. The wisdom of the Ancients…" He turned around halfway, raising his arm up, "I am becoming one with the Planet."

Tseng furrowed his brows, "One with the Planet?"

"You stupid fool. You have never even thought about it. All the Spirit Energy of this Planet, all of the wisdom, the knowledge, I will meld with it all. I will become one with it… it will become one with me. A gift from Mother."

"You can do that?" Tseng asked with jaw slacked.

"Only death awaits you all, but do not fear." As if Sephiroth was speaking to everyone within the Temple, he raised his sword and slashed with few skillful motions. Tseng groaned and fell to the ground.

The pool turned red, deep crimson and thick like blood. The Avalanchers gasped and stepped back from the pool as the voice of Sephiroth surrounded them, "For it is though death that a New Spirit energy is born. Soon you will live again, as part of me."

Aeris held her hands to her mouth from screaming, her eyes wide, fear shining in them. Tifa looked pale and shaky as Yuffie clamped onto her arm.

Cloud seemed to be the only one unaffected by the scene, "Where is that room with the pictures on the walls?" She asked; her voice suddenly cold and hard like steel.

Vincent turned his head to the blond fighter, shock flashed across his face for a moment. He wondered, how can a person feel nothing?

"Almost there…" Aeris pointed down in general direction where the room would be.

Cloud steeled, "Sephiroth is here." Her eyes became dark midnight blue with storm brewing within, "No matter what he thinks, it's going to end here." She unlatched her sword from her back.

The wolf stalked behind Vincent, watching Cloud's back as they all followed 'him'. Something had changed within the blond fighter and he could sense it. Something else was wrong as well; nothing had been right since they had all stepped into the Temple.

The group reached a room shaped like a clock, two arrows moved around as if to tell the time, directing to doors around the room, there were twelve doors. One of them had to be the right door.

"I am the Time Guardian, ye who seek the knowledge of the Ancients, I control the time, select your path." The voice floated around them.

Cloud glanced around the room, trying to figure out when the arrows would move, and to what doors, "There are twelve doors here, I guess we'll have to split up and check each one of them. Let's go." She stepped onto the arrow path and waited for it to move, it moved toward a door.

"I'm going in." Cloud announced and stepped up, opening the door and disappeared into the room.

Tifa clasped her hands together, "I hope it is not the wrong door. There are booby traps everywhere."

Then, they all heard bloodcurdling scream.

"That better not be Cloud." Cid muttered, his cigarette hanging from his lips, threatening to fall at any moment.

They saw Cloud rush out of the door and slam it behind 'him' with frantic look on her face, "Whoo…" She huffed and hopped back on the arrow.

"What was it?" Cait Sith asked, hopping on to the arrow as well. Cloud muttered something about monsters. "What was that? A Mu?"

Cloud growled, "Yes. There're Mus in there!" Avalanche cracked up. She scowled, "Hey! They were hopping all over me! I couldn't get them off!"

Barret clutched his stomach, "Aw come on! You liked them Mu!"

"One was enough!"

"You screamed like a girl…" Yuffie giggled.

Cloud's face grew hot, redness rising to stain her cheeks. She stomped off towards another door and entered. There could be heard sounds of battle coming from it. Cloud came back out with her sword a bit bloodied. "Got something," She tossed the vial of Elixir to Aeris and she put it in the bag.

Tifa turned her nose up, "Cloud, why don't you just use your link and find the right door, I mean, Sephiroth is in the right one, isn't he?"

Cloud scowled at her and sighed, "I'll try." She closed her eyes and tugged on the link; she turned around in the center of the room and pointed, "That one."

She opened her eyes and noticed the arrow path doesn't point to it at all. "Let's go."

They moved to the door and tried it, they found it was locked.

"Locked!" Cid grumbled.

Cloud turned and leaned back on the door, "Damn."

"Don't worry, we are close, it's almost over." Aeris tried to assure 'him'.

"Why do I feel like it's not even close to being over?"

Aeris shrugged, "I don't know. You have a different reason than the rest of us. I think each of us has our own reason why we are here."

Cloud understood, "What's yours?"

"To find out more about the Ancients, find who I am." Aeris smiled, "What about you?" Cloud didn't reply but looked away. "Your reason is Sephiroth, is it?"

"Yes."

Aeris patted Cloud on the shoulder, "For whomever you are, your reason must be important to you."

"Thanks." Cloud muttered and then suddenly, the door clicked, "It's unlocked now."

There was a little creature sitting behind to door, looking up to them, it turned and hopped away. They all took the clue to follow it. They went though a cave like structure and finally stopped before three doors. The creature disappeared.

"Not again, more doors! Which one is it, Cloudy?" Yuffie whined.

Cloud simply went to the right one, "Come on, I got enough of this place's maze." And they all entered the tunnel and found themselves entering the chamber with the murals.

Aeris gasped, "Oh my! It's so…" She became speechless as she wandered around, stunned.

Cloud stepped forward to the altar at the end of the room. She could feel his presence strongly in the room, "Where are you? Sephiroth!" She yelled angrily, feeling a fire burning within her chest.

The room flashed white and then suddenly, two images of Sephiroth appeared before them, one was kneeling on the ground, as if spent. He was glowing white. The second one was above him, with evil smirk, emitting black aura.

"So cold…" The white one whispered, shivering. Everyone stood back, watching, speechless.

Cloud gasped and ran to him, falling to her knees, "Sephiroth?" She reached out only to have her hand pass through him, but she knew he was the real one, the one she had been fruitlessly trying to get hold of.

He looked up; there was sorrow and regret in his eyes, along with love within, "I am always by your side, koibito." He whispered softly so only she heard him before he disappeared.

Cloud fought back tears and stood up, facing the second one who floated away toward the murals.

"Splendid." The second Sephiroth smirked as he crossed his arms.

Cloud seethed, whoever this was, he had stolen Sephiroth's identity. She stared at him, sensing that his body wasn't the original one. This one had presence of Jenova within him. However, it wasn't Jenova they were facing but a new consciousness, Sephiroth was right, it was the cloned body and it housed the spirit of Calamity of the Sky.

"Who are you?" She spat at him.

He smirked, "A treasure house of knowledge… Look well." He chuckled.

"At what?" She asked, looking at the mural, not understanding what it meant.

"At that this adds to the knowledge of…" He replied and raised his arms up, "I am becoming one with the Planet." He lowered his arms again and turned to Cloud, laughing again. The room flashed again in a blinding light, he disappeared from Cloud's side and reappeared at the Altar.

"Mother… it's almost time…" He spoke, to no one. "Soon… we will become one." Cloud blinked as she stared in surprise, the memory that night in Nibelheim came to her, finding the dialogue familiar.

"Yeek! He's obsessed with becoming one with the Planet." Yuffie squeaked from the side, no one bothered to pay attention to her.

Aeris stood there with her hands at hips in an almost comical manner, everyone else assumed an offensive stance. They were all thinking the same thing; this Sephiroth was a nut, nuttier than the creatures that led them on a wild goose chase through the temple.

Cloud thought differently, she was trying to figure the purpose of Jenova behind the whole thing. There seemed to be someone else playing a different part of this game. Whoever this Sephiroth was he was up to something and she suspected it had to do with the Reunion the cloaked figures had spoken about and the destruction of the planet, but she couldn't find a connection between the two.

"How do you intend to become one with the Planet?" Aeris' question interrupted Cloud's thought.

Sephiroth turned away from the altar, gazing down at Aeris with a cold smile, "It's simple. Once the Planet is hurt, it gathers Spirit Energy to heal the injury." He chuckled.

Cloud's eyes widened in horror as she understood, remembering the lesson she had with Burgenhagen.

"The amount of energy gathered depends on the size of the injury." Sephiroth continued.

Cloud turned away and looked back at the mural, understanding what the next part would be.

"What would happen if there was an injury that threatened the very life of the Planet?" His evil smile faded, his face masked into shadow with only his eyes glowing, "Think how much energy would be gathered." He glanced at Cloud and gave her a secret smile.

Cloud shuddered in horror. "Heartless." She whispered.

He crackled, "And at the center of that injury, will be me. All that boundless energy will be mine." He then drew the Masamune, slashing the air, "By merging with all the energy of the Planet, I will become a new life form, a new existence. Melding with the Planet, I will cease to exist as I am now, only to be reborn as a god to rule over every soul in the galaxy."

Aeris shook her head, "How can you do that? You need a body that is capable of merging with the very essence of the Planet, the Cetra can't, and neither can the humans either."

The dark Sephiroth chuckled, "Why don't you ask your little dear leader," He pointed the sword to Cloud.

"Cloud?" Aeris turned to him, "What did he mean?"

"He's going to use a body of a Valkyrie." Cloud answered, still staring at the dark Sephiroth, "You're going to use Sephiroth's body, he is strong enough, his blood is practically Mako, that's why you've chosen him. That's where you stashed his body at."

"That's right." He chuckled softly, "His body will be mine," He leaned down to her, whispering, "Shall you be my queen? Think of all the power you can have."

Cloud snapped away from him, snarling as the air in the room turned icy cold, "That will never happen."

The Dark Sephiroth grinned, his body pulsing with white light, like a heartbeat, growing brighter and brighter until he rushed though Cloud's body like a wind, leaving her with a trace of thought, _:You shall be mine as well. I look forward to it, Koibito.: _Then he was gone.

Cloud shivered violently and dropped to her knees at the force, clutching her head, screaming as the pain filled her heart, "Where are you? Sephiroth!" She pounded her fists on the floor.

Aeris gasped as she heard something in Cloud's voice, something she would never thought of, not anger but despair. "Cloud…" She watched 'him' clench 'his' fists, curled in tight ball before them.

Tifa stepped back as she realized the same thing, a question running in her mind, why would Cloud call for Sephiroth? Calling as if 'he' wanted him to come back, something was amiss here.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Review, please?_


	25. S2:11: Angels

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Eleven: Angels

_For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways._

Psalm 91:11, the Holy Bible

Cloud was glad that Avalanche decided to leave her alone to her misery. After a while, she was able to calm down and regain her composure, having decided to ease her mind by studying the mural on the walls.

The Avalanchers had scattered around the room to study the walls as well, trying to make sense of the images, though they had learned it was simply history of the Cetra, about how they had found the Planet and moved in, inhabiting the lands. Then the history changed when they found images of where the Cetra started to die out, by an illness that arrived with a meteor that crashed long time ago. According to the mural the illness was contiguous, going from body to body, one by one, but they had no idea how to contain it.

Aeris had soon found the mural stating a woman came down from the mountain, she had come to their city in the Promised Land and she was saddened at the sight of dead bodies around, and found a sole survivor, only to have the illness catch her making her was the last known person to carry the illness. Her name wasn't stated on the wall, however her description was, she was tall, willowy with pale skin and brilliant blue eyes that shone like gems, and her hair was long and golden. The mural stated that she wasn't of the Cetra but it called her 'Daughter of Gaia'.

That was when a few of the Avalanche members realized what she was, a Valkyrie. No one was brave enough to ask Cloud if it was true or not until Vincent voiced the question, "Cloud, is this 'Daughter of Gaia' Jenova?"

Cloud stared at the taller man, "Why would you think I know the answer?"

"You're the only one here who knows more about the Valkyrie, I may have not seen the Tome, but they told me about it. It was your book, and it was about the Valkyrie."

Cloud closed her eyes and nodded, "True, true. I have to agree, yes, it was Jenova. However, the tome said something about her that the murals here didn't." She looked around the room, glancing at the walls; it was all making sense except for one last part near the altar.

She went to the last part of the mural and studied while she explained, "Jenova, the daughter of Megamiki, who was the daughter of Gaia came out of the mountain alone. There was several Valkyries that came out to find out what was happening to the Cetra, but they did not return. Jenova left to investigate. Also, the other reason for a Valkyrie to leave the mountain is to find her mate and get pregnant to reproduce to carry on their legacy." She placed her hand on the wall and continued.

"She did find a man, her mate, a Cetra. She did become pregnant but at the time, there was a bloody masscare going on at the Ancient City, the home of the Cetra. She went there to see. It was a horrible bloody battleground. The Cetra was pitted against each other, killing each other off, it was not their intention, the illness, the Calamity of the Sky that came before, wounding the planet."

She turned around and met the Avalanchers' gaze. "There was no survivor left except for one, a woman. She went to help her and ask her what had happened. Upon contact, the illness, the virus invaded her body. The survivor died instantly.

Jenova did not know of this. The virus bided it's time, waiting for her to return to the Mountain. It couldn't survive in the body of the Cetra because they weren't strong enough, but a body of a Valkyrie, they could and it was a perfect host for them. So, Jenova returned to the mountain, her home. However, upon reaching her home, the virus took her over and Jenova lost control of her mind and body, her soul went to the only place, the child within her womb.

The other Valkyries knew what was going on and feared of her arrival. They decided to kill her, so the Sons of Valkyries waited for her and when Jenova entered the mountain, she was ambushed, her own brother, Alexander the Judge chopped her head off. They were surprised to find she was also pregnant and they took the baby out before it died with the body. The baby was untouched by the illness.

The Valkyries left the mountain, scattered all over the world. They took the head north, to the frozen wasteland and abandoned it. The head housed the virus while the body didn't. They also took the body and hid it elsewhere, far, far away. The Valkyries never returned to the mountain, except for one." She finished the tale, bowing her head.

"Who was the one?" Tifa asked, afraid she knew the answer.

Cloud looked up to her, "Sorano." She said and everyone gasped, they were familiar with her name, only knowing she was the girlfriend of Sephiroth in the past.

"So, she's dead. What's gonna happen?" Barret asked gruffly.

"Yeah. I am not sure." She hated to lie, but there was no way she would tell them the truth right now. They weren't ready, not Tifa. "There are very, very few left of the Valkyries in the world."

Aeris frowned at 'him' remembering at Burgenhagen that there was only three left, one was fading away. She had understood one belonged to Sephiroth and the two others must had been females and they weren't dead yet. It didn't make any senses but she did not voice her question but asked instead, "So, my father, Dr. Gast found Jenova's head?"

Cloud turned to the Cetra, "Yes, unfortunately. Now, this Jenova is loose. It want power, revenge and to become stronger."

"So that is why Sephiroth wanted to destroy the Planet, to use the Spirit Energy." Tifa concluded.

"Yes. How he can do that, I'm not so sure." Cloud turned back to the mural. Her shoulder then started to shake; the others watched 'him' with concern and confusion. "Ha, ha, ha. I get it now… the Black Materia… I was right the whole time." She chuckled and turned back to the rest. "It's here. Sephiroth couldn't get to it." She saw their confused looks, "The Black Materia, a powerful Materia, it's called the Meteor." She gestured to the mural. "It can call upon a meteor from space, summoning it to destroy the Planet."

"No…" Aeris whispered then gasped as she watched Cloud started to convulse and stepped to help 'him' but was thrown back by a strong force that burst from 'him'.

Everyone stumbled back, nearly falling as the force burst though the room, and Cloud fell to her knees and started to rock. A double version of Cloud rose out of her body, transparent. It hovered there briefly and suddenly disappeared for a few seconds before reappearing again. It stood up as Cloud's body fell to the floor, motionless.

The spirit of Cloud opened her eyes, her features started to change into brilliant light, blinding everyone. It took on the appearance of a beautiful woman, her hair long and flowing, she wore a white simple gown of an ancient style. She whispered, "I am Seraphim." Then she disappeared back into Cloud's body.

Everyone blinked as the light faded; they had not seen the woman, or heard her. Tifa and Aeris ran to Cloud and helped 'him' up.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Elsewhere in Midgar, Zack collapsed to the ground, shaking in violent seizure, he moaned, "No! No…" He was alone however; there was no one who could help him.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth stood before Cloud in the cold cave of his prison; he had managed to snatch Cloud's soul away from her body as Jenova had done to his.

"Cloud, do you know who you are?" He asked, touching her face, knowing they would have only the briefest of moments together; he had to force the awakening in her, a stage all Valkyries goes through once they reach their age.

Cloud nodded as she understood, everything came to her suddenly, all the genetic memory awoke in her, how, she has no idea but she knew who she was, what her destiny was. "Yes koibito, I am Seraphim."

Sephiroth smiled, gathering her into his arms as he looked down into her face, memorizing every plane of her feature, "Yes, you are Seraphim and I am Seraph, and do not ever let anyone change or manipulate you, ever. Fight, fight for me."

Ghostly tears escaped from her eyes, "Always." And she disappeared from his arms, leaving a tear behind, turning into ice as it fell into his hands. He smiled, closing his hands over the crystal.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud's eyes blinked over to find Aeris and Tifa by her side, worrying over her. She pushed herself from the ground, "How should I?" She stood up, but as she moved her arms, she felt a detached feeling.

Aeris clutched her hands to her mouth, trying to stifle a small scream. Cloud's body was moving and Cloud's soul was partly attached to it, moving in and out, not quite in sync.

"I remember, I remember who I am and who I will be." Cloud murmured to herself.

Aeris gasped as Cloud turned to her, "Cloud?"

"Mm, what's wrong? Is there something wrong?" The blonde asked unaware of her own situation, though she felt odd.

Aeris shook her head, "It's nothing. So don't worry about it." She turned to Tifa who was very pale, "Right, Tifa? There's nothing wrong?" Tifa only nodded.

"Sephiroth got away."

Cloud looked around, her eyes shifting colors from brilliant blue to pale blue. "Don't worry about it." She repeated, "I understood what he was saying." Her eyes looked to the mural, "So this is Meteor."

"Is it going to fall from the sky?" Tifa asked as the others looked on.

"This must be it, just as Sephiroth said." Aeris placed her hand on the mural, tracing the worn picture. "The ultimate destructive magic, Meteor. It finds small drifting planets with its magic." She turned to Cloud, "And then collides with them. This Planet might get wiped out… entirely."

Cloud shook her head experimentally and realized she was feeling normal, no more odd feelings and sighed, "Something like that, but rather the opposite, Black Materia calls the Meteor from the space, drawing it to the Planet where it is called upon. It doesn't matter how near or far the Meteor is, it just calls it, whatever happens to be the closest. You may get lucky if it is a small one." Then she looked away, "But we are not."

Tifa frowned, "You know something, don't you? You always seem to know something." She accused lightly.

Cloud gave her a half grin, "I can't help it. There's a big comet, a huge one that is bound to pass through the path of the Planet in less than a year, the Black Materia will draw it. That's what he wanted."

The room plunged into darkness and started to shake violently. Cloud, with her night-vision of Mako eyes looked about, "Sephiroth?" She called out.

His voice came from nowhere, "Ha, ha, close, but wrong." The Dark Sephiroth laughed and then the room became silent once again.

Yuffie screamed and everyone turned to her, flashing their flash-lights upon her to see what she was screaming about. Looming over them was a large red dragon that let loose a roar at them.

Everyone assumed battle positions except Yuffie and fought against the dragon. The dragon was difficult and everyone gave all they had, even some had to use their limit breaks. Soon as the dragon was defeated, a red Materia tumbled from somewhere unseen on its body.

"Any sign of him?" Cloud asked, clutching her arm, which had been cut during the battle and was bleeding badly. She ignored the pain and checked out the rest of Avalanche, they appeared fine but somewhat worse for wear. She could sense Sephiroth nearby.

Aeris was already at work to heal a few wounded team members, "He disappeared again."

Yuffie limped over to the red Materia and picked it up, "It's a summon one, Bahamut." She turned and handed it over to Barret who added it to the pack with the rest of the collection, to use later.

Cloud winced as the healing magic washed over her, healing her arm. "Thanks, Aeris."

The altar caught their attention; there was a tiny model of the Temple floating over it.

"What's this?" the blond fighter asked, peering closer.

Aeris leaned closer beside 'him', "There's something written on it." She jerked back in surprise, "Black Materia."

"There it is." Cloud furrowed her brows together, considering how to get to it.

"Cloud, what should we do?" Aeris asked, glancing to her side to Cloud.

"Take it." She replied.

"Wait! The Temple itself is the Black Materia."

"What's da mean?" Barret asked as he rotated his gun arm.

Aeris turned to the others, "The whole building is the Black Materia, and no one could take it. This model of the Temple, there's a device inside, which gets smaller each time you solve the puzzle, as the model become smaller, you become smaller too, until it is small enough to fit in the palm of your hand."

Cloud rubbed her cheek, "So, if we solve the puzzles, the Black Materia will get smaller and smaller and we can take it out?"

Aeris turned to 'him', "Yes but there's one thing… you can only answer the puzzles inside the Temple." She turned back to the others, "So, anyone who solves the puzzle will be crushed by the Temple."

Cloud's eyes studied the ground, "I see, he was waiting for us to do this, and then take it for himself. The Ancients didn't want dangerous magic to be taken out of the Temple so easily."

"Let's just leave it, okay?" Tifa suggested.

"No." Cloud retorted softly, "We've got to think of a way to get it out, because Sephiroth has a lot of different flunkies, he'll get one of them to do it." She waved her hands, "It's nothing to him to throw away their lives away to get the Black Materia." She turned back to the Altar, "This place isn't safe." She reached out and touched the miniature Temple and the room shook in small tremor.

"So, what are we going to do?" Aeris asked one again.

Cloud's cell phone rang and she took it out of her pocket and answered, "Cloud here." She looked to the others, "It's Cait. All right, I'll get everyone out of here." She looked to the others and waved her hand, telling them to leave. They left, leaving Aeris with her. "Thanks." She closed the cell phone together.

"Cait's going to do it." Cloud sighed, "We have no other choices. We better get out of here. He's waiting at the exit." She took Aeris's arm and they both left the room, making their way back though the Temple maze to the outside. They met with Cait Sith, waiting as he had promised.

"I'll handle the rest." Cait grinned.

Cloud nodded as she ushered Aeris across the bridge and called back,

"You be careful." Cloud smiled sadly at the cat and waved as it entered the temple, out of her sight. "Be strong, you silly thing." She murmured. They turned to find the others and greeted them. All they could do was to wait.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Reeve focused on the monitor, holding the controller as he manipulated Cait Sith though the Temple, dodging new sets of booby traps. He smiled after a while, wiping the sweats off his brow, he had done it. The temple was collapsing; his monitor blinked and went static. The robotic Cait Sith was no more, crushed.

Turning his seat around, his violet tinged blue eyes fell upon the second version of Cait Sith sitting in the room with him. He grinned, the second Cait Sith would rejoin Avalanche soon.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The ground begun to shake slightly, the Avalanche ran to see and stood outside the Temple area, watching the black mass of energy surrounding the building, consuming it; sparks flew here and there. Soon, there was nothing left but a big charred pit.

Cloud crept to the edge and peered into the pit, "There it is. The Black Materia." In the center of the pit sat an orb of blackness.

"We will wait here." Tifa suggested, the rest agreed silently.

Cloud shrugged and climbed down to the center, she picked the Materia and winced at the feeling that coursed though her arm to her body upon contact. It wasn't like any other Materia, the coolness and the strength of the energy it had was opposite of any normal Materia, absorbing energies instead of giving it out.

"As long we have this, Sephiroth won't be able to use Meteor. You think we can use it?"

Aeris knelt at the edge of the pit, "Nope, we can't use it right now. You would need a great spiritual power to use it, like those Valkyries, they would be able to use it for good."

Cloud glanced up to the woman, "I see." She looked back to the Materia, realizing she could use it but was unsure how. Perhaps when she learned, she would use it to save the Planet. She looked back to the healer, "You mean lots of Spiritual Energy, which the Valkyries could tap into?"

Aeris shrugged as she nodded, "That's right; one person's power alone won't do it. Somewhere special, if the person is not a Valkyrie, they have to go somewhere where there's plenty of Spiritual Energy… that's right, the Promised Land!"

Cloud held the black orb in her hand, unsure if she should let it go just yet, "The Promised Land… but no…"

Aeris caught on, "Sephiroth is using the Promised Land, it's where all the Spirit Energy gathers, and that's where it will be at."

Cloud turned to her, "He knows where it is. The real Sephiroth is there, his real body." She babbled, the others looked on with confusion and she realized they didn't understand, "Okay, I am not sure how it happened, the real Sephiroth's body is a Valkyrie, you all know that, right?" She saw them nod hesitantly, "He was kidnapped, taken there, held prisoner. Jenova used a clone," the other looked on puzzled, "Okay, Hojo has clones, he cloned Sephiroth and the one we've been chasing after is the clone which is controlled by Jenova."

Tifa made a face, "But, who were we really talking to in the Temple? You mean, that white ghost of Sephiroth is the real one?"

Cloud nodded, "Yes, his spirit is being held prisoner, the one we were talking to is a new consciousness, born of Jenova, the illness itself."

"Oh…" The others drawled, finally understanding.

"Nice conclusion, I'm rather impressed." They turned to find Dark Sephiroth hovering above the pit, clapping his hands. He smirked at Cloud, "You're impressive, and that's why I like you."

Cloud shot him a glare, "I won't let you do it! The future is not only yours!"

Sephiroth floated closer to them, his boot tips barely brushing the ground as he laughed coldly, "I wonder?" His eyes locked with her blue eyes. "Wake up."

Cloud gasped and grabbed her head, she felt a struggle in her mind and fell to the ground, "Sh… shut up!" She screamed. Her mind was being torn, the link to her real Sephiroth was severed and a new one formed. She had fallen into the pit.

The Dark Sephiroth floated down and knelt beside the struggling Cloud, her body and soul were almost separate, struggling against each other, "There, Cloud… that's a good girl."

"The… noise…." She moaned, everything was buzzing loudly inside her mind, screaming and struggling, "Aa… aaa…" Then, her body and soul separated, forcing the soul back with powerful burst. It floated, staring with shock as Cloud's body stood, stoic and holding the Black Materia up.

"Well done…" Dark Sephiroth chuckled and took the Materia, he fingered the orb in his hand and winked at the soul, "I'll see you soon." He then disappeared, gone from the place for good.

Cloud's body collapsed to the ground and the soul knelt, rejoining into the body.

Aeris ran down the pit, "Cloud! Are you all right?" The rest of the Avalanchers looked on, concerned as well.

"Oh," Cloud moaned, experiencing a splitting headache.

"Whoo, that's one nasty mess Cloud's in. Think he's sane?" Cid lit another cigarette.

Vincent glanced at the pilot, "There's more to this. This reveals more about Cloud's truth and past."

Barret shook his head and sighed, his shoulders slumped, "Da kid's messy."

The blond fighter blinked and felt a déjà vu going on, Aeris was kneeling by her head, looking down at 'him', "Oy…" She rubbed her head, feeling everything silent in her mind. She felt a sadness realizing her link to Sephiroth was gone, as well to Zack. She looked up at the healer's soft green eyes, "I gave the Black Materia to him, did I?"

Aeris helped 'him' up, clutching her hands over 'his'. "Yes."

"Oh damn, what have I done?"

"You haven't done anything; it's not your fault." Aeris soothed, helping 'him' out of the pit. She gasped as Cloud fell to 'his' knees, fainting.

Aeris picked 'his' head up, in futile attempt to wake the prone fighter up, "Cloud! Cloud, wake up!"

Tifa and Cid scrambled toward her, "What happened?" Tifa asked, kneeling beside the Cetra.

Aeris' eyes were brimming with tears, "I don't know. He just fell down and won't wake up!"

Cid picked the blond up by the shoulders, surprised to find 'him' very light, like feathers. "Hoo, he's skinny…" He muttered around his everlasting cigarette and started to give Cloud a shake but she only shook, not responding, her body was lax.

"Let's take him out of here and go somewhere we can get a good rest."

Aeris nodded in agreement with Tifa, "Let's go to Gongaga, that's the best place we know of around here and safe."

"Did ya'll forget that Tiny Bronco's broken? It'll take days to get there just floating." Cid announced.

Yuffie joined Cid's side, "Hey Ciddy, we got to fix it!" She said with determination on her face.

Cid grumbled, "So what?"

"We'll fix it!" She shouted back.

Cid muttered few strings of curses about Yuffie under his breath as he carried Cloud though the jungle to the beach where the plane waited for them. He nearly dropped Cloud, attempting to grab Yuffie for the remark she had made to Vincent. He didn't hear what she had said but knew she had said something and was giggling out control and Vincent had mirth in his eyes.

Tifa gasped, "Hey! Let him down easy!" She growled, her fits balled up, ready to punch the pilot.

Cid stepped back, setting Cloud down onto the sand, knowing Tifa's boxing ability was not to be fooled around with. He turned to Yuffie, ready to grab her by the scruff of her neck. As he did so, he lifted her up in the air, letting her feet and arms fail wildly, "You little brat! If you think you're so smart, you get to help me fix the Tiny Bronco, but if you make a mistake…" He growled.

Yuffie giggled nervously and grabbed his hand that held her up, "All right, all right. Just happened that I'm a 'Jacqueline' of All Trades, I'll help ya!"

"Good." Cid dropped her on her rump and stomped off to his plane. Yuffie scrambled up and went after him, Vincent and Red following after her.

"They better hurry up; we need to get Cloud someplace safe and restful. I think he has been exhausted with the whole ordeal he's been though." Aeris helped Tifa to carry Cloud away from the beach, finding 'him' oddly light as they did so.

Tifa huffed as she pulled the thin blanket up to Cloud's chin, "Yeah, this is getting worse. Cloud's the one who has been leading us though this whole thing and yet it has all backfired on him because of something going on in his mind. Really, I wonder what had happened to him in ShinRa and those few years he was missing."

Aeris looked up, "Missing?"

Tifa sat down and crossed her legs, Aeris followed suit. "Yeah, last time I saw him was in Nibelheim, I think. I wasn't too sure. It was when the town burned down few years ago. There was a group of Elite on a mission, supposedly to shut down the Reactor on the mountain which was all I know. I was the town's guide then; Sephiroth hired me to lead them up the mountain to the Mako Reactor." Tifa started, resting her head on her fist.

"Sephiroth and two other guys were there, with a woman. Yeah, that was Sorano. I think it was Zack as well; he was one of the Elites. The same Zack you knew the one from Gongaga. He was wild guy, pretty cool."

Aeris smiled sadly, "That's Zack."

Tifa shrugged, "Any way, when we got to the bridge that crossed a chasm, but it broke when we were on it. A guy fell to his death and we had to go on. Something happened when we go to the Reactor, they wouldn't let me in. Zack stayed with me while Sorano and Sephiroth went in. To come to think of it, Sorano's pretty close to Sephiroth." Tifa frowned, "I remember they were together most of the time, Zack told me something about them… I think Sephiroth was going to propose to her or something like that while they were there." She gazed away, recalling the memories that were starting to come back to her since they went to Nibelheim.

Aeris gasped, "Really, do tell. I've never heard of Sephiroth dating or anything, it was like, he's untouchable."

Tifa nodded, "Yeah. I remember how Sephiroth looked at Sorano, it was like he really loved her and she did too for him. Well," She reached into her pocket and pulled out a picture, "I found this, when we stopped at Nibelheim, it was in my piano, I guess ShinRa overlooked this. It was the only evidence of the real Nibelheim." She handed the photo to Aeris.

Aeris took it and gazed at the photo, there was four people in it, Tifa was standing, posing for the camera, she looked younger, a bit skinny. Zack was on her left, posing as well with his infamous grin, staring at the camera. On Tifa's right was the woman, a beauty in rugged. She wasn't smiling but staring at the camera, her body turned to Sephiroth who stood beside her; they looked pretty close. She looked tough while Sephiroth looked almost menacing yet his arm was hidden behind Sorano, almost as if he was holding her.

"So, that's Sorano, funny, she looks like Cloud." Aeris commented, studying the picture.

"Yes. They look like relatives; Cloud had never mentioned any other family."

Aeris handed the photo back, "So what happened after the Reactor?"

"Come to think of it, Sephiroth was sane at the time. He was nice, but he wouldn't be your favorite person in the world. He just acted stoic and cold; he only seemed to care about the business he was supposed to do…" She stopped, staring at Cloud, "Actually, the only person he only opens up to was Sorano and Zack, and as if they were the only ones in the world he trusted. Maybe they were, not even to the guy who fell to his death."

"I don't know what was going on in the reactor, but they both came out. Sephiroth looked angry; Sorano was with him, looking very pale. He was holding her. We went back to town, I was told to go home because it was strictly a ShinRa matter. The next day was horrible, Sephiroth set the whole town on fire, murdered a lot of people, including my father. I went after him with his own sword, which he left behind, but he was stronger and far more superior in combat skills. He wrenched the sword out of my grip and slashed me. I fell back, hitting the stairs. I remember it was real painful, I was bleeding badly. That was when Cloud came in and…" She stopped, frowning, "He picked me up and placed me aside. He went after Sephiroth. That was the last thing I remember before waking up in Midgar Hospital. I then learned that I was the only survivor from the town. So, that's when I started to make my life there since then."

Aeris looked to Cloud, "How can he be there, he wasn't on the trip."

Tifa shrugged, "I am not sure about that. Maybe it was actually Sorano and I wasn't thinking clearly. I was so sure it was Cloud though." She looked at the photo, studying the image of Sorano. Tifa thought she was pretty, though with right clothes and longer hair she would almost be a goddess. She could see why Sephiroth would fall for her. "Everyone in the town was afraid of Sorano when she showed up. Nibelheim fears the Valkyries because…" She paused, taking a deep breath, "the Valkyries left a curse on the town, promising the destruction. It came true, with Sephiroth as a Valkyrie, he destroyed the town."

"Oh my. So, was it also when Cloud went missing?" Aeris asked.

Tifa nodded as she pocketed the picture. "He disappeared, presumed dead. The newspaper said Cloud was on the mission with Sephiroth and the entire Elite team died in a bad reactor explosion; all four of them, Sephiroth, Zack, Cloud and the other guy, nothing about Sorano."

Aeris frowned, "That's strange."

"I asked few Soldiers that came into my bar, asked them about Sorano. They never heard of her, and get this!" Tifa leaned forward, "No women have ever made it into Elite, ever. Not even to Class One, the tests were impossible for them, they couldn't endure it. To get in Elite, you have to challenge Sephiroth and beat him in the combat. That's why it's so hard to get in."

Aeris looked at Cloud. Tifa got up and crawled into one of the other tents, wanting to be alone.

"Yo, where's Tif?" Barret came up to them.

Aeris pointed to the tent that the brunette had disappeared into, "Better leave her alone for a while."

Barret looked down at his feet where Cloud laid, "And him?"

"No, no change." She shook her head.

"Al'rite. Tiny Bronco's almost done fixin'." He announced and shrugged, "I suppose I'll get some wood." He turned and went into the jungle.

Aeris nodded at retreating Barret and turned back to Cloud, she reached out and took 'his' hand. She frowned and took a deep breath, she started to remove the gloves, once she got to the bangles, she touched one and gasped softly, "It's not an Escort Guard," She slid it off Cloud's wrist and held it up to her face, "It's a Minerva Band!" She whispered and looked down to Cloud's hand in hers, all was left was the thin black gloves that was designed to keep the hand cool all the time and fire proof. She peeled back the glove and gasped softly at the petite hand, long fingers and fingernails rounded, slightly longer. Cloud's hand was feminine, and a ring adorned her ring finger.

"So, that's your secret, eh Sorano?" Aeris whispered. She went to work putting the gloves back on. She reached out and pulled Cloud's shirt up, she smirked, "Bandaged. You're tricky."

She stood up, taking her staff. "You will be fine, you and Sephiroth will be reunited once again, my Queen." Then she walked off into the jungle, disappearing.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Dammit! Yuffie, you little shit! I said monkey wrench, not the nose pliers!" Cid yelled and went into a string of cursing. He muttered then, "You little twerp!" as he threw the pliers back out from his position lying under the plane.

Yuffie giggled as she sat next to Cid with a toolbox by her side, "Aw, you're cussin' around a kid again! What would Shera think?"

Cid pulled himself out from under the plane and glared at the teenage, "You shut up! I don't give a damn about her, she was the reason I lost my chance to get into space!" He started swearing again.

Vincent sat on the log near the plane, watching the two with amusement. Red had gone off to hunt in the jungle. He had found listening to Cid handle the teenager greatly amusing. Ever since the pilot joined the gang, Yuffie had attached herself to him; the little brat was somehow fond of the pilot.

He was curious as to why she was always attached to either him or the pilot, but he just let them argue, Yuffie taking every barb, insult and curse from the pilot with a sly grin on her face.

"Aw Ciddy! Look what you've done!" Yuffie whined and crawled under the tail of the plane with a tool in her hand. Cid stood by, fists gripping his hair, fuming and screaming about a teenage girl running his plane. He even stomped over to her and attempted to pull the girl from under the plane by her skinny legs but failed.

Vincent's eyes shone with mirth as he watched them. He couldn't remember when he had last been as amused as he was now, but it didn't matter, it was too enjoyable not to watch.

"What the hell you're doin' to my plane, you little brat?" Cid yelled as he was down to his knees, trying to see what Yuffie was doing.

Yuffie clanked and poked around under the tail of the plane, she coughed as some black soot fell down on her face and she finally pulled herself out, "Done." She wiped her face with her arm and smiled as she stood up. "The tail should be working now."

Cid became silent and stood up, "What did you do?" He asked quietly, distrustful as he reached over the pilot's control and flicked the plane motor on and jiggled the stick. The tail moved smoothly, in sync with the controller. "Hey! You did it!" He shouted gleefully as she grabbed the girl in bear hug and twirled her around.

He suddenly realized what he was doing and dropped her down on her butt, "Uh, that never happened." He rubbed his neck and turned away to clear up his tools.

Yuffie sat there on the sand, grinning at Cid, "Right."  
Cid mumbled another string of curses as he ignored Yuffie.

Vincent decided to make himself known, clapping his hands, "Very good."

Cid yelped and turned around, nearly knocking the sniper with his toolbox; Vincent dodged and helped Yuffie up. The girl giggled as Cid cursed a blue streak.

"Dammit! Vin, you startled me!"

Vincent ignored the nickname as he studied the plane, "So, we can fly?"

Cid shrugged as he placed his toolbox back into the plane's storage compartment and locked it. "Yeah, we can go as soon as they want to."

Yuffie bounced again, clapping her hands in joy, "Ooh! Can I go and tell them?"

Cid grunted and Yuffie ran into the jungle where the camp was.

"So, bonding with the girl?" Vincent asked, slight hint of teasing in his voice.

Cid turned away and headed to the propeller in the front, "No, she's just a brat."

"Oh, really? Looks like she wormed her way into your heart."

Cid grunted again and cursed as he worked on the propeller, turning it, "It's nothing like that."

"How is it that so?" The sniper moved around the wing and leaned against it.

Cid looked up at the crimson and ebony-dressed man, "She's just a kid. You saw what happened back in Wutai. Her father treated her bad, she's just misguided, and she needs a father figure."

Vincent's eyes widened in shock, not only was Cid talking civilly but was also implying that he had adopted the role of a father figure to Yuffie. "So, what are you saying?"

Cid threw his arms up and cursed to the sky, "All right! If you want me to say it, I will!" His arms fell to his sides, "I got around to thinking, and Yuffie reminds me a lot of someone I lost long time ago. I guess, it's some sort of second chance for me to do it right."

Vincent tilted his head to the side, "Really?"  
Cid mumbled, "I don't know why I am tellin' you this."

"I don't either. You can trust me not to tell anyone else."

The pilot nodded and moved to Vincent's side at the wing and pushed himself up to sit on it, "Well, as I was saying that Yuffie reminded me of someone long time ago. I was young and stupid, I got a girl pregnant and she disappeared, leaving me with the kid."

Vincent looked up again with surprise, "You had a kid?"

Cid shrugged as he fumbled with his cigarette, "Don't go thinking I'm twenty something, I had a life before this whole deal. The kid, my boy, was wild, just like me when I was younger. He was a cute little thing too. His name was Cody. I took him on a flight in the old plane I had, Lil' Highwind. Only something went wrong and we crashed in the mountains. I survived, he didn't."

The red-clad sniper stared out at the ocean, listening to the story, feeling sorrow for the pilot.

"That was a long time ago. When I met Yuffie here, I saw Cody in her eyes. You know, Cody died sixteen years ago. Sometimes I would think if Cody was reborn he would be in Yuffie now. They are so much alike, so full of…" His voice cracked and died.

Vincent looked up to find Cid nearly crying, "It's okay."

Cid shook his head and rubbed his face hard with his gloved hands, "Ah, that was long ago. Anyway, I feel that I should take the chance again with Yuffie. After all, she needs someone and it's not like I don't like her."

Vincent smirked, "Sure, yet you were cursing her out."

"She can take it." Cid hopped off the wing and moved around to work on the propeller again.

Vincent returned to watch the ocean again, "I lost a child long ago too."

Cid looked up, his turn to be surprised, "Really?"

"I lost him before I could get to know him, you are fortunate to be able to get to know Cody."

Cid watched the sniper walk off to the campground. Something strange welled up inside him. There was a bond shared between the two of them and his respect for the sniper increased tenfold. He shook his head to clear the thought and returned to the propeller again.

Unbeknownst to either of them, Yuffie was hiding behind a large tree nearby. She was huddled down between two large roots with her knees pulled up to her chest, tears streaming down her face. She had heard everything and was shocked beyond reason to know Cid's true feelings toward her. It was confusing and overwhelming; she hiccupped and smiled weakly to herself, "Ciddy-papa…" She whispered.

Then she stood up, deciding to announce that the Tiny Bronco was ready to the rest of the gang.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The forest surrounding her was sweet, lush and mystical. Cool with morning mist about, it felt sweet, magical and very peaceful.

Aeris poked her head out from behind a tree, giggling, "Cloud, can you hear me?" She asked, holding the branch as if she was hugging the tree.

Cloud twirled around, "What? Yeah, where are we?"

Aeris stepped away from the tree, standing there with her arms behind her back; she walked up to 'him', "Don't worry about it." She reached out and wiped Cloud's cheek.

Cloud was surprised to find her face wet.

"I know who you are," Aeris' hand fell and Cloud looked to find her clothes had changed into a simple white gown, her hair falling down in a long length, reaching as far as the small of her back. Aeris smiled, "There's no need to keep it a secret anymore, not with me."

Cloud felt her hair, feeling the long silken strands, toying with it, "What's happening?" Aeris quickly grabbed Cloud's hand, looking down at their intertwined fingers; Cloud found they were gloveless, revealing her quite feminine hand.

"What a shame it is to hide such a beauty." Aeris whispered, studying the ring on Cloud's finger. "Don't worry, let me handle him. Go find Sephiroth and everything will be all right."

"What are you talking about?" Cloud asked, worry steeping in her voice.

Aeris smiled sweetly and that was when Cloud realized she wasn't wearing her regular pink and red attire but a gown similar to her own, but in soft hue of pink, making her glow like an angel, "Like I said, don't worry, sister."

Her giggle rang though the forest like tinkling bell, "I understand why you had to hide your true self but you didn't have to, not anymore. Let me handle him."

"But…"

Aeris placed a finger to Cloud's lips, "Shh… you two will be together soon."

Cloud's hand dropped to her side, letting go of the other woman, "What is this place?"

"This forest leads to the City of the Ancients… it's called the Sleeping Forest." Aeris backed away, almost fading, "It's only a matter of time before he calls Meteor, that's why I am going to protect against it. Only a survivor of the Cetra, like me, can do it." She turned away and started to walk though the forest, towards a bright light that glowed beyond the trees. She stopped and turned back, her hand over her heart, "The secret is just here. At least, it should be. I feel it; it feels like I'm being led by something." Her head cocked sideway as she waved, "Then, I'll be going for now. I'll come back when it is all over."

Cloud reached but found she couldn't move, "Aeris?" She called out to her.

The forest faded as Aeris faded from sight.

_:Hm… she's thinking of interfering? She will be a difficult one, don't you think?:_

Cloud's eyes became steel blue, _"You are not Sephiroth, get out of my mind!"_

_:Oh, ho ho, the link between you and him is now between you and me. We must stop the girl:_

Cloud wanted to growl, _"We?"_

_:Yes, we, as in you and me.:_ Then he was gone.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Review, please?_


	26. S2:12: Winter

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T W O : T H E . J O U R N E Y . **

Chapter Twelve: Winter

_Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the Lord do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me._

Ruth 1:17, the Holy Bible

Avalanche made their way to Gongaga and landed near the tamer jungle, delivering Cloud safely to rest at Zack's parents' home, who took them in and gave them hospitality. No one knew how long Cloud would be out, so they went about trying to figure out what to do next.

"Sephiroth said he knew where the City of the Ancients was." Tifa sighed to the rest of the party, who were gathered around the table, even Cait Sith the Second, who had made his surprise appearance and rejoined the party.

"There's an archeological dig going on now on the northern continent." Cait sat next to several books next to Tifa. The Mog was left in the Bronco, since there was no need for it for now.

"And, what does it have to do with this?" Vincent queried as he cleaned his Sniper at the table. Barret was also doing the same thing with his gun-arm next to him.

The cat bobbed his head, "The archeological site is near the forest that was rumored to be where the City of the Ancients is. Also there were some said that there's a key hidden, a key to the City of the Ancients itself."

Tifa looked up from her hands, "Then, we have to get it. There's no knowing how long Cloud will stay like this." She looked over her shoulder to the door to where Cloud lay.

Barret clicked his gun-arm together loudly, "I agree. Some of us should stay here until Cloud wakes up, the rest go ahead and look for the key."

Tifa sighed, "I can't believe Aeris gave us the slip, one moment, she was there, now she's gone." Aeris had disappeared after talking to Barret in the Southern Isle jungle. No one knew where she went or why.

The meeting concluded with them deciding that Barret and Tifa would stay with Cloud until 'he' woke up. The rest would fly up the next day to the northern continent where this archeological site was at, this Bone Village.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The next morning, the second part of the party was in the sky, heading north.

Yuffie screamed in Cid's ears as they took off, Vincent gripping hard onto the sides of the plane as Yuffie bounced on his lap. He was forced to sit with Yuffie, behind Cid, as they became airborne. Cait Sith was stuffed into the storage compartment, currently turned off. The red wolf was curled up in tight ball near Vincent's boots.

Cid let loose with a string of profanity load enough to be heard over the engine as he flew the plane into the cloud, Gongaga disappearing below them, "Stop the damn screaming!" he shouted again, shutting up Yuffie.

Vincent rubbed his claw across his face wondering why in the world the girl had to tag along. He remembered the small argument where Barret and Tifa flatly refused to have Yuffie stay behind with them, pointing out she would be useful going with Cid and Vincent's party. He lowered his head in exasperation as the wind whipped his hair about.

"Ooo…" Yuffie pointed to a flock of geese flying by the plane. Vincent looked up and noticed too. Yuffie was sitting comfortably in his lap, light enough to not be bothersome. He realized he didn't mind as long the girl wasn't screaming or bouncing too much.

The flight wasn't very long as the land whizzed by them below, they soon passed over Nibelheim and Rocket Town toward the northern ocean.

"Brr! It's getting colder!" Yuffie whined slightly, Red was snoozing on the floor, not caring about anything in the world.

"There's a sweater in my bag somewhere back there." Cid replied.

Vincent was glad the back seat of the plane was somewhat roomy yet with only enough room for him to fill up the seat with couple of packs wedged in beside him. He dug though the one with Highwind logo on it, he pulled out a large, old light blue knitted sweater. "Here," He then helped Yuffie put it on.

She beamed as she wrapped the large sweater around her; it went down to her knees, covering practically all of her body. She giggled and settled back into Vincent's chest, curling up, "Thanks!"

Vincent watched the passing clouds and the ocean below them. It was getting chiller but he didn't mind. The weight on in his lap shifted as Yuffie's head started to burrow into his neck, murmuring about Da Chao.

He glanced down to find the girl fast asleep in his arms, snuggling against his deep crimson cloak, his eyebrow rising.

Cid pointed below, "There, we're going to land now. That's the Bone Village." The Tiny Bronco circled the sky a couple of times before it landed on the grassy land outside the vast blue-green forest.

The pilot jumped out as the engine died and he went to the storage compartment, pulling Mog and the cat out, along with few other things. Nanaki slipped out quickly and as nimbly as he could, sniffing around and disappeared behind a bush, apparently to do his business.

"Wake up, we're here." The sniper gently shook the girl. He watched her eyes flutter open to reveal silver hazel orbs.

"Where?" She asked between yawn, stretching as she looked around.

"Bone Village is not far from here. Get up." He replied, gently pushing her off his lap.

"Oh." She stood up and stumbled out of the plane, only to crash onto the ground with a yelp.

Cid shook his head and lit a new cigarette. "Come on, kid." He threw her a pack and started off to the forest that lay before them in the crook of the mountain.

The teenage stood up and wobbled. She cursed under her breath and shook her left leg several times, and then she quickly went after the rest of the team, shouting at them to wait for her.

Cid mumbled as he glanced back, noticing that she was limping slightly, "Come on, we've got no time. We have to find Aeris and the way to the Ancient City."

Yuffie gave him a scowl, "Whatever!"

Cid frowned and continued to walk ahead.

They entered the forest and found it eerily quiet. They quickly made their way to the Bone Village, running into no troubles at all. They found several people there, digging and going around the site.

"Welcome to Bone Village, a town for nature lovers." A man stood up and greeted them, "What do you want?" He asked as he wiped his hands with a rag he pulled out of his pocket.

Yuffie shrugged, leaving to the two other men to talk to the archeologist, she trailed away, poking around. Nanaki sat behind them, keeping an eye on her. Vincent turned his head and saw that Yuffie was being watched, content at that he turned back to help Cid again.

"You guys know anything about the City of the Ancients?" Cid asked as he flicked his cigarette away.

The man's face lit up, "City of the Ancients? Oh, you must mean the Forgotten City."

Cid's brow rose, "So, is there a way to get to it?"

The man smiled, "Oh yeah." He turned and pointed to a dark cavern, "That's the entrance to the Sleeping Forest. You will need a Lunar Harp to get in. A pretty woman came by and got herself a Lunar Harp, and she went right in."

Yuffie poked her head up from one of the pit she was kneeling beside, "Aeris?"

The man shrugged, "Pretty woman with green eyes, pink dress and a staff, I believe that's her name, yeah." The man replied back as he busily looked around, as if he were looking for something, he went over to a table with cluttered things and pulled up an old paper, "Ah, here it is. The map, there's another Lunar Harp around here."

Cid scratched his head, "Why would we need it?"

"You use it to awaken the Sleeping Forest and it will open up the path for you to the Forgotten City, or else, you won't make it, you'd get yourself lost in the forest and never find your way out."

"Oh… I guess we will need it."

The man folded the map, "Yeah, you guys after something?"

The sniper narrowed his eyes, "What do you mean?"

"Oh, that girl and a man, not long before her, came though. I assumed you all were after something."

"Shit! We're too late!" Cid cursed.

"Look! A pretty harp!" Yuffie exclaimed, drawing attention, she was near a site not far from the entrance, holding a dusted but golden harp in her hands.

Cid grinned, "Guess she's useful after all. We'll be back in a while. Thank you."

Vincent motioned for Yuffie to come along, "Come on, and bring that harp with you." She bounced along and went after them, holding the harp in her hands as they left the site. The man shook his head and went back to work.

The small party returned to where the plane sat, Cait Sith was waiting for them, he had set up the camp nearby, "Hey, hey!" The mog bounced as the cat on the top waved.

"We got it. We got the key to get through the Sleeping Forest." Vincent approached the cat and sat on the ground near the fire pit. Cid and Yuffie joined his side. Yuffie held the harp up, wiping away the dirt and played a few notes.

"Wonderful! Cloud has just woken up and they're on their way. Now we wait for them to come."

"That's good news, but we have bad news too." The sniper announced.

Cid snorted as he fiddled with his cigarette pack, "Yeah, Aeris got here before we did and," he cursed then and sighed, "Sephiroth."

The black cat gasped, "Oh no!" Then he blanked out.

Cid frowned, "Hey!" He bopped the cat on the head and got no reply, "Oh well."

Yuffie stood up, still clad in Cid's blue sweater, leaving the harp on the ground, "Oh, I gotta go… you know…" She was hopping from foot to foot.

Cid waved his arm, "Go ahead." Yuffie gave him a goofy grin and sprinted off to the nearby bushes in the forest.

The pilot took the harp and stuffed it in a pack, "Can't be too careful. How long do you think it'll be before they get here?" He asked as he tied the pack closed.

Vincent shrugged as he inspected his revolvers, "Not sure, maybe early this evening or at the latest, tomorrow morning."

Cid shrugged, "Good."

Their heads snapped up to hear Yuffie scream in the forest, this time it wasn't her usual scream of glee, this was the one that sent chills down their spines.

Nanaki bristled, "Something's wrong." He sniffed the air, "Bandersnatches." He sprinted off to where Yuffie had disappeared.

Cid cursed and stumbled, grabbing his javelin and took off as well, Vincent wasn't far behind, his Silver Rifle ready. They found her, trapped in a corner between a tree and a rock with no way to escape as a large deformed Bandersnatch loomed over her, ready to maul or kill her.

"Shit!" Cid drawled, eyes wide at the several deformed Bandersnatches emerged from the forest and surrounded them.

Nanaki growled, his tail twitching, "Something's wrong, they're deformed, they also reek real bad, almost like decayed corpses."

Vincent's red eyes narrowed as he sensed something, "This is not good, and I feel evil from them."

The red wolf snarled as he took a sniff, "The smell, I've smelled it before… Jenova!"

Cid yelped as a deformed creature leapt on him. His javelin, the Trident was ready and buried itself deep in the chest of the monster killing it instantly, the corpse falling to the ground, turning into dust.

Vincent frowned, that was only a small one. He turned to the leader, a huge one that was still going after Yuffie. He raised his revolver and shot several times at a few of them as they attempted to move in. They recoiled, wounded and greatly enraged.

"Yuffie, have you got some Materia on you?" He called over to the girl lying on the ground, clutching her leg. He winced as he noticed that her leg was twisted under her in odd angle, and broken at the ankle.

"Yeah, I got few." She stuttered, tears streaming down her face. The leader had turned away from her, focusing on the newer threats the men and the wolf posed. She dug into her pocket and pulled them out, "I got Advanced Fire, Moderate Cure and Haste."

Cid slashed at few of the creatures, "Dammit! Use some of them! Especially Haste! Now!"

Yuffie whimpered as she nodded, she held the orbs in her hands and murmuring the spell, casting Haste on all three fighters, making their speed increase, giving them the advantage over several Bandersnatches.

Cid felt adrenaline rushing though his blood and grinned, he always liked the feeling. He also felt his strength growing; it was time to have fun! He reached into his jacked and pulled out a stick of dynamite and lit it with the cigarette between his lips, "Here we go!" The dynamite whizzed toward the group of smaller Bandersnatches behind the bigger ones. The explosion blew them into the air, ripping them apart.

Vincent glared at the large one, "Yuffie, use the Cure on yourself."

Yuffie stared back, horrorstricken, "Can't" She shouted, "It's no good!"

Vincent frowned, confused. Her leg was broken in several places; it had to be very painful for her. He drew back as he placed his gun into the holder by his side; he then drew his hand and claws together, to cast the spell, "Fire!" He shouted and the flame shot out of the ground, enveloping the large Bandersnatch.

Cid went to Yuffie's side as the Bandersnatches grew fewer and weaker as Nanaki and Vincent finished them off, "Hey kid, you alright?"

Yuffie hiccupped and nodded, "Yeah."

The pilot looked at her leg and winced, "Ouch, that doesn't look like it. Your leg's totally broken. Why didn't you cure yourself?"

Yuffie shook her head and cried a bit more, "No. Oh man! How can I get another one? They're expensive!"

Cid sat back confused, "What?"

Vincent joined them, looking on, "What do you mean?"

Nanaki whuffed as he slithered to their side, "I'm going back to camp." He left then.

Yuffie reached down to her badly damaged left leg, fiddling with the metal band around her thigh causing several clicks. She pushed the band off her leg, as well the entire leg.

"Prosthetic leg." Vincent realized as he watched her.

Cid's jaw fell, "Damn… why didn't you tell us?"

Yuffie's face contorted in anger, "Why should I? If you guys knew, you wouldn't let me go on this mission."

Cid slumped and shook his head, "Geez and all those times…"

Vincent kneeled, taking the leg from Yuffie to investigate it, "Interesting. Light material." He carefully took the shoes and the stocking off, and then slid the netted stocking that covered the entire leg. The foot had been broken clean off the leg and the knee had been twisted, beyond any capability of fixing it. "The damage is too great, we can fix it but it wouldn't work as before." He saw that the leg were also robotic, to mimic a real leg.

Yuffie slumped back down on the tree and sighed. Cid looked up at her, "How did this happen?"

Her hazel eyes gazed to the sky, "I was young and stupid. Maybe still stupid now. Remember Da Chao?" They did certainly remembered Da Chao, a large mountainous rock with all kinds figures carved into its face. "There was this cave that I always loved to explore. One time, a cave-in happened; I got stuck under a big boulder that crushed my leg. They had to cut my leg off to get me out."

The men winced, Cid went out to her, "Geez, I'm sorry."

Yuffie snorted, "Don't be. I've been fine with that leg until now. Didn't want anyone to know." She winced and rubbed the nub of her leg where it had been cut off. "Still hurts remembering."

The sniper looked up, "You need something for it?"

"Yah, painkiller helped. Ran out of it recently after Wutai, wasn't able to stock up after that."

Vincent stood up, "I got some, and it's in my pack."  
Cid looked up, "You?"

The sniper drew out his golden claw, "This."

"Oh." Cid replied as he picked the girl up and they returned to camp. After settling the girl down and giving her some painkiller, Cid and Vincent went to the plane where Cait Sith stood, explained to him what happened. Nanaki remained behind with Yuffie.

"She doesn't want the others to know." Vincent noted, crossing his arms.

Cid rubbed his chin, "How can we find another leg for her soon?"

The cat who was fiddling with a broken foot, "I know this material and where it's made. You have to special order it from Midgar. Here." He flipped the foot to expose the bottom. There was a worn ShinRa logo on it.

"Shit." Cid muttered as he took the leg, "And we know someone in Midgar." He looked down at the cat.

"Yep, yep!" The cat replied, "Let me handle it." He took the foot and inspected the bottom, memorizing the serial number and the size, "All right, one coming your way!"

The cat jumped off the moogle and watched as the pink blob flew off with its tiny red bat-like wings.

Cid chuckled as he ran his fingers though his hair, "Special delivery for the girl. Hey, can ya get more painkillers or something like that?"

The cat nodded, "Also coming too."

The trio returned to the campfire and found Yuffie already fast asleep in her sleeping bag. Cid watched the girl with concern on his face as he scratched his chin, "Poor kid, having to go though so much. She only had us to look after her now."

Vincent swept his unruly ebony hair out of his face with his claw, "Yes, she's an amazingly tough young woman. I am quiet impressed."

Cid grinned as he shook his head, "Me too." Soon, they all went to sleep with Nanaki taking the watch first.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Papa! Let's go flying!" A young boy with wild dirty blond hair and shining green eyes, beamed with excitement at his father.

"All right, gimme a minute to get ready, Cody." A young Cid Highwind smiled down at the boy and ruffled his hair. He took his jacket and tossed Cody a miniature version of it.

They both strolled out of their small home into the town, people around greeting them as they passed. They were very much father and son, dressed exactly the same, head to toe. Cody had light tan cargo pants tucked into brown boots and white shirt under blue pilot jacket just like his father. He even had miniature pilot goggles that adorned his forehead.

Cid grinned at his young son, happy that his son shared similar taste in flying that they both enjoyed immensely. He had never regretted having a son, even though he had been abandoned by his own mother. His mother was heartless, leaving her son in the care of ShinRa. She had never truly cared or even thought about the life of a family or anything else, only her work.

Cody shouted with glee as they approached their small plane, Lil' Highwind, a small light blue plane with two seats. Cid helped Cody into the back pilot seat and buckled him down.

"Yay! When will you teach me how to fly, Papa?" The boy asked.

Cid looked up and humm-ed, "Hm, when you are old enough."  
"When's that?"  
"Cody, how old are you?"

"Eleven, you know that! I'll be twelve soon!"

Cid grinned and ruffled his son's hair, "Soon. I'll take you out and teach you how to fly like me on your birthday!"

Cody cheered.

Cid loved his son so much that he couldn't think of what would happen the next minutes or what tomorrow would be, he was always enjoying every minute with him. There wasn't time when he was angry at him. Sure, Cody may be wild but that was typical for any normal boy like him.

He went around and pushed on the propeller to start it up and hopped into the pilot's seat, cranking the engine up. The engine purred smoothly and the plane started to push forward on the grassy runaway. Cody cheered loudly; he loved flying with his father all the time and couldn't wait to be able to fly on his own.

The small blue plane lifted itself of the ground, gaining altitude toward the clear blue sky. Cid grinned as he heard his son's shout of joy. He piloted the plane though the light cloud-speckled sky and did double loop-de-loop, Cody's shout ringing gleefully in his ears.

He looked back to see his son's toothy grin, a gap where his tooth was knocked out recently, "Hey, want another one?"

"Yea!" The boy shouted.

He laughed and repeated the stunt. They continued to zoom around in the perfect sky. Cid didn't hear a spark going off inside the engine until it sputtered.

Cody leaned forward, still restrained in the seat, "What's wrong, Papa?"

Cid shook his head, "Don't worry about it. We're going to land now."

The boy smiled, "All right." He had absolute trust in his father.

Cid grinned at the confident in his son's voice and checked the meter of the gas and realized they were running low and it was going down quickly. Maybe the tank was leaking; he shrugged and maneuvered the plane around to return to the town. They were high over the Nibel Mountain range, it was a dangerous ground but neither of them cared and loved flying over it, though now the jagged mountains twisted eerily below them.

The engine started to sputter loudly and the propeller cranked to stop.

"Papa? What's wrong?" Cody struggled to lean forward. This had happened before and his father had made a good landing, he wasn't afraid though he was concerned.

"Sit back, Cody." Cid commanded as he flicked some switches, attempting to jumpstart the engine.

Cody didn't listen; he quietly unbuckled his belt and leaned forward to watch his father, thinking that he could learn something in this situation of trouble. How wrong he was.

The nose of the plane started to tilt downward, gaining speed as they lost altitude. Cody's face became ashen white as he stared ahead; looming toward them was the jagged mountain valley. He couldn't get his voice to work.

Cid cursed and struggled against the stick, trying to level his plane back, managing to level off some, slowing down the fall. He cursed again as he realized where they were going to crash. The place wasn't good, a very narrow gorge full of debris.

The plane wings ripped as it hit the wall of the valley as it went down, crashing and tumbling. Cid knew he had taught Cody well to duck his head and wait until the end of the crash landing. He ducked his own head and waited.

The plane finally stopped at last. He looked up, only a few scratches and bruises marred his skin but he didn't care about those, all he wanted to know was that Cody was all right because he had not heard anything.

The small blue plane was practically torn apart, leaving the wingless body shred and torn. Cid turned around to search for Cody, hoping he was still crouching in the position he had taught him.

His heart caught in his throat, he went sheet white, his breath shortened as he struggled to gasp, and the seat was empty. "C… c… Co-cody?" There was splatter of blood staining the chair. He jumped out of the plane, nearly falling down. His legs wouldn't work and he was shaking violently.

"Cody? Cody!" He called out and regained his voice, "Answer me! Co-od-y-y!" His voice echoed throughout the valley, almost taunting him.

He scrambled forward, finding parts of the plane here and there. Then he stopped, gasping. A shoe, Cody's shoe.

He picked it up and climbed over the rocks. "Cody!" He screamed on top of his lungs, his heart contracting in terrible pain.

His son was lying among the rocks, with part of the wing of the plane, bloodied and broken. The boy's eyes didn't open.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Cid!" Yuffie shouted as she shook the man to wake him up. She had taken her turn on watch after Nanaki went to sleep. It was near morning.

Cid was thrashing around in his sleeping bag, murmuring something. Sweat drenched his hair and brow.

Yuffie jerked back as Cid shot up, crying. She stared in shock, swallowing hard. "Cid?"

Cid's shoulders shook violently as he covered his face in his hands, "No, no… Cody…"

Yuffie realized that Cid didn't notice he was awake. She crept over and touched his shoulder, "Cid?"

His head snapped up, a wild look in his red-rimmed eyes, choking when he realized, "Yuffie… oh shit."

"You were having a nightmare." Yuffie explained.

"Oh."

"Here…" She handed him a piece of cloth, "You were murmuring in your sleep, I had to wake you up it sounded bad."

Cid shook his head as he took the cloth to wipe his face, "Wasn't a nightmare, it was a memory."

Yuffie moved herself to face Cid, sitting on his sleeping bag, "Was it about…" She paused and sighed, "Cody?"

Cid's eyes became deep with sorrow and regret.

"You can tell me."

Cid sighed and blew his nose nosily, "I would rather not to."  
Yuffie sighed, "He was your son, wasn't he?"  
He looked up, "How did you know?"

The girl looked away, ashamed, "I, I sorta heard you and Vinny talking the other day."

Cid sighed again and dropped the soiled cloth to the ground beside him. There was no need to get angry at the girl, "Yes. He was my son. He died sixteen years ago in a plane crash."

"Oh man… I… am sorry to hear that." She looked down at her fidgeting fingers, "It is true that I remind you of Cody?" She asked sadly.

A small sad smile came to his lips, "In a way, you do." His eyes were becoming blurry again, "I see Cody in your eyes. You have the same laugher in your souls." His voice cracked and a sob escaped his lips.

"Oh."

Cid's grey eyes met with her hazel eyes, "Don't be sorry. That was a long time ago."

"Thank you." She whispered.

Cid cocked his head to the side, "What for?"

She looked up with a small shy smile; tears were streamed down her cheeks. "My father wasn't always the perfect father. Heck, he never was a father to me; he was too busy with Wutai. You acted like one, in a way. I know I may be wild and immature, even crazy sometimes… Yeah, annoying too."

Cid laughed softly, his laugh wasn't smooth or deep, but rough, "When I saw Cody in you…" Sadness veiled his voice, "I thought it was fate that I had another chance. At Wutai, I realized everything about you and how you were treated there. There is no way a child should be treated like that."

Yuffie sniffed, "Really?"

Cid frowned as his voice hardened, "That's damn right! Every kid deserves some parent's lovin'. That's how they turn out to be good."

Yuffie giggled, "Still, thank you."

Cid shrugged as he gave her a rough hug, "Aw, go on to bed, I'll take watch." He watched Yuffie nod, crawl back to her bag and slip inside. She was still missing a leg and still wearing the sweater.

He smiled as he leaned back against the log that was near his pillow. He chunked a cigarette out of the pack and cursed slightly as he realized he was out. He would have to buy some more soon.

"Good night, Ciddy-papa." He glanced over to the teenager, swallowing hard as he heard her soft voice before she drifted off to sleep.

"Night, Yuffie." He murmured, wondering how he had gotten into this.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Cid's on the way north now. Good thing we caught on what's happening next."

"Dammit! Of all da times, she took off after he conked out!"

The voices were blurry but they were becoming clearer to her, she recognized the two whom they belonged to.

"Ugg…" She groaned, trying to open her eyes. They were caked shut; she reached up to rub them and was pleased to find that her hands were still gloved for some reason.

"You looked like you was havin' a nightmare. How are you feeling?" The gruff voice could only belong to Barret, who was looking down at her from next to the bed.

"What happened?" Sitting up, she could only remember the struggle and part of the dream.

Tifa leaned down, exposing pretty much good part of her chest, "You went out."

Cloud looked around and saw that she was in a room somewhere, "Where are we?"

We're back in Gongaga. The nice couple you talked to before let us stay here."

"Oh."

"You know, Cloud, Aeris is gone."

She snapped her head up from the bed, "The City of the Ancients, Aeris is heading there."

Barret growled, "By herself? Why did she go by herself? Hey, we're goin' too!"

"Only the Ancients, only Aeris can save us from Meteor…" Cloud murmured.

Tifa stood back up, disgruntled that her attempt went unnoticed, "Then we must go, what we will do if something happens to Aeris? If Sephiroth finds her, she's in trouble."

Remembering the cold voice, Cloud swallowed hard and painfully, "Sephiroth already knows." She assumed the rest had forgotten that it wasn't really the real Sephiroth she was speaking about.

Barret shook his fist, "Hey! Why are you still sittin' around?"

Tifa reached to grab Cloud's hand to help 'him' out of the bed, "Let's go Cloud, the rest are already up at the Bone Village, north of here. We heard that's the place where you can find the City of the Ancients."

Cloud got out of the bed and pulled out of Tifa's strong grip, "No. I might lose it again. If Sephiroth comes near me… I might…"

Barret grabbed her by the shoulder and shook her violently, "Yeah, damming! It's cuz of you that Sephiroth got the Black Materia in the first place. It's your damn fault!"

Cloud was jerked out of his grip and stumbled back to the wall, still groggy and now shaken. "My fault?" She very much wanted to slug the man again, she had done it before and she could do it again.

"I know you got problems…" The black man replied softly, almost pitiful, "Hell, we all do. But, you don't even understand yourself."

She narrowed her eyes, she understood but they didn't. There was some that she didn't understand because her memories were as holey as Swiss cheese with things making sense at one time and not the next. Even she has no clue why there was a part of her that desired to obey the every wish of Dark Sephiroth and another part that hated him with a passion. She was sure she knew who she was and that her destiny would come clear to her soon.

Barret continued, "But you gotta understand that there ain't no getting off this train, we're on, till to the end of the line."

Yes, they had gone too far, but not far enough to get to the end yet.

"Cloud, we came this far… Aren't you even going to settle up with Sephiroth?"

Cloud clutched her head as she felt a headache coming on, "No…" Fear rose inside her, it was a terrible feeling and she was feeling for the first time, "I am afraid… if this keeps up, I may go crazy!" She looked up with her frantic blue eyes to the two before her, "I am afraid…" She huddled down to the floor, rocking back and forth.

Barret stared in shock and then shook his head, shaking it off with rage coming on, "Just a damn jackass, that's what you are… Yo, jes' think about it… how many people in this world ya think really understand themselves?"

Cloud looked up, a small smile struggled on her lip, the man may be tough and stubborn-minded about some things, but he could be caring when he tried, even understanding.

"People get depressed in life because they don't know what's up. But, they go on living. They don't run away… isn't that how it is?" He asked his black eyes turned almost soft with brownness as he looked down. Then they became hard as he turned around leaving the room.

"Cloud… you'll come with us, right? I believe in you." Tifa smiled before she left.

Cloud sat with her head in her hands, "What am I supposed to do? Pull out of here? Pull out? To where?" She asked herself, completely confused on what she wanted to do. She stood up, looking to the ceiling, "He wouldn't want me to. I still have to find him."

Barret and Tifa had not gone far; they were in the next room, talking softly to each other. Tifa had her hand to the door, "Cloud…"

"Wait a min, Tifa. Give him a little time. He has to decide this on his own. I'm sure he'll get back on his feet, back to his spiky self." Barret laid a comforting hand on Tifa's shoulder, squeezing slightly.

She looked up at him, her eyes shining with tears, "Yeah…"

"You believe in Cloud… right?" He asked.

Tifa nodded, "I really do and hope I always will."

"Then, hold onto that." He let go of her shoulder and left her alone.

After nearly an hour since she woke up she got up and left the house to find Barret and Tifa waiting for her outside. They had acquired some sort of vehicle similar to the buggy they had left in Rocket Town, but it was smaller and yellow.

Tifa looked up and smiled when she spotted the blonde, "Cloud."

"Hey, how are you?" Barret even smiled, "I just wanna know, which is it gonna be? You wanna go after Sephiroth? Or not? Either way, you stay around here about all you can do is worry about it. Even if you do go nuts again when you see him, if it happens, it happens. I'll go upside your spiky head and bring you back to normal!" His words were harsh but they were friendly concern hidden behind them.

"Cloud, it will be all right. We're all with you." Tifa assured 'him'.

Cloud opened her mouth but Barret interrupted her, "If it happens, it happens. Don't worry 'bout it."

Cloud leaned back on her heels and crossed her arms, "You're right. He's right, isn't he?" She looked over to Tifa.

Tifa nodded, "Come on, let's go and find Aeris."

Cloud nodded and hopped into the buggy, getting into the driver seat and smirking at Barret, causing him to grumble.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

An hour later, the twilight of dawn was peeking over the horizon, casting its glow upon the northern land. Cid had been awake since his nightmarish dream, wandering around the camp, stretching and doing some of his exercise, getting ready for the day.

He peered to the sky and saw a blurry pink spot coming their way; he chuckled as he saw the flapping of the red wings, making the spot visible against the pinkness of the morning dawn.

"About damn time!" He called out, rousing the others awake.

The cat hopped to his side and tugged on his green cargo pants, "Delivery arrived!"

"And just in time!" Cid retorted.

The moogle landed with several bounces and handed over a package to Cid. As he took it, he unwrapped it to reveal a prosthetic leg exactly like Yuffie's old one, and couple of bottles of painkiller as well. Cid nearly cried when he found a package of cigarette packs for himself.

"Hey-y!"

The cat grinned, "Thought you wanted some. Can't live without them."

Cid peered at the cat, "You smoke too?"

The black feline head bobbed, "Yeah. Calms the nerves."

Cid grinned and went to wake Yuffie lightly. Vincent had gotten up when Cid had announced the Mog's arrival and went off into the forest for a while. The wolf was nosing around on the beach, not far from the camp.

Yuffie muttered and rolled onto her back, her eyes cracking open to see something blurry in her face. As her sight cleared, she yelped and skittered back as she saw the flesh of a foot.

Cid laughed, holding her new leg over her face, "It arrived!"

Yuffie rubbed her eyes, "Thanks." She took it and started to dress it up with her netted stocking and regular stock, then finally tying the shoe on, "Just right too! Thanks Cait!" She grinned at the cat.

The cat waved its paw, "No worries, it was easy to get anyway. There's plenty lying around in ShinRa hospice floor at the Headquarters. They manufacture them here too."

"At least you won't tell Cloud about this, or the others? They'll kick me out for good!" She whined, her eyes pleading.

Cid shrugged, "We won't tell. You will have to yourself, when you're ready." He thought about the others, he knew the other members had their own secrets.

"Thanks!" The teenage girl stood up and wriggled the new leg, getting a feel for it and work out any kinks. Soon enough, it started to move fluidly like a real leg, as it should, "Great, it worked."

Vincent returned to the camp, "Looks like you're going to be standing after all." He smirked as he saw that the others were startled at his appearance. Cid grumbled something about spookiness under his breath. Yuffie shook it off and laughed, hopping around the campground with energy.

"Just letting you all know they're coming." The sniper turned to the forest south of them, as he did; a yellowish buggy rumbled though the forest, greeting them all with loud clank as it stopped before the campground.

Nanaki returned and sat beside Vincent, watching on. Barret climbed out, waving at them, "Hey! We're here!"

Tifa climbed out with Cloud in tow, "Cool buggy!" She gushed as she waved, "It's even got boat feature too."

Cid smirked, leaning on his javelin, "So, that's how you guys got here?" He noted Cloud appeared thinner, paler and with dark circles under 'his' blue eyes.

He wasn't the only one, Vincent noticed, "Aeris and Sephiroth have gotten to the City of the Ancients already. We better get going if we want to catch up with them."

Cloud's hands balled up into tight fist as she nodded in affirmation.

"All right, let's go!" Tifa clapped her hands together, "Got what we needed to get in?"

Cid raised the bag that held the harp, "Right here, someone will have to play it, I ain't a soothing player."

"A harp?" Barret took the bag and pulled it out; it was tiny compared to his massive form. "Can't play either."

Vincent shook his head, "I only do flutes." Then everyone gave him a skeptical look. "I do."

"I will." Cloud's voice broke through their thoughts, surprising everyone. She took the harp from the black man and tucked it under her arm, "Let's go." The party left the yellow buggy with the Tiny Bronco and entered the forest, heading to Bone Village.

As they reached the other end of the cavern from Bone Village, and entered the Sleeping Forest, Cloud recognized the place from her dream; it was beautiful, silent and mystical, with mist floating about the ground. No one dared to speak, they were in awe. They stood back as Cloud stepped forward, finding a spot and taking the harp in her hands. She slipped the brown gloves off, tucked them into her pockets and with the black ones on she started to pluck few notes, testing them out.

Cloud closed her eyes, stroking the strings of the harp and the music floated around her, an ethereal melody, tinged with sorrow.

Vincent watched Cloud play, pondering how 'he' appeared quiet and emotionally withdrawn since 'he' arrived earlier. He noted the blue eyes were darkened with something he recognized, sorrow with regret.

As the song played it seemed to speak from her very soul, sad, melodic and beautiful, reminding the others of their own sad pasts. Cid's jaw was set tightly, memories of Cody returned to him. Tifa's crimson brown eyes were downcast, memories of her past to the night when she and Cloud talked together at the well under the starry sky in Nibelheim. Barret's mind wandered to Marlene, wondering if she was all right, missing her.

The song ended, "The forest's awake." Cloud's soft voice broke them out of their musing. "Come on." She turned and continued down the path that had appeared when the music ended.

They all followed the path in silence except for Yuffie who appeared to be chasing something off the side of the path. She finally shouted in glee, "Gotcha!" It was a red summon Materia, "Ooh! Kujata!" She tossed the Materia to the sniper who caught it deftly and tucked it in the pack with the others.

The forest thinned, revealing a city in the valley. It was glowing in pastel and ivory colors, emitting peaceful idyllic aura. The houses scattered around the city were made out of coral, shells and oceanic materials, as if the city belonged undersea.

They traveled down the hill into the city, exploring the place, breath-taken. Cid rubbed his neck as he put the cigarette out before entering the city grounds; he felt it wasn't right to smoke among the ghostly pale city of the Ancients.

He murmured, "Yeah, looks comfy, it'd be nice to live here." They were exploring a large house near the center of the city. It was fully furnished, enough for everyone to remain overnight if they wanted to.

Cloud glanced around, "I feel it." She whispered. Everyone watched 'him' closely, unsure if 'he' would have the scene again. She turned to them, "Aeris is here, so is Sephiroth."

Cid gawked, "Wa, wa-wait minute, you're serious?"  
"But, how can you tell?" Tifa asked, puzzled.

Cloud sighed, "Remember the Temple? This false Sephiroth made connection with me, and I can feel him. Aeris, I can't explain why I can feel her. It's in my soul." She said somberly, her hand over her chest.

Cid twirled his javelin, "Shit, Cloud, we can't just be sittin' on our asses."

Barret gave a curt nod, "Yo, he's right."  
"Right, let's hurry and find Aeris."

The group left the house and followed the blond fighter though the city, making their way deeper, turning north and taking a path that took them out of the city and into crystalline forest beyond the city. The trees were white and leafless; they glowed ethereally, giving heavenly lights in the dark forest.

Cloud paused, "Aeris' voice, she's there." She pointed ahead deeper into the crystalline forest and they approached a mirror-like pool with a large building, shaped like a conch shell swirling into the sky. It was colored like mother of pearl, shimmering in the darkness of the forest, glowing with ethereal light much like the trees.

With unexpected burst of energy, Cloud ran ahead, around the lake and into the building. The others followed behind as they trailed into the long glassy stairway to the top where it led into another plane, a crystalline arena. The Avalanchers' jaws dropped as they entered the arena, the place took their breath away, their senses and emotions overwhelmed with peacefulness and serenity.

However Cloud was the only one unaffected by the beauty of the place, her attention were focused to the center of the serene place, a dais raised in the center surrounded by mystical water. Aeris knelt there, kneeling in prayer, unaware of the others.

Cloud made her way around the area, searching for the way to get to the shrine and found the bluish green water surrounded it. She found columns that formed steps for her to get across. She leaped nimbly from one column to another until she reached the center and took the last steps up to the shrine.

Aeris knelt on the glass platform, her hands clasped together in prayer. Her eyes were closed with peaceful contended look on her face.

Cloud's senses started to go haywire, sensing danger. Her vision flashed red and she shook her head, trying to clear up the red haze that obscured her vision as she reached for her sword.

Aeris kept praying as if she was unaware of anything around her.

Cloud's vision was still red, her hands clenched tightly around the sword handle as she lifted it higher, held ready to slash the praying girl. She struggled internally, realizing she wasn't in control of her body.

From the sidelines Cid realized what would happen and shouted, "Cloud!"

"Stop!" Tifa gasped; able to see from her vantage point the unnatural redness that had taken over Cloud's blue eyes and realized 'he' was being possessed.

Struggling, she held onto the sword, blinking as the redness faded away, revealing her blue eyes. She stepped back, feeling the control over her slip away, dropping her sword fell to her side. "Uh, what are you trying to make me do?" She groaned as she held her head with her free hand.

Aeris' eyes opened to reveal her sweet green eyes, she looked up and saw Cloud before her and smiled. The surrounding area swirled slightly in glitters and pale light. Cloud glanced up as she saw shadows. It came down falling from above.

It was Dark Sephiroth, with his Masamune drawn, positioned downward straight for Aeris. Cloud gasped inaudibly as she watched Aeris, she didn't move or anything, but knelt there with an odd smile on her face. The next thing she knew, Sephiroth landed with the sword slicing though the last Cetra's back.

Cloud felt like everything slowed down, her heart pounded like a beating war drum in her ears. She looked up to meet with Sephiroth's green eyes, glowing with malice, meeting with her shocked sapphire eyes. His mouth quirked an evil smile.

He drew out the sword; it made a loud grating noise that echoed in everyone's ears. As if in slow motion, Aeris fell forward; her eyes still wide open in shock, but the smile never left her face. When she fell to the ground, her eyes closed at last, her hair swayed and slumped against her back, free from the ribbon, a small pearly white object bounced on the glass platform and down the steps into the water's depths, slightly glowing a pale green and disappearing into the darkness of the abyss.

Cloud stared up at Sephiroth after watching Aeris fall. He raised his arms up, looking skyward.

Finally the reality hit her, "Aeris…"

His cold voice reached her ears, "Do not worry, soon the girl will become part of the Planet's energy. All that is left to go north, the Promised Land waits for me over the snowy fields. I will become a new being by uniting with the Planet, as will this girl…" He looked to Cloud, "I will wait for you there. Side by side, we will rise above, koibito." He chuckled at her horrorstricken face.

Cloud saw red again with her anger, "Shut up…" She growled, her voice cracked, "The cycle of nature and your stupid plan don't mean a thing!" She reached down to pick up Aeris' head into her lap, "Aeris is gone. Aeris will no longer talk, no longer laugh, cry…" Her voice in whisper, "Or get angry. What about us? What are we supposed to do? What about my pain?" She looked down, setting the russet haired girl's head back down on the glass. Her hands were shaking, her mouth had gone dry and her eyes stung badly.

Sephiroth knelt down to her, his hand caressing her cheek, "What are you saying? Are you trying to tell me you have feelings too?" He mocked.

Confused, she looked up, not rejecting the soft familiar caress, but then she realized, staring into the jade eyes, they were unfamiliar, "No…" She whispered. Her heart broke once again, realizing this wasn't the Sephiroth she knew and loved.

He stood back up, laughing, "Stop acting as if you were sad. There's no need to act as though you are angry either." He rose in the air, glancing down at her, "Because, Cloud, you are…" He then disappeared in flash, leaving behind cold laugher in the air.

Cloud blinked and leapt away from the platform as someone, or something materialized from thin air. The voice echoed, "Because, you are simply a… puppet. You can break free, become powerful…"

Cloud stood back in battle readiness as Jenova-Life took form before them, similar to the one they encountered before but larger and cruder looking. Cid cursed along with Barret as the group jumped in to help.

They battled against Jenova-Life, casting all they had, fighting for their very life. Once Jenova-Life was defeated and vanished in black mist, they realized it had seemed so easy.

Cloud stepped back, her vision becoming hazy, "I am… a puppet?"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The group of Avalanche stood at the edge of the mirror lake outside, in the tranquil crystalline forest. A few were gazing up to the sky while the others studied the stillness of the water. Yuffie sang a soft old tune from her homeland. Cid had his hand on the teenager's shoulder, watching the sky.

Tifa knelt next to Aeris who floated in the water. She placed a single flower the Cetra's folded hands. She winced as she felt her eyes sting, squeezing them shut as she got up and backed away from the water's edge.

Barret held his gun-arm to his chest, looking at the water as his mind wandered away and his memories swam. Vincent and Nanaki stood together, watching on as Cloud held Aeris' body in the water, keeping her afloat. The Cetra looked like if she was merely sleeping in a serene sleep, her clothes were slightly ripped where the sword had gone though her but there was no bloodstain, not one drop had spilled. The sword merely took her life.

Cloud carried the last of the Ancients toward the center of the pool, "I am so sorry…" She whispered.

'_Don't be.' _Her voice rang, _'All will be right at the end.'_ Cloud could feel her smile in her soul. She stepped back, letting Aeris go; she floated briefly before she sunk down into the abyss of the pool, her hair slowly fanning out beneath her, the serene water enveloping her as she descended to her final resting place.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Review, please?_


	27. S3:1: Northbound

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter One: Northbound

_From whose womb come the ice? Who give birth to the frost from heavens…._

Job 38:29, the Holy Bible

The serene peace of the crystalline forest was quiet and the air tinged with sorrow. Avalanche had buried one of their own and it was a time to mourn. The peaceful member of Avalanche, Aeris Gainsborough, the last of her kind, the Cetra, died at the hand of evil. She died with a smile on her face, knowing she had sacrificed herself for the Planet.

As she was left to sink in the fathomless bottom of the mirror lake, Avalanchers had slowly retreated, leaving the blond fighter to mourn on 'his' own, sitting at the edge of the lake alone.

Tifa came back much later, kneeling beside 'him', "Cloud…" She whispered, gazing into his downcast face, seeing the blue orbs darkened. "You know more than any of us about what is going on with Sephiroth."

Cloud turned her head to the brunette, "Yeah, so what?"

Tifa gave a long sigh, "Well, we couldn't prevent that, but can we do something for the rest of the Planet?"

Cloud narrowed her eyes at the other woman then stood up and turned around to find the rest of the Avalanche there as well, her back to the lake. "Everyone," She started, staring at each individual, meeting their eyes. "I am Cloud Strife, an ex-Soldier of ShinRa, of the Elites. I was born in Nibelheim and I started this to settle up with Sephiroth for what he had done to me in the past. This Sephiroth we speak of," She shook her head, "Destroyed my hometown, took my memories away from me, manipulated me, killed Aeris, and is now bent on destroying us all."

Tifa stepped back to join the group, "What is going on?" She asked, though her question had a deeper meaning, she wanted to know what was Cloud talking about, she wanted to know what was going on in 'his' mind.

Cloud held a finger up, signaling for everyone to keep their silence, "I came here by my own free will… or so I thought. However," She turned around, gazing to the water. There was a struggle in the back of her mind, a battle going on that had been increasing since she woke up from her sleep after the Temple of the Ancients.

"If you hadn't stopped me, Aeris might have been… " She exhaled, feeling the splitting pain fade, "That's why I should quit this journey, right here, right now." She heard the others murmur their objections and their reactions.

"Before I do something terrible," She continued, ignoring everyone else. She had to speak it out so she would understand herself or else she would never. "But, I am going. I have to." She heard their sighs of relief.

She gazed into the water, watching her reflection on the surface, her heart skipped as she saw the water ripple slightly and a new image showed, the face of Sephiroth staring back at her, as if he were standing behind her in the reflection. He looked sad with regret; he shook his head, mouthing something.

She closed her eyes, feeling the familiar tug of their link, it was wavering, weak, but it was there. The voice slipped into her mind, almost inaudible but it cleared, echoing inside her mind, _::It wasn't me. Say my name and it is no longer I, Sephiroth..::_

'_Seraph, it is your name, Seraph.'_

_::Yes, Koibito. He stole my name, my body, my life but he didn't steal my soul name. I am no longer…::_ He faded away and the connection broke once again.

"Sephiroth." She replied, she understood. Looking up from the lake, like a light from heaven flashed around her; she knew what her purpose was. The name now belonged to another, the one who destroyed everything she held dear. She lapsed into silence, her eyes watching the water, her reflection shone back, alone.

After a long silence, she turned to the others, giving each member a look over, "I must go on." She swallowed hard as she unclenched her hands, not realizing she had them in tight fists. Her hands throbbed in pulsing dull pain. "I have a favor to ask you, will you all come with me?"

No one gave a reply but one by one, each stepped forward. Cid was the first, "Like hell, I will."

Yuffie grinned her toothy smile, "Me too!"

Barret's gun-arm cocked and the barrels twirled, "Me too!"

Red bowed his head, "I will honor your favor."

"So will I." The sniper added.

Tifa was the last one, standing back, her head downcast, her hair shadowing her eyes. Cloud watched her. Slowly, her head lifted, revealing her cinnamon eyes shining with tears, small smile graced her lips, "We're all behind you, no matter what, Cloud."

Cloud closed her eyes again, "Thank you. Thank you for being behind me the whole time and from now on, I trust you all to save me from doing something terrible. Well, we will face it when it happens." She shook her head and she looked at the others, "I don't know how Aeris tried to save the Planet from Meteor, and I guess now we'll never know. But!" She held a finger up, "We still have a chance. We must get that Black Materia back before Sephiroth uses it."

Yuffie gave a cheer, "Great! Let's go!"

The mismatched team of Avalanche, seemingly larger than ever despite the loss of member, left the crystalline forest. They went through the abandoned City of the Ancients with renewed vigor, set to go after Sephiroth.

No one knew where to go except Cloud, they all knew Cloud had a tie with this Sephiroth but silently questioned how the blond fighter ever had a tie with Sephiroth in the first place. They returned to their camp as evening fell, deciding to rest for the night and restock their packs before heading north.

Nanaki lay beside Cloud as she cleaned the Buster Sword, sitting before the fire that crackled happily in the center of the campground. He raised his head, "I sense changes in you, are you all right?" The wolf asked, cautious.

Cloud kept cleaning the sword as if she didn't hear him, then she turned to him, "Things are different now." She said with a sigh, "That's not the Sephiroth I know."

"Do tell me, if it helps, who was Sephiroth?" Nanaki asked, moving his head to rest on her leg as she moved the sword away.

Cloud gave a small smile at the wolf and scratched his head, "You're curious, aren't you?"

The wolf gave a snort, "I am merely helping, sometimes through hard times like this, it helps to look back upon happier memories and speak of it."

"I suppose. Tell me what do you know about Sephiroth and I'll see what I can bring up."

Nanaki laughed and curled his large body around Cloud's, giving her support and warmth. "I know as much about him like the rest of the world does. He was the ShinRa's greatest accomplishment, a Soldier that fights like a machine, cold and emotionless, he was vivacious in battle, and no one would dare to cross his path unless they're suicidal." He heard Cloud laugh softly, "He has a long history of war, won nearly all of them, the one that was his best, the Wutai War, brought the country to its knees, which was a pity."

Yuffie across from the camp was lying in her bag rose slightly to listen, curious as well what Cloud would say about the Great General Sephiroth.

Cloud shook her head as she leaned onto Nanaki's back, "Those are true, but I know him better, so did Zack. We're the only people who know him personally, what his wishes and dreams are, what he feels and when he does. Zack was his first and only friend for a long time until I came into the picture. When I joined the Academy, I roomed with Zack and Reno," She smirked as she heard Tifa gasp from the side and realized she had an audience but didn't care,

"Yes, the Turk. Zack became a friend, the best friend that I could ever have. They both got me into Soldier few weeks after I joined, for two years, Zack tried to get me to meet his other best friend, Sephiroth. It always failed." She smiled as fell into memories, "Finally, Zack forced me to attend the ShinRa ball, that's when I met Sephiroth by accident in a dancing game, we got to know each other, and then we became friends."

Yuffie had sat up while she listened, "It's hard to image the man being anybody's friend."

Cloud nodded, "He still was cold and withdrawn most of the time but around Zack and me, he was different, he has a heart inside that hard chest. He doesn't trust anyone because of how he was treated his whole life, with Zack and me, he trusted us. We went on different missions together, Zack got promoted into the Elite and they both helped me get promoted all the way up to Elite, it was cool, until Nibelheim."

Tifa frowned then. She suspected Cloud was lying about Nibelheim and curious what 'he' would say next.

Cloud shrugged, unaware of Tifa's suspecting glare and kept gazing into the fire, "Nibelheim was when everything fell apart. I am still not sure what happened exactly there. All I know is that Sephiroth changed." Even, she was beginning to recall everything at Nibelheim, still the memories eludes her. It was the only pieces left she still has to discover to complete her memory loss.

Barret rubbed his chin, "Wasn't Jenova in Nibelheim then when it burned?"

Cloud nodded.

Vincent caught on, "So, what do you remember about Nibelheim?" He asked, also suspecting that Cloud was there as well, lying to everyone else.

Cloud looked up and met with Vincent, "Like I said, I don't remember much. All I know, Sephiroth discovered Jenova there, learned the truth about her and all that. You saw the mess in the ShinRa Mansion, right?" Everyone nodded, remembering the strewn papers and books in the basement lab. "He did that, he found the lab, read everything he could get his hands on."

Cait hopped to Cloud's side and settled into her lap looking up at her face, "No one knows this except for the few people. Zack told me," Cloud knew it was Reeve behind the cat now, "Sephiroth attempted to remove the head of Jenova from the Nibel Reactor."

Tifa gasped, "So that's why he was upset when he left the Reactor," She had recalled, "He and Sorano ran out of the Reactor, it wasn't until that night when he started burning the town. I remember it clearly now. He changed; there was something in his eyes, so cold, evil."

Cid mumbled around his cigarette, "Supposed he got in contact with the illness, you know, the head got it, right?"

Cloud nodded, "You all know Sephiroth was a Valkyrie, the illness wants the body of a Valkyrie, so the real Sephiroth is gone, and we're after this illness who wants to destroy the Planet."

"What is this illness?" Tifa asked.

Cloud shrugged, "In the Temple of the Ancients, it has a name, it was also mentioned in the Tome of Valkyrie, and it's called Calamity of the Sky, it once was a race from outer space, it's planet was destroyed and it traveled on a rock, searching for somewhere to survive. It was called to here and the rest of the story, you know." She stood and stretched, "I'm beat. Good night." She went to her small tent and crawled in, going to bed.

Everyone else remained at the fire, mulling over what they had learned.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

By morning, the camp was all packed up and piled up in the yellow buggy and the Tiny Bronco, heading due north, lead by Cloud. The journey was short, taking them farther north into the colder region. There was a village that lay nearly on the top of the world, the Icicle Inn. They weren't dressed for such climate and by the time they reached the village, they were rather very cold.

The village was peaceful and quiet, like a small winter wonderland. There were nearby events, such as snowboarding races and a hiking trail that went close to the Glacier that lay north of the small village. It was a beautiful sight but very cold.

The party broke up as they went to the village, going shopping as Cloud had split their money between them, telling them to get better equipment and winter clothing to help them with the rest of the journey.

"He's farther north from here. I am not sure where exactly but we've got to bundle up, and get rations too." She announced as she dished out money to each members. "Yuffie," she glanced at the teenager who was rapidly turning blue due to the fact that she was only wearing shorts and the oversized blue sweater. "You gotta get warmed up soon, here." She handed the money to the girl and watched her join Cid and Vincent to go shopping for some warmer clothes.

They even asked around and gotten rooms at the inn, staying a couple of days, learning about the surrounding area, even discovering that Sephiroth had passed through the village, having stopped and remained a day, doing much of nothing except to rest and eat before going on. The villager had thought him very odd because he went on without proper attire or rations. The assumed he was suicidal.

Cloud went scouting with couple of guides from the village, learning of the glacier and had picked their brains for what they knew about the region farther north. She was told that it was impossible to cross the Glacier and reach the Northern Limit without a map, something Cloud suspected they would have to find a way to do, believing this "Northern Limit" was their next destination.

She returned from the hike to find Tifa petting a dog and Yuffie chatting with couple of kids her age. Vincent had stepped out of an old house nearby and waved her over, "Come here, I found something." Soon, everyone wandered over and followed Vincent into the house, finding it small and cozy, with a number of scientific-looking gimmicks cluttered around. The place looked like it had been abandoned for years.

"This was where Professor Gast used to live with his wife." Vincent explained. "I overheard some people in the village mentioning about this house and I came to check it out, there's a lot of things here." He gestured to pile of videos and discs on the desk near a small television.

Cloud inspected them and whispered, "They're documents on his discoveries, the Cetra, Valkyries and Jenova." She took a disc and popped it in the television, playing it.

The video showed Professor Gast, introducing himself and his wife, Iflana, a pretty woman who looked very much like Aeris. They learned that Iflana was a Cetra as well.

Gast had interviewed Iflana about the Cetra, learning the history of the race. She went into detailed description how the people of Cetra came from another planet, how they heard the cries of the Planet and came to investigate only to find it wounded from the first meteor impact. They had settled, trying to heal the planet, but when they failed to make much of an improvement they left the planet to heal on its own, settling and developing bonds with the Planet.

Her theory about the life force and the energy was pretty close to what Burgenhagen had told them before when they were in Cosmo Canyon. The wound of the Planet was beyond the Northern Limit where long ago, a large meteor had crashed, just as it was told in the Temple of the Ancients.

To their surprises, Iflana told a story of Madoshi and Megamiki; a sad tale of two lovers enduring trials to get together. Her voice carried though the room, telling the tale, capturing the listener's attention;

"Once long ago, Gaia, the Planet herself had a daughter, a beautiful woman, the original Valkyrie. Her name was Megamiki, she roamed the Planet, caring for all creatures, making sure they were happy as well. It wasn't until Madoshi saw her from outer-space, he was smitten with her beauty, and he desired her.

However, Gaia stood in the way, defending her daughter, making sure no one would ever touch her. Madoshi wanted to see Megamiki, so during the night while Gaia slept, he would descend from heaven to visit her, wooing her, and Megamiki fell in love with him in return. Each morning, he would leave, promising to see her the next night.

Gaia suspected something when she saw her daughter sad every morning. One night, she didn't sleep, she saw Madoshi descending to meet with Megamiki, she was angry, she came to them, pulled her daughter away, telling him to leave and never come back." Iflana smiled on the television, "Megamiki was heartbroken, she missed Madoshi and wanted to be with him. Madoshi heard her prayer, he decided to take action, he drew up strongest power he could and sent the meteor crashing upon the Planet, wounding Gaia terribly. Megamiki took her chance and ran to Madoshi's arms.

Gaia was angry and hurt, so she cursed Madoshi and her daughter who betrayed her, she had cursed them separation for eternity."

Gast appeared to be wiping his eyes on the screen, "Oh, Iflana, that story, no matter how many times, it moves me. So, how are they cursed?"

Iflana smiled, "They were cursed to be Summons, banished from either plane of life and death, only to be stuck in the limbo."

Everyone watched on, curious, never having ever heard of how the Summons came to be.

"Being a Summon, you must be either cursed or dead, stuck in the middle plane with a hold onto life. Gaia cursed them both, turning them each into a Summon and hid the Materias separately, to never ever be close together."

"But can this curse be broken?" Gast asked.

Iflana nodded, "All curses are meant to be broken. If someone uses the Summon Materia, they will be released, only to do their duty to protect the Planet. Once they have fulfilled their duty, they are released, to pass on to the Lifestream, finally dying completely."

"Interesting, so, had anyone ever found either of those two Summon Materias?"

Iflana held out a hand, in her palm was a tiny white ball, it shimmered like a pearl. "This is Holy Summon Materia, the very one that Megamiki is. There is no need to use it, no one can."

Gast smiled at her, "Tell me, who can use this Materia and how?"

"To use this, the Planet must be in dire danger, and one who has a connection with the Planet can only make a request, with a price. Gaia will hear the prayer and decide to release her daughter to save the Planet. She is the only one who has the ability, however I think different. I believe," Iflana held a finger out to make a point. "Gaia knew that someone would eventually find Madoshi and release him and that would be cause of danger to the Planet and this," She held the white ball, "is the counterattack, only Megamiki can calm Madoshi's wrath."

Cloud stood back up from watching the television, "Aeris. She knew what she was doing."

Tifa looked up, "What do you mean?"

Cloud shook her head, upset, "Aeris took off, and she had the Materia the whole time. She told me she had one, a useless Materia given by her mother. There, that is the one." She pointed to the television where it showed a paused picture of Iflana holding the Materia. "She was a Cetra, she has connection with the Planet, but the only way she could make a request to Gaia is to go and meet her."

Cid cursed, "Shit, no wonder why you almost killed her, she was the one trying to make you kill her?"

Cloud nodded, "But I fought her, then Sephiroth came in, he killed her. She sacrificed herself…" She slumped down to the floor, her back against the wall. "Aeris… why did you?"

The television continued to play; Gast went on interviewing Iflana about the Cetra, the Valkyries and then finally the Calamity of the Sky. The whole thing was the basic history of what happened to the Cetera, and how the meteor carried the illness, spreading on to the others and in the end with Jenova. They were surprised to learn that the illness also spread to the animals as well, creating new and dangerous breeds which they had often come face to in their journey. In conclusion, they learned that their whole lives were evolved from such anger between Gaia and Madoshi.

The video ended. Everyone looked pale as they finally understood.

Cloud stood up from where she sat, "Weapons." She said, recalling at one point where Iflana mentioned it. "What is it?"

Vincent shuffled though the pile of discs and found one labeled, "Here it is." He replaced the disc and played it.

It was a short video, but very informative. After the Planet was wounded, it was unable to heal completely because of the illness, the Planet created a defense system, called the Weapons. There was no information of its real purpose, how they were used. As Jenova was defeated by the Valkyries, the Planet felt it was safe once again and placed the Weapons in deep sleep, hidden under the face of the planet here and there, their locations unsure, abiding their time until a time when they may be needed again.

Cloud watched the screen go blank as the video ended, "So, that's what they are… I don't think I wanna face them. Well, we've got to stop Jenova from destroying the Planet and let it heal on its own." The other agreed.

Yuffie held up couple of discs, "Look!" She handed them to Vincent who replaced the disc and played it. The video was nothing like the others but more of a family video. It was just after Aeris was born; everyone watched, charmed by its sweetness. They recalled her kindness as they watched; also remembering that she had died for them, overtaken with sorrow at the thought.

The second video revealed that Doctor Hojo broke in with several ShinRa Soldiers. To their surprise, a young Sephiroth was among them. He was perhaps in his early teen, shorter and thinner, he held no emotions the entire time he was there. He had stood to the side, wearing black turtleneck, slacks and knee high riding boots. His hair was shorter, only to his shoulders and at the hip was a four footed katana, also in black.

Hojo had invaded Gast's home, wrecked it, terrorizing Gast and Iflana. Hojo had Gast killed and the Soldiers took Iflana. Sephiroth took the baby in his arms. Cloud watched his face as he gazed at Aeris; she noted that his cold jade eyes softened for a moment before snapping his head up to hear Hojo's order. Soon, Hojo took Gast's research on the Cetra, not paying attention to any other reports on the Valkyries or the Planet.

Cloud frowned as the video ended with a static. "So, that's how Hojo got hold of Iflana and the Jenova Project. There was a project before; I think it was called Soldier Project. Gast and Hojo worked together on it before this one. Sephiroth was one of the subjects to the Soldier Project."

"Ooh, that bastard!" Tifa muttered.

Vincent frowned as he glanced at the date on the screen. "This was taken place few weeks before the Wutai War ended. It's hard to imagine how the ShinRa sent a young boy to war, only to have him return changed." Everyone gasped softly.

"There's more reason to stop Hojo!" Barret shook his gun arm, nearly ready to fire holes into the ceiling of the small hut. He stomped out of the hut, the others followed, leaving Cloud and Vincent behind to stare at the static image on the television.

"Sephiroth…" Cloud murmured, remembering how young he was in the video.

Vincent nodded, "If I remember right, he was eleven at the time."

Soon the static stopped and they both watched the television, the video appeared that the camera had been knocked to the ground, a black boot came up to the camera and soon with a jolting images, the camera righted and Sephiroth's young face peered at the camera, noticing it was on. He stared for a moment and then said, "Whoever find this, don't worry about the baby, I'm going to hide her. She doesn't deserve a life I have." Then the video stopped, the screen going blank.

Cloud closed her eyes, a tear sliding down her cheek, "Thank you. Now I know."

Vincent smiled slightly and turned the television off. "You are correct after all, he does have a heart."

She gave him a smile and they both left the hut.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Avalanche packed up as soon Cloud found a map they could use to get to the Northern Limit. They started out to the trail north of the town only to run into the Turks.

Elena had spotted them and shouted to the Soldiers that were with her, "There they are, hurry!" She pointed to the Avalanche. The Soldiers popped out from the line of white trees, blocking their path. "Get them!" She ordered and soon the Soldiers started to attack the rag-tag group. Unfortunately for the Soldiers, they were no match for Avalanche and soon, they were all lying in the snow, out cold.

Elena shook with rage as she approached them, "Ooh! Cloud, I won't let you go any further!"

Cloud laughed in Elena's face as she got closer, "Really? What's up there?"

The blonde Turk turned her nose up, "It's a se-cr-et." Then huffed at 'him', "It really doesn't matter! But you got guts doin' my boss like that!"

Cloud stepped back, "Your Boss? You mean Tseng?" She shook her head, "Oh, that wasn't us, Sephiroth did it."

Elena's eyes widened, "No! Don't think you can fool me, liar!"

Cloud leaned forward, boring her gaze into Elena's eyes, "I'm not lying, it was Sephiroth." She replied calmly.

"Don't try to act innocent, I'll never forget it!" Elena retorted with frayed nerves.

Cloud gave a shrug as she rubbed the back of her neck, the conversation wasn't going anywhere she liked, "Oh man…"

Elena crossed her arms, "Look like talking alone won't cut it. You're going to have to feel some pain!" She tilted her head to the tree and nodded. Another guard came out, "I'll handle it." The guard stayed where he stood. Elena stomped up and threw a fast punch to Cloud's face, causing the blond fighter stumble back to the snow. Avalanche scattered backward, surprised.

Elena frowned; she knelt down, her face with confusion, "Why? Why didn't you try to avoid it? You're trained to do so." She was also shocked that she was able to clock Cloud and injure 'him' enough to cause blood to trickle down 'his' chin.

Cloud laughed as she wiped the blood away with her hand, "Why not?"

"Ooh!" Elena stood up and stomped, "You're so stubborn as usual! What happen to that nice little quiet Cloud I used to know?" She threw her hands up in the air and screamed, and then she started to stumble as she tripped over a rock. She fell down the hill and the guard went after her to help her. Her scream echoed as she tumbled away.

Cid stepped up and helped Cloud up, "Uh, what's with her?"

Cloud smirked, "She's starting to lose her mind. Sweet actually, being in the Turks doesn't agree with her."

"Guess so." Barret shrugged, "Are there other Turks around?"

Cloud shook her head, "No, I don't think so. I think Elena's only one here, on a recon. The Turks are obviously deployed to keep an eye over other places until they pick up a lead. They'll be on our tail soon. I think." She pulled out the map and unrolled it, it was on animal skin, pictures drawn here and there, showing the general area, it was primitive but it was better than none.

Avalanchers huddled around her as she studied the map, "Well, we need to get there." She pointed to a large picture of a circle on the top of the map. "That's where he should be."

Barret leaned closer to study the map, "How do you know?"

Cloud's blue eyes met with his beady black eyes, "I just do. He said north, and you all saw the video tapes, that's where the crater is, the wound of the Planet, he's got to be there."

Barret's eyes widened with apprehension, "Oh, now it makes sense. Like he said before, he's going to make the wound bigger and gather all the energy of the Planet there! So, he's there, isn't he?"

Cloud rolled her eyes at Barret's dense mind, "Let's go." She tucked the map back in her pack and zipped up her bulky dark blue coat. She waved her arm and they started, following her lead by foot.

It was a difficult journey for all of them, having to trudge though several foot snow, over the hills and then into snowy wilderness. Several times, they nearly got lost. Everything was white and looked the same. They had to check the map several times. After a half of day of trudging though the frozen wasteland they realized they were going in circles, following the shifting wind.

"Gah! It's cold!" Cloud chattered though her bluish lips, "We'll freeze if we stay here any longer!" The winter weather wasn't very kind; she noticed the others were also cold as she was, their skins taking reddish and blue tints. "We'll need to find shelter soon and warm up." She called to the others over the howling wind.

True to her word, they found a small abandoned shelter, a primitive hut made out of layered leathers and furs. There were supplies as well in the hut. They all entered and huddled around a small fire, the hut was so small that everyone was sitting side by side.

"How much farther?" Barret grumbled as he was sandwiched between Tifa and Cid. Vincent was the only one who apparently wasn't affected by the cold.

Cloud shivered as she was between Nanaki and Vincent. She had pulled out the map and was studying it. "Hut in the middle of no where… here." She pointed a finger on the map and trailed her finger up, "Hm, we're almost there, we need to get there soon, and we'll stay the night here and start out in the morning." She glanced up; the hut shook violently in the howling storm that raged above them, surprised that the old hut survived in the storm year after years.

They rest silently agreed and started to unpack their camping equipment, setting up bedding to sleep though the night, huddling together to share their warmth. Yuffie gave a suggestion for each member to have a fire Materia to keep them warm in the bag, true to her suggestion, the fire Materia emitted steady heat though the night. Vincent took the first watch and passed it on to Nanaki, and then Cid and Cloud took the last watch to dawn.

Morning came and it was still dark out, the blizzard howled around them. Cloud and Barret took the lead, trying to figure out the map and carefully trace their path, not letting the twisting blizzard adjusting their path. Everyone was tied together in a long line with a rope so they could not lose each other.

Between Vincent and Red, Yuffie started to groan and rub her leg, her nub was numbed and she couldn't feel anything but pain. "Ow, ow, ow." She muttered to herself, bending over with her weight mostly on her good leg.

Cid cursed behind her as he failed to light his cigarette and gave up. He took Yuffie into his arms and rubbed her back, "Hey, ya al'rite?" He asked with concern, his fathering instinct kicked in.

She shook her head, "I'm so used to the heat of Wutai, and the cold is just too much for me to bear. But I'll get though this if we have to get to Sephiroth." She spat and struggled to stand up.

Cid frowned and tugged onto Vincent's cloak ahead of Yuffie, "Hey, got something for Yuffie?"

Vincent turned around, his crimson eyes gazing down at the youth in the pilot's arms, "Painkiller will not do in the cold. She might be experiencing frostbite. All we can do is keep going until we get somewhere to warm up." He reached over and picked up Yuffie as he noticed she was struggling to stand on her own. "I'll carry you; you're no burden to me."

Yuffie gave him a smile and burrowed her head into his cloak and fisted onto his black coat. Cid smiled at Vincent and followed him.

Cloud's shout turned their attention, "Come on! We're not far now! A mile ahead in the storm and we're clear!" Avalanche followed Cloud though the raging biting blizzard and found they were clear of the storm into cold clearing with a large cabin up ahead before the steep slope of what looked like a white cliff.

A man hobbled out of the cabin, greeting them. "Come on! You guys must have been totally nuts to cross the Great Glacier!"

The group gave each other a surprised look. Cloud asked, "Glacier? You're telling us that we crossed the Glacier?"

The man nodded, "Yep, my name is Holzoff. Between here and the village south of here is the Great Glacier, I am amazed you made it through. I've been living here for twenty years now." He hobbled back into his hut, guiding the others into his large warm living room. "If you're planning to head north, you'd better listen to my story. Come right in and get warmed up. Always could use some company." He hobbled off to make some tea.

Avalanche sighed at the warm heat and started to remove their bulky winter clothes. Vincent helped Yuffie out of hers while Cloud helped Nanaki to remove the jacket he wore. The teenage ninja sighed as she was settled between Cid and Vincent on a small couch while Tifa and Barret took the larger one. Cloud sat before the fire, rubbing her hands together, not even removing her gloves at all.

The man returned from the kitchen with cups and teapot on a tray. There was steaming hot chocolate as well and he served it around. He had graying hair and thick bushy moustache that twitched merrily every time he talked. He had rosy cheeks to go along with his pale blue eyes.

Cloud soon joined Tifa and Barret at the couch, "So, what is you wanted to tell us and how did you know we're heading north?"

Hozloff laughed a deep laugh and sat down in his comfortable chair, "Ah, you ever heard about those who challenged the cliff?" He was received shake of heads, "There's an old legend that says something fell from the sky here a long time ago." He didn't fail to notice his guest recognized what he was talking about. "That's what is supposed to have pushed the land up and formed this cliff. Thirty years ago, Yamski and I took this cliff on to see what was on the other side. But, we weren't prepared for it. We did expect the temperature to be so low…" His eyes turned to the fireplace and watched the fire in silence before continuing, "Yamski was below me. He cut his own rope and I didn't notice… Ever since then, I've settled here continuing to challenge the cliff and provide warnings and shelter to my fellow climbers. If you're going to climb the cliff, there are to precautions you'll need to take." He held up two fingers and started to tick them off, "First, check your route… it's hard to find because of all the snow. Second, once you get to a ledge, make sure you warm up. There's a cave there with a pool, it's a hot spring, a special one. Understand?"

They nodded and soon, they told him their tale and why they were going up the cliff. The man pursed his lips, listening to their story, asking questions here and there, learning about them and their adventure. He told them that he had not seen anyone with description of Sephiroth and guessed the silver-haired man gave him a slip.

They were all invited to stay the night and warm up before continuing their trek up the cliff after Sephiroth. The next day was pretty much the same as the day before, howling winds and biting cold. Not much difference but they went on.

About a couple hours into the trek, Barret broke the silence despite the howling wind, "You know, I've been thinkin'…"

Cloud gave him a look and continued to lead the group. Barret took this as he could talk all he wanted. So he continued, "Seein' a place like this, makes you realize how awesome nature is. But, if anyone ever told me to live here, I'd tell him to…" no one stopped him but listened as they fought against the blizzard.

They took in his words and pondered his meaning, agreeing with him.

"You know… I'll tell you one thing though, If I did have to live here, I'd change things around 'n' make it better." Everyone could guess he was thinking of his old hometown, North Corel. "I guess the total opposite of this would be…" He thought as he bit his bluing lips, "Midgar. When you think of it that way, ShinRa don't seem so bad.." Then he realized what he had said and saw Cloud shoot him a disgusted look.

"Arrgh!" He rattled his gun-arm around, "The hell am I sayin'? ShinRa not bad? Me brain must frostbitten."

Cloud sniggered along with the others; they had reached to the base of the cliff where they could see there were series of uneven cliffs, which seemed impossible to climb. They found the ice cavern that Holzoff mentioned on the ledge halfway between. There was another farther up, to one side, and they assumed there was a way in the cave to get from one ledge to the other.

Cloud turned to the others and pointed out few members, "You guys come with me; the rest will catch up later in case something happens. It's going to be colder from this point on and we gotta be ready for anything." Tifa and Yuffie nodded as they were chosen to go with Cloud. Vincent, Cid and Barret helped to set camp close to the cliff's edge; they found a nook that blocked the howling wind. Nanaki had set fire alight with his tail.

Cloud led her smaller group into an ice tunnel at the base; it had tunnels that led to the top, preventing the wind from knocking them off. They started to climb up the trail they found, encountering with strange creatures that lived there and clearing them out of their path. The battle helped them to keep their body heat as they climbed.

The wall color on either side of them was a shimmering purple, green and blue streaked though the white, making it look like some kind of legendary Snow Palace. They eventually reached the ledge and entered the cavern, amazed at the sight they found there. It looked like glass streaked with colors through the walls, floor and ceiling.

"Ooh, if it weren't for the cold and the monsters, I would like to live here but then, I rather Wutai over this." Yuffie quipped as she looked around.

A large double-headed dragon appeared out of nowhere and attacked them. They fought and defeated it. It was an elemental dragon and they had easier time to defeat the dragon with their Materias.

Cloud smirked at Yuffie, "Think of this, this is Jenova's Palace. She's the Snow Queen here."

The teenager's face twisted into something of disgust and horror, "Eww! I wanna get out of here!"

Cloud laughed softly and clapped the youth's shoulder, "Don't worry, after we get Sephiroth and Jenova, we'll all be able to go wherever we want to."

The ninja nodded and tossed a fire Materia to Cloud, gesturing to a frozen Tifa, "Better help her or else she'll get mad at you." Tifa had been frozen during the battle with the dragon.

Cloud helped Tifa out of the ice and they trekked down the cave and eventually found a large open area, which true to Holzoff's word, contained a hot spring. "Well, it's natural elixir water. You two set camp here we'll stay here for the night. I'm going back to get the rest. See you guys soon."

Tifa and Yuffie had set up temporarily camp and took a dip in the mystical pool, warming up and healing, their strength renewed. Cloud had taken a drink before retreating to get the others.

Several hours later, the others joined them. Cloud had waited, suggested everyone relax, take a bath in the pool and rest for few hours before they could continue on. Night fell; everyone was too exhausted to bother moving on and retreated to their tents.

"You haven't taken a bath yet." Nanaki sat outside his tent he was sharing with Barret and Cloud, Barret was already snoring deeply inside the tent.

Cloud shrugged at the wolf, "Rather waited until now." She started to take her boots off and slip the jacket off. She shivered as the cold air hit her bare arms.

The wolf gave a nod, "Understandably so, still do not wish to reveal yourself yet?"

She shook her head as she slipped her pants off to reveal legs that were long and shapely yet looked powerful as well, "No." She then slipped off her shirt off to stand before the wolf in the dark of the cave. The darkness was nearly pitch black except for the faint glow from Nanaki's tail. Cloud wasn't worried about being caught by the others because she was positive they were too exhausted to wake up anytime now. The climb had taken a toll on them, despite having bathed in the pool.

Nanaki's eyes widened as he saw Cloud's body, she was very slim and curved in all the right ways for a woman. He understood humans' ways well enough to know that for a woman, Cloud was among the most beautiful, perhaps as equivalent to a goddess. She kept her chest bandaged to keep it looking flat. She still had simple underwear on and much to his amusement; they were male briefs, though small enough to fit a boy.

Cloud tugged on the thin black shirt she wore under her clothes and took it off. She hadn't minded Nanaki watching her because she knew he was a different race and wasn't interested in her at all. She knew Nanaki wished to talk to her and question her with his everlasting curiosity.

As she removed the bandage, she was finally stripped bare, revealed in her female glory. She slipped into the water and sighed contently at the warmth, letting it wash over her. She felt the tightness in her muscles loosen up and the wounds on her body knitting and healing. Despite being relaxed, she felt her energy coming back with full force.

Nanaki, still where he sat, "We've come this far and I am surprised they haven't found out, despites your near slip-ups."

Cloud turned around and rested on the pool's edge, "Slip-ups?"

The wolf grinned, "Yes, slip-ups, there were moments that you nearly slipped up. Sometimes you would forget yourself in the way you walk, talk and even your voice. That time in the Temple of the Ancients was rather very funny. Yuffie hit it straight on, you did scream like a girl."

Cloud rolled her eyes, "They were so many Mus!" She shuddered at the memory, "And they were vile!"

"I'm not quiet exactly sure why you wish to not reveal yourself. If I may ask why?"

Cloud turned around and took a dip under the water and came back up. The water had flattened her hair back, allowing Nanaki to see her face transform with a simple hair change, showing that she had a delicate and beautiful face. She turned to him, "It is because of whom I am and my relationship with Sephiroth I wish to not let them know. If they knew, they would make connections between me and Sorano. I've lived this way long time, hiding my true self because of my hometown's fear of Valkyries. Tifa fears Sephiroth for a deeper reason, he was a Valkyrie and he is destructive and she knows it."

"What do you mean?" Nanaki asked, curious.

"Nibelheim was one of the few places that believed Valkyries to be fearful because of what happened a long time ago. When the reactor first built on Nibel Mountain, many men lost their lives and thought it was cursed. So, one night after it was finished building, a woman appeared in the town square, left a curse upon the whole town." She sighed and sank deeper into the water, "It came true, the curse said that the town would be destroyed, and it was. Only those who know the story and survived the burning know the curse came true."

The wolf frowned, "Interesting. Valkyries are powerful and destructive if you provoke their wrath."

Cloud smirked as she got out of the pool and dried up, she quickly dressed and to Nanaki's astonishment, he saw the transformation before his naked eyes of Cloud, from female to male in less than two minutes. She went to Nanaki and gave him a pat on the head, "Come on, let's get some rest, we got more climbing to do tomorrow."

The wolf nodded and followed Cloud into the tent and settled between her and the snoring Barret.

By morning, the camp folded and they all took drink of the elixir water and were on their way. Navigating the tunnels of the ice cave, they eventually got to the other cavern and saw they were nearly to the top. They geared up and started to climb the rest of the cliff and reached the top, looking down into the crater.

"Wheew…." Yuffie whistled as she saw the crater before her, it was massive, spanning nearly five miles in diameter; it was about two miles into the center.

"An old crater…" Cloud murmured. The air was warmer, which was odd since they were practically at the top of the world. In the center of the crater was Mako spewing on the bottom, glowing green, bubbling and oozing as if it were blood. The Planet was bleeding and the warmth came from the Mako.

"Something fell out of the sky and crashed down here, leaving scar on the Planet." Cloud concluded as they looked on.

Tifa stared wide-eyed, "Oh, the Planet is bleeding." She pointed out to the spewing Mako.

Yuffie nodded vigorously, "Yeah, we gotta help the Planet!"

"Damn! That's somethin'. It gathered up all that energy to try an' heal itself." Barret frowned in agreement, "Yea…"

Cloud heaved a heavy sigh as she watched the Mako geyser, sparkling beautifully like a crystallized green fountain, "All that energy, that's what Sephiroth is going to use to call a meteor, and next time the wound won't be so small."

"What should we do now?" The sniper asked, holding onto the gun strapped to his leg.

"We keep on going until we find Sephiroth, fight him, and take the Black Materia back." Cloud announced and stepped down the edge of the crater to a ledge below, it was a short path that led them to another cave inside the crater's wall.

Avalanchers silently followed Cloud into the cave, it was similar to the first one they were in, beautiful and crystalline and cold as well. The warmth didn't reach to the top edge of the crater. As they traveled further through the cave tunnel, they realized that they were actually circling the crater, going downward and the temperature started to become warmer, finding that the structure of the cave was gradually changing from ice to rock.

They bumped into a black-cloaked figure and watched it bend over and moan before it disappeared in thin air. This time, Cid voiced his questions, "Who the hell those people are, walking around in black coats?"

Cloud had answered him, this time she knew, "They used to be Soldiers, Class Two. I noticed the Class Two were disappearing from ShinRa. They have higher Mako in their blood and I guess Hojo infused them with whatever Jenova cells, turning them into servants for Sephiroth and Jenova. They're being called back to Jenova for reunion, to reunite all the illness that was left in their bodies."

Tifa frowned as she listened to 'his' explanation and asked, "Would that be because you also have Jenova's cells in you that caused you to give the Black Materia to Sephiroth?"

Cloud didn't reply but kept going, leading them on. Then she said moved to the spot where it vanished, "He's here." She told the others, and then her brows furrowed together, which piped the Sniper's curiosity, "They're here… too." They watched Cloud stagger and stumble where she stood, clutching her head.

Vincent grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the spot, "Come on, we got to move. You're strong enough to resist Jenova's calling."

Cloud snapped out of her trance and nodded, "Thanks, let's go." She shook her head and took lead again. They continued for another while and there was another black robed figure that appeared and collapsed in their path, moaning, "B…b, back to… Seph…i…roth…" They ignored it as it died and vanished, continuing their trek. They knew there was nothing they could do with them since they were no longer human and were bonded to Jenova, all of them waiting to return to her.

"Those people, how is it exactly they got the illness?" Yuffie asked curiously.

Cloud nodded, "The illness is everywhere on the Planet, it lies dormant in all of us, some have more than the others, those are the ones who have more illness and once Jenova calls for them, it wakes up and take over, sadly, it's the Class Two and other Soldiers mostly. Those, there are doomed, there's no cure or anything except to heal the Planet and then it's truly gone. The rest of us has evolved forms, from the Cetera who survived thousands years ago, we are their descendants." She explained as they passed couple more of the black cloaked figures.

Avalanche was starting to get warm on their trek toward the center; they had long exited from the cave near the bottom and were traveling along the wall of the Crater. They all opened their jackets and were fanning themselves in the humid heat. The crater floor was cracked and flowed with Mako like rivers; the steam was coming from the Mako, which was hot like boiling water.

"The time has come to settle things with Sephiroth, huh?" Tifa asked, watching the green fog steamed out in front of them when they stopped before a rather very large crack. It was quite wide, but there was a bridge-like slab that lay across it, giving them a path. They had to wait until the fog cleared to cross or else they would stumble blindly and risk the danger of falling into the Mako.

Cloud nodded as she turned to survey everyone else, "Are we all ready?" She got her answers as they all murmured in soft agreement.

"Let's go!" Tifa beamed at 'him'. They continued across the bridge, dodging the spewing Mako that spat up at them and treaded carefully in the fading fog.

High above in the sky, elsewhere, a large airship roared. It was heading north with a goal, carrying a group of ShinRa. Rufus stood within the ship's bay window, with a woman dressed in all red, blond hair tied up in bun and her eyes shone soft green, glittering with vanity. She was scowling. Heidegger was onboard as well, standing with a pilot, instructing him.

In the shadowed corner, Hojo stood by himself, smiling an odd smile and rubbing his hands together. In his mind, he wondered at the many possibilities of the Promised Land and of Sephiroth, a man he created for Jenova.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please?_


	28. S3:2: The Bridge

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Two: The Bridge

_What profit is there in my blood, when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? Shall it declare thy truth?_

Psalm 30:9, the Holy Bible

General Zachary Donovan sat in his bedroom alone, the laptop that controlled Cait Sith was before him on the desk, it's flat panel screen showing the world though Cait's eyes. He rested his head on his fist, watching the screen. Reeve had to take Rufus's place in acting President while Rufus went off in the air ship, going after Sephiroth with the others.

Zack, being a General for ShinRa didn't have much freedom as he should have had, he was restricted like a soldier in a lock up. He had been under such restriction since he had been resurrected, the former President didn't want him to leave Midgar and though Rufus had given him a little more freedom than his father did by allowing him to roam the Academy and sending him off on missions, he was still restricted in how much freedom he had.

He was glad that he was able to explore the world through Cait Sith, he often got cabin fever being confined to the ShinRa Headquarters; his only source of amusement was sitting behind the screen of the laptop, traveling in spirit with Avalanche.

He furrowed his black brows as he watched Cloud lead Avalanche though the twisted trail to the center of the Crater in the north. His hair stood on the back of his neck as he sensed something.

"Zack?" Reeve popped his head though the door and found the ebony-haired General lost deep in thoughts. "Hey, ya all right?" he asked as he strolled into the room.

Zack snapped out of his trance and looked up to meet the other man's eyes, shaking his head and sighing. Ever since Reeve had found him alone after his seizure, he had decided to keep a close eye on him, checking him every once in a while. Zack it explained that Sephiroth had attempted to keep the contact between him and Cloud but was severed terribly as Jenova and another consciousness got into the middle and messed up Zack's mind. He suspected Cloud had suffered worse since she had a stronger bond with Sephiroth and was physically closer to one of the two from the time between 'death' of the first Cait Sith and the appearance of the second one.

"They're in the Crater now." Zack noted, turning back to the laptop.

Reeve pulled up a spare chair and sat next to him, "I am asking about you."

Zack gave a nonplussed shrug, "Cloud's feeling vengeful. I am confused about everything; I just can't seem to keep track of my mind lately. I don't know anymore if she wanted to save him or kill him."

Reeve patted Zack's shoulder in comforting gesture, "We'll figure everything out soon." His eyes shifted to the screen where Avalanche trudged in the Crater.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The wind was vicious, threatening to knock Avalanche off their feet into the large Mako River under the rock bridge. The fog had cleared and they trudged on, passing a long line of black robed men and women marching slowly to where they were heading.

Cloud eyed them warily as they passed them, "Ugh, wonder where they're going."

Tifa walked beside Cloud, shrugging her shoulders and clenched her coat tighter, "Don't know…" She stopped as Cloud paused in her track. She noticed the blonde's eyes went blank, the pupil disappearing. "Cloud?" She felt dread washing over her.

Cloud ignored her and looked dead ahead.

Tifa turned to follow 'his' gaze and gasped as Sephiroth stood before them on top of the hill that the path led up, he was looking down at them with stoic face. His mouth moved as if he were speaking normally but his voice was louder than the howling wind, "This is the end for all of you."

Barret pushed Tifa behind him, raising his gun-arm, "Yo' shud'up!"

Cid gripped onto Yuffie's shoulder to refrain her from jumping ahead. He knew this was the first time she had seen him physically and pretty much solid before them. The youth carried the large burden of Wutai's revenge against the man; however the teenager struggled under his grip, "Lemme at him! He destroyed my home!"

Cloud blinked and shook her head, her eyes returning to normal, "You're not the only one." She spat and turning to Sephiroth; emotions flittered across her eyes, blazing bright blue with fire within, "Sephiroth! This is the end for you!" she nearly chocked as the pain filled with her words. She unlatched her sword and ran up the hill, charging head on.

Sephiroth didn't budge from his spot. He simply smirked, "You're right, this is the end of this body's usefulness." The area around him turned dark purple pulsating cloud.

As it cleared, Cloud glanced around confused, "He disappeared?"

Tifa joined 'his' side and gripped 'his' shoulder in comforting grip, "He might still be nearby…" the two searched around them and returned to the others.

Suddenly, a voice boomed and they all twirled to find him but he was no where to be seen, "Our purpose is to deliver the Black Materia to our master." The voice was combined of thousands of voices together, so loud and echoing.

Cloud stared blankly ahead, "Our?"

The blond pilot stepped forward, shoving the teenager behind him toward Vincent who caught her, "Hey, hey! What's goin' on?"

"Those who carry Jenova's cells…" Cloud said with a monotone voice. Her eyes changed once again, turning pale blue and fading toward white, "Master?" She asked, her voice gave proof of struggle between her real tone and the monotone.

"Yes, Master Sephiroth." The voices returned.

Tifa gripped onto Barret's good arm, shivering, "Oh gods, what was that?" She stared with horror at the state Cloud was in.

Barret shook his head, rubbing Tifa's arm in comfort, "I don't know."

Cloud fell forward onto her knees hard as she clutched her head with her hands, trying blocking the laughter from invading her mind. She groaned as she looked up to find Sephiroth appearing again before her with Masamune in his hand.

He was looking down at Avalanche; they had their weapons drawn, ready and thirsty for his blood. He laughed at them shortly and turned to gesture someone from behind him. Though the purple mist, a familiar figure appeared. It trudged forward, its massive bulk, two times bigger than the last, it was Jenova. This time, she was 'Jenova-Death' with the power of a grim reaper. Sephiroth had disappeared once again.

Avalanche threw themselves into a short but hard battle against Jenova-Death with Cloud on the side, on her knees, suffering from the pain of her own internal battle.

They knew and understood by now that Cloud was suffering, fighting the fate that befallen Sephiroth. Cloud was dangerously on the edge of joining him, but 'his' saner side proved to be strong, battling the insane side, resisting the will to join Jenova. It was unsaid, but they all suspected the illness was too strong in Cloud's body.

Only few people on the planet knew that Cloud did indeed carried Jenova's cells within her body. Zack was one of them, and he knew how they were placed in her body and for what reason. He wouldn't speak of it for it was a horrendous experience he had witnessed and feared the day Cloud would recall it. He knew Cloud had only recovered her memories up to Nibelheim but nothing afterward until Midgar.

Cloud sighed as the pain had subsided to tolerable levels. She stood up to find Avalanche had defeated Jenova again, but she knew internally that it wasn't over. From where Jenova-Death was, a black misty cloud surrounded the area.

She winced as she stepped forward, a part of her wanted to rush though the clouds but she resisted as she turned her path and stumbled to her friends, "Jenova's cells…" She whispered, though everyone heard her as they watched her staring at the black mist. "So, that's what this is all about. The Reunion."

Tifa grabbed Cloud before 'he' fell again, "Not Sephiroth?"

Cloud only snorted, "Not exactly. He's just part of it. Jenova is the one behind all of this." She shook her head as she stood back up with help of Tifa and Cid, "It's Calamity of the Sky Reunion, I just finally understood. I'll explain more later, right now, the only thing I'm thinking about is beating Sephiroth to plup." Which was true, she had a deep desire to beat the so-called Sephiroth for stealing her love's body and identity.

The brunette frowned, "But… Sephiroth is…"

Cloud turned to her, "He's here. The real one is here too, the one we were looking at before was simply a clone with the consciousness of the Calamity of the Sky."

Vincent had watched the emotions shift in the blue eyes of the blonde during the whole ordeal, studying them. Something caught his attention, he had saw emotions of hope, concern and love, a deep set love that he had only known once before. It was all within the mention of the 'real Sephiroth' he mused to himself, rubbing his chin as he watched the young leader.

"It's both incredibly wicked and cruel…" Cloud continued as she glanced around, "But it's releasing a powerfully strong will from deep within this Planet's wound."

Vincent tilted his head sideway, trying to figure out the whole mystery. He turned to the wolf that sat beside him, he noticed the wolf seemed to be simply listening but his eyes told differently, the wolf knew something that no one else know about Cloud. He turned back to Cloud, he knew Cloud had similar empathy to the Planet but it appeared to be deeper, much stronger. Could 'he' be a Valkyrie as well? It seemed impossible; then again, it was a possibility by a small margin. The questions swarmed inside his head as he shook his head to brush them aside for later. One question at a time.

Cloud staggered and regained her strength, pushing the pain down to be forgotten for now. She reached in the black mass of cloud and withdrew her hand to reveal a black orb of the Black Materia, everyone gasped. She turned, showing the orb in her hand, pulsating with dark energy. "The Black Materia is back in our hands. Now all we have to do is defeat Sephiroth and that'll be the end of it."

"There is something more to it if Cloud is able to simply get it like this." Vincent murmured, only heard by the wolf.

Nanaki looked up at the tall sniper, "I agree it has to be a trap somehow, setting up for only Cloud."

Tifa moved to Cloud's side, confident in her voice, "We'd better not take the Black Materia any further. Why don't you give it to someone else to hold on to it?" She gave a quick glance to Yuffie, "Not Yuffie."

Cloud stared at the black orb in her hands, studying it. Tifa's words rang wise and true, it was best for her to give it to someone else, someone who wouldn't let her do anything wrong with it. She knew she has the power to use it. She looked up to meet the faces of Avalanche, waiting for her next decision.

First, she glanced at Tifa. The woman didn't seem to be the person to give the orb to, for some reason, she just couldn't. She then turned to Barret, she knew deeply that Barret didn't want to take it and hold onto it, he was deathly afraid of it because of its capability to destroy the Planet. Yuffie was obviously out of the question due to her Materia obsession, but then again, she might be the best because she would take care of it extremely well and never let it leave her sight or go out of her possession. Cid and Vincent were not her choice either so she finally turned to the wolf. She stepped forward; the robot was long out of the question because it was risked that anyone could take control of him.

She knelt beside the wolf and held the orb to him, "Nanaki, take this and do not ever give it to anyone. I mean it, including me." She helped the wolf to add it to the pack that was strapped around his back. Nanaki nodded solemnly, yet skeptical of the whole thing.

She stood up and turned to the rest, "Let's find Sephiroth! The rest of you, we're going in first, you all stay and keep watch." She gestured to Tifa to come along.

Barret waved his beefy hand, "Go'wan… we all will keep your tails clear."

Cloud gave him a grateful smile and took lead with Tifa tagging along closely. The two crossed more rock slab bridges and avoided more of the deadly Mako vapor wind until everything around them disappeared and they both found themselves into a white void.

Tifa came to a full stop and gripped her feet firmly down on the unseen ground and looked around wildly, her cinnamon eyes wide with confusion and fear, "What is this? What is happening?"

Cloud turned around and stood confidently in her place as if she had done it before, "Calm down Tifa, Sephiroth is near, anything could happen."

Tifa gaped at 'him' and his damned confidence, "What?"

They turned to find themselves at the entrance of a familiar homely town.

"Nibelheim," Tifa whispered, staring ahead.

Cloud nodded, "We stepped into a void, and it decided to enter my consciousness, my memories." She looked over to her right and looked up at the taller man with long ebony hair that rivaled Cloud's spikes, "Zack."

Zack turned his head, his eyes bewildered, "Cloud! What the hell? Why Nibelheim and what am I doing here?"

Tifa looked up at the handsome man with violet eyes that tinged with silver, "So, General Zack, you're here too." She turned to Cloud, "Why?"

Cloud shrugged, "I think Sephiroth wants us here, you two are obviously closest to me, and Zack has a tie with Sephiroth like I do too. But you Tifa, I am not sure."

Tifa glared at the General, "I don't trust him." She pointed to the man accusingly.

Zack snorted and turned back to Cloud, happy to see her despite the situation. "I missed you." He embraced Cloud in his bear-hug, "You're holding up all right?" He asked.

Cloud gave a nod. "I suppose we should go into the illusion, find out what we are here for."

Zack crossed his arms, scowling, "One minute, I am with Reeve, and then I am here. What is this quack going on?"

Cloud laughed softly, almost sadly, "No, you don't understand. Sephiroth has called you here, he called me here, taking Tifa along for the ride because she so happened to be with me. He's trying to confuse us with all this. It'll be all right. As long we know it's an illusion, there's nothing to be afraid of."

Zack frowned; he could see the hidden fear in her eyes. "You've grown so much." He murmured sadly.

Cloud shrugged her shoulders and entered the town, "Come on, and let's keep going."

Tifa gave the raven-haired man a glare and followed the blond, "yeah, you're right… Look!" She gasped as she pointed ahead. Coming toward them was Sephiroth, walking as if everything were right in the world, with calm ease toward the gate of Nibelheim; there was three others behind him. Zack and Cloud recognized the scene.

Tifa frowned, "There's you, Zack." She pointed out to the younger Zack standing beside a woman in Elite uniform talking with Sephiroth, "that's the guy who died in the mountain, and that's Sorano." She pointed the two others as well.

Sephiroth turned to face the three and they talked, gestured in silence.

"What's going on?" Tifa asked, watching them, studying Sorano more closely.

Cloud sighed, "This is memories of when we came to Nibelheim on a mission years ago."

Tifa snapped her head to Cloud, "We? You're not here."

Cloud nodded and stepped to Sorano and sighed, "Sorano and I are the same person. Nice to meet you, my name is Cloud Sorano Strife, I've lied to you all of my life, I am actually a woman…" She stared somberly at the other woman who stared back in shock, "And a Valkyrie. I hid the truth because Nibelheim feared Valkyries."

Tifa gasped, "I can't believe this… actually, it makes sense… You knew too?" She turned to Zack.

Zack gave a nod, "Yes. I found out by accident two years after I met her."

"You… you were with Sephiroth the whole time. I… oh, this is so stupid… Sephiroth and you? This is unbelievable… you're in love with him, aren't you?"

Cloud gave a small nod, "Yes, we're what you would call soul mates."

"Stop this! This is so stupid!" Tifa scowled, stomping her foot, clearly upset and humiliated.

Sephiroth averted his gaze from the three, his eyes meeting Tifa's and he laughed. Tifa gasped as he stepped toward them, the scenery faded around them.

Zack shook his head, "This is pointless, and why are we here?" He asked Sephiroth directly.

Cloud gave him an unreadable glance, "Sephiroth brought us here for something, Zack. Do you feel it?" Sephiroth stood before them, motionless as if he were simply a prop, soon, he faded away.

"What do you mean, feel it?" Tifa asked.

Zack nodded, "I feel him, and he is so close but so far away."

"He is in pain. He brought us here to show us the truth." Cloud said with pain in her voice along with sadness.

Tifa furrowed her brows together in confusion, what were they talking about? What did they mean about Sephiroth and him being in pain? Hadn't that man already caused enough pain to others already?

As if to answer her unspoken questions, Cloud turned to Tifa, "We are not talking about the same Sephiroth. The one who were responsible for this whole thing was Jenova's son though her consciousness. Hojo cloned Sephiroth's body and that's the one we are dealing with. The real Sephiroth I know is in pain, his soul is detached from his body somewhere. His body is being used by the Calamity of the Sky, the whole purpose of using the Black Materia, only a Valkyrie can call upon the power of Meteor."

Tifa gaped at Cloud, "If we are after the clone of Sephiroth, what about the real one, where is he? Is that why you are doing this, seeking him out?"

Cloud nodded, closing her eyes as she took a deep breath, "I do not know where he is exactly. We had connection until Dark Sephiroth broke it."

She looked to Zack, "That happened to you too?" Zack nodded.

"He's dying." Zack noted, "That's all I know."

Suddenly, the empty void around them burst into searing flame. They found themselves in the middle of Nibelheim once again. Tifa gasped in horror as she fell to her knees in surprise and gripped the ground, her face going pale as she stared at the town burning in ethereal orange flame. Bodies were strewn about, lying dead in pools of blood. It was a vision of a nightmare, a horror.

Zack yelped as he leapt back from the burning pole he was standing next to. Cloud scampered backward, watching with wide eyes, fears clouding her blue orbs.

"Gods! This is terrible!" Zack spat as he watched, "why would he show us this vision? I don't want to relive this!"

Cloud shivered, becoming stoic, "This is what happened three years ago. But, why is he showing us this?"

They saw Cloud, as Sorano, ran out of the ShinRa Mansion, bewildered and horror upon her face as she looked around the town, running into the square, checking to see if anyone were alive. Then she stopped, staring at the end of the town, where Sephiroth stood, fire lapping around him as he killed couple of villagers. He then turned to meet her gaze.

Tifa gasped as she recognized him, "No, I don't want to watch this! Cloud, don't watch!"

Cloud ignored her and watched as Sephiroth turned around, flame of the fire licking at his figure, his long silver hair billowing upward with the flame. His emerald eyes were piercing as he gazed into Cloud's blue eyes and disappearing beyond the flame into the darkness, heading for the Nibel Reactor.

Zack turned to the blonde, "So, that's was from your view of memory, wasn't it?"

Cloud somberly nodded, "Yes." Her gaze turned upward to the sky, which was covered with billowing black smoke. She opened her mouth and called out in a loud cry, "Sephiroth! I know you're listening, I know what you wanted us to know!"

She fell to her knees and sighed as she grabbed the illusionary earth between her fingers.

The roaring fire died down and there was a gong of a church bell in the distant, echoing, fading to silence at last. She looked up to find Sephiroth standing before them.

"You finally figured it out." The man turned to Tifa, "She's not needed here to listen. She won't remember much." With a wave of his hand, Tifa disappeared.

Cloud stood, unsure as she questioned, "Sephiroth?" Tears welled in her eyes as she recognized the kind love emitting from his eyes. "Seraph."

Zack sighed with relief, smiling.

The silver haired man smiled sadly to her, reaching out to cup her cheek, "I have very little time before Jenova finds me again."

Zack growled at the name of Jenova, "That bitch got you in her hold, didn't she?"

Sephiroth turned to him, his hand also reaching out to grab hold of Zack's hand, "Yes, she has me by my soul. Her son has both of my bodies, the real one and the cloned one. Hojo is behind this as well, doing as Jenova bided him to do."

The raven haired man spat cursed words, "Dammit! This whole mess, damn! By this time, you two would be happily together in your own dream house and few children running around…" He ended sadly as he watched the two, "it's not fair, and life is not, isn't it?" He had tears shining in his eyes.

Cloud shook her head, "No, we were all pulled into this, the whole Planet used us. It was over stupid quarrel between Madoshi and Gaia. Only it would have been different if Gaia let Megamiki go… But no, Madoshi had to use a meteor from a dead planet carrying the illness to attack." She sighed, "It makes sense, an eon old problem, chains of events tracing their way back to them. Everything's clear to me now…"

Sephiroth nodded and drew her into his embrace, she basked into his warmth, her tears spilled down her cheeks as she clutched onto him as if he were her lifeline.

"You know what to do, koibito." Sephiroth let her go as he stepped back, distressed as Cloud's face contorted with emotional pain. He didn't want to let her go.

Cloud gasped as his mind touched her mind, "No! No, no… no, no, no!" She fell to her knees as he faded away, disappearing within the flame and then he was gone, as well the illusion. Cloud sobbed as she clutched herself in tight ball.

Zack knelt beside her, taking hold of her, "What is it? What did he want you to do?"

Cloud looked up at him, her face streamed with tears, "No! No, I will not!"

"Cloud! Tell me!"

She swallowed hard, "He wants me to kill him."

Zack stared in shock at his little sister and shook his head slowly, "I am sure he has a reason. Everything will be all right; your mother and the other Valkyries promised us on their lives that you two will be together in the end. It has to be." He assured as he faded away from her and Cloud looked up, finding herself fading as well.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

A slender woman with blond hair, tied up in simple French twist with few strands hanging over her eyes in teasing way, smirked, glancing around while she huddled in her deep crimson, almost black, furry coat that covered the slinky red dress she wore underneath.

She twirled around with a childish joy upon her face as she gazed around in the sparkling walls of a cave that were iced, showing shadows of strange shapes behind the glass like surface.

Her bottle green eyes sparkled as she turned to the young President as he entered the cavern; his face also showed his awe but to much lesser degree than her own. She bounced as much she could in her stiletto heels toward Rufus, "That's amazing!" She looked toward the end of the large cavernous room where the ice wall stood the tallest with strange coloring blending in its glassy surface, dimly showing shapes that had the appearance of the eye of some sort of monster.

"It's all Materia!" She ran her hand over the smooth ice-like wall and glanced upward, above all of them was a structure that looked like roots of a large tree with a large blue stone in the center, nestled within the intertwined branches.

The blond prince of ShinRa grinned slightly at the woman, "Scarlet darling, the outside is rich with Mako energy, and the inside is a treasure trove of Materia. This truly is the Promised Land." He then turned to the greasy haired doctor in his white lab coat, looking rather paler than normal, "Isn't it, doctor?"

"There is no such thing as the Promised Land. It's a legend…" Hojo waved his hand, dismissing their interest in the 'legend'. "An old wives tale, it's utterly ridiculous."

Rufus scowled at the doctor, "Everything as I imagined it to be. Isn't it splendid? Is it that kind of dullness that makes you a second-rate scientist?" That had stabbed the greasy doctor. Rufus scoffed, "What about the Cetra? Valkyries, and oh, yes, Calamity of the Sky, what are they? A mere fantasy or are they real as you and me?"

Hojo's face grew dark, "Nothing but a mere legend, faded out eons ago. They're just simply names of fanatics that believed themselves to be." He muttered and turned away from the young President who furrowed his brows toward the man.

The room started to rumble, Rufus spun around to find the source of the cause, "What's happening?" He demanded.

Scarlet's eyes widened as she watched the wall that she was next to, "It's coming from within the wall! Something's in there, it's moving!" She pointed a long red fingernail to the wall.

The color shifted and it appeared to be an eye, emerald in color and it blinked.

Hojo whispered with awe, "Weapons... Then it really does exist! I didn't believe in it."

Rufus spun back around, enraged at the doctor, "What does this mean?"  
Hojo hobbled forward, his beady eyes gazing at the movement behind the glassy wall. "Weapon, beings created by the Planet, it is only revived if the Planet is in danger, reducing everything to nothingness. A self destructive power of the Planet, it sense what will happen soon."

Rufus paled slightly and then masked his shock with a scowl. "That's what was stated in Professor Gast's report," Hojo continued, glancing over to the young President. "He's one of the fanatics that believed in legends."

"I never saw that report… where is it?" Rufus glowered, having a half a mind to fire the doctor and another to kill him.

Hojo wasn't imitated by the young President; he brushed aside the scowl, "Here, right here." He slipped his pack off his shoulder and rummaged though it, taking out a file, "See."

Scarlet let out a slight scream as the eye blinked again.

Rufus grabbed the doctor by the collar, "You keep a lot of things to yourself." He snarled. Hojo only laughed in the youth's face.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Barret paced back and forth, waiting for what he seemed to not know. Nanaki's head followed the man's pacing. The rest were sitting on the ledge, also waiting, doing whatever they could do, which at the moment was mostly clean or sharpen their weapons.

"I wonder how Cloud and Tifa are… It's hard to believe such a small piece of Materia is able to destroy the Planet…" Nanaki murmured as he sat down on his hunches.

Vincent shook his head as he completed checking and reloading his gun, "Materia is one of the Planet's mysteries. The Summonses are naturally made while the rest aren't. You can only find rare mastered Materia; we have quiet few of those."

Yuffie's head bounced as she sat next to Vincent, her large shuriken on her lap, "Yep, there's difference. The natural ones are a bit rough while the Reactor made ones are perfectly round, smooth, no flaws. Kind of boring." She grinned.

Vincent rolled his eyes at Yuffie's delight over the Materia, "Why are you always trying to steal Materia?"

Yuffie sighed, "Father ordered me to. That's why I was disowned until I get lots of them. I am not quiet sure; I think he wants to make war. Besides that, they're pretty!"

The sniper frowned, hoisting his gun onto his leg, "I believe it was because ShinRa stole all of the Materia after the Wutai war, crippling the country. Wutai was known for natural Materia."

Yuffie turned to the sniper, "You sure do know a lot about Wutai even speak Wutaian dialect skillfully, are you a Wutaian?"

Vincent nodded, "I was."

Yuffie beamed, "Ooh, which house were you from?" She watched the man look up and ponder.

"Xin Tine, it has been so long. I nearly forgot my own name," He glanced to his side and saw Yuffie pale slightly, confused, "What is it?"

"Xin'Tine Household? Then, you're like my enemy; our houses are rival each other…"

Vincent chuckled lightly, "Ah, that's right, the Kisaragi and the Xin'Tine wasn't exactly friendly with each other. I wouldn't count that though, we're both considered outcasts from Wutai, and so should that bother us?"

Yuffie frowned, "But, there's something else, do you know of the arrangement between both of the households? It like ended years ago because their only heir was presumed dead."

Vincent frowned, "Enlighten me."

Yuffie placed her weapon aside and turned to him, "Okay, I can't remember everything, but Godo told me about it, the arrangement was to end the feud between both families by joining the families together. Meaning, the Xin'Tine family's son is betrothed to the Kisaragi's daughter. At the time, there were two sons, no daughter, my father was one of the sons and Godo said that he will give his first born daughter to the son. He was younger than Godo at the time. Godo believed he would not have any daughters because there had not been any daughters for many generations in the Kisaragi line, but, well, here I am. Luckily for me, my supposed betrothed is dead, something like that. Or else I'd be married off next year or by the time I am eighteen to him."

Vincent glared at Yuffie with something akin to shock, "I remember something like that. Yuffie, do you recall the name of your betrothed?"

Yuffie shook her head, her short hair swaying with bouncy quality, "Uhm, I'm not sure… All I remember it mean Golden Boy…"

Vincent clasped his hand on his face in near exasperation, "Golden Boy, Kintaro."

"Yeah, that's the name." Yuffie beamed.

Vincent stood from the ledge he was sitting on and turned to Yuffie, facing her full on, "my Wutaian name is Xin'Tine Kintaro, pleased to meet you." He bowed to Yuffie who gaped in shock at him.

"You! No way! You got to be like nearly seventy! I mean, oh, right, you were in a coffin for a long time…" Yuffie paled.

Vincent nodded, "Apparently, we're betrothed. We will have to discuss this after we deal with Sephiroth. I am sure your father would not agree to the arrangement after all."

Yuffie nodded, silent as she watched Vincent return to sitting next to her, taking his gun out once again to inspect it. She couldn't help to notice his brooding quality fascinating and how he carried himself.

She realized, being sixteen, going on seventeen and traveling with the Avalanche, she had developed a crush on the brooding sniper. But finding that he was her betrothed, she knew her father, Godo was going to have a field day on this. Her cheeks stained pink and she grabbed her weapon, trying to busy herself.

As the Avalanchers became quiet, they felt as if the time stretched on forever then suddenly, their placid peace was shaken. The dark mist surrounded them and they coughed in the Mako induced mist and suddenly before they could blink again, everything cleared and they saw that Nanaki was missing.

Cid and Barret both cursed viciously as they stumbled about. Vincent had drawn his gun out when the mist came, he stared around with his Mako-red eyes, surveying the area carefully, trying to find a clue. Yuffie had latched onto his golden mechanical arm and either he did not realize it or did not care. The teenager was wide eyed, staring in the spot where Nanaki once was.

"Sephiroth took him!" She nearly wailed and everyone realized the truth of her words. Sephiroth had indeed taken the wolf, and they knew it was for one reason alone. Nanaki had the Black Materia.

Suddenly, like a wave of blast, they fell to their feet, unconscious. The voice floated in the air, "Can't have you interfering." It crackled a malice laugh and vanished.

Nanaki found himself in a black void, he stood with his hackles raised, "What the?" He turned around and found that he couldn't make any senses of direction and growled. "Is everyone all right?" He called out, couched into a fighting stance; his danger sense was going off. "What's going on?" He asked, growling and found no reply, "Hey! Where am I? Don't leave me alone!" He started to howl, shifting in his spot, clearly agitated.

Then he caught the familiar scent to his nose, he looked up and found Tifa running toward him, "Nanaki! You're here, I'm so glad!" She called out and as she reached to him, the black void disappeared, returning to their waiting spot, but Nanaki realized they were alone, there were no others.

"Tifa!" He sat, looking up at her, as his canine feature could, he frowned, "Something is strange, why was it dark all the sudden and where is everyone?"

Tifa knelt to his level, "Everyone's waiting! Cloud is in trouble! Come on, over here!" She got up and led the red wolf down the unfamiliar path.

He couldn't help but feel something was wrong, his hackles were raised again, bristling, "R-right. I'm not sure I understand. But, I'll go if you want me to." He trailed behind the brunette.

Tifa cocked her hip to one side as she stopped, posing and giggling, "And remember…" Her sweet soprano voice became deeper to the bass, "The Black Materia." Her body shifted and transformed before the wolf, becoming into Sephiroth. Then suddenly, he vanished, Nanaki found himself back in the spot before the black mist overtook him, he blinked bewildered, and his jaw gaped.

The rest of the missing members of Avalanche appeared before him, on the ground, knocked out. He shook his head and howled in confusion.

His howl rose Barret, he sat up rubbing his head where he had hit when he fell. He cursed once again and stood up. He saw Nanaki sitting on his haunches, horror upon his face.

"What the hell?" Cid muttered as he helped himself up on his javelin and found Barret staring at Nanaki, "What, what happened?"

Vincent arose and helped Yuffie up, rousing her up as well. The robotic Mog and Cat whirred on, clicking and shifting, as if it were waking up as well.

"He's here…" Vincent murmured, "Something is fishy."

"Damn right." Barret grumbled as he went to the wolf, shaking the beast to snap out of its trance, "What happened?"

Nanaki shook his head, "I don't know. Sephiroth took me then brought me back here. He was saying something about the Black Materia."

Yuffie yelped and ran to the wolf's side; she started to dig into his pack and came back out, sighing in relief, "Its still here."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth stood in his icy chamber, the chamber had no entrance or exit. He glared at the mirror duplicate that stood in front of him. He could tell the other man was exactly the same in every aspect, however there were two differences, first, the other man had no scars on his body and the second, and they both had different souls.

"What are you playing at?" the second Sephiroth growled with malice, he walked around the first, giving condemning glare as he circled him. "I come back here, find you gone, but luckily, you're here now."

Sephiroth stated ahead, not even bothering to reply his evil alter-ego. He knew it ticked the other one off.

"You're not going to talk?" The darker one murmured, glaring ice at the first, he reached out with his hand and took hold of the first's neck. "Suffer… or tell me what you had done?"

Sephiroth winced as the hand around his neck bore stinging pain, sending his nerves on fire, his knees buckled under him and he screwed his eyes shut. He still refused to say a word.

Dark Sephiroth growled, "I know you can leave this place when you try, you're weaker, and it's harder for you now. You're dying." He let go, letting Sephiroth fall to the floor, lax, staring up ahead. He noted his twin's body was transparent, meaning that he was dying.

"I would have killed you but no, Mother requested not to. I don't know why she wants you alive… You're useless." He smirked as he knelt down beside Sephiroth, "Don't worry, I'll take care of your koibito." He smirked as he saw the green eyes snapped to meet his own, "She's going to be sweet when I have her. Together, she and I will rule the galaxy, it is in our power. It's a pity; she has no idea how much power she possesses."

Sephiroth glared, "You will not have her." He rolled over and coughed, wincing as his chest contracted in pain. He knew that if he had a body, he would had been spitting blood but no, his soul was in pain and he knew he was becoming more transparent everyday, nearly fading away.

Dark Sephiroth gave a chuckle as he fingered his twin's hair, "You're dying, her will is becoming weaker every moment, and it won't be long before she becomes mine. I will have the power soon." He stood, his laugh crackled with echo in the small chamber.

Elsewhere, the dark figure of a woman watched the glassy surface, showing both Sephiroth. She mused, her eyes, black as the galaxy, shifted. She glanced to her hands, they were beautiful and exotic, blue skin with long nails that could strike fear.

"Why are you here?" Jenova asked as she felt another presence appearing behind her.

"You're only hurting yourself more."

Jenova turned to face a beautiful woman, tall and beautiful, long platinum blond hair fell around her knees, she wore simple white toga gown, her eyes were of clear diamond blue, dazzling with age-old wisdom. "You."

"Yes, me." She shifted and walked toward Jenova, stopping only few feet before, "Let go of my grandson, let go of his love. They've done nothing to you. Let yourself go, go in peace. Don't extract your revenge upon Mother Gaia." Her crystal eyes shone with sadness and despair, yet her face remained stoic.

Jenova shook her hair; her inky black hair billowed behind her, "No."

"Do you even know why you're angry? Do you even have a reason for vengeance?" The woman in white asked.

Jenova frowned, "No, I don't." Then her face contorted in rage, "It doesn't matter."

The woman in white closed her eyes, nodding, "very well, you know, it will all fail in the end."

"Don't count on that, Jenova Lucrecia." The first Jenova snarled, watching the woman in white disappearing.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please?_


	29. S3:3: Calling Madoshi

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Three: Calling Madoshi

_Because you rage against me and your insolence has reached my ears, I will put my hook in your nose and my bit in your mouth, and I will make you return by the way you came._

2 Kings 19:28, the Holy Bible

Inside the grand cavern at the Northern Crater, a group of ShinRa assembled together, standing under the Materia Tree root ceiling. They looked a bit slightly nervous, unsure of what would happen next, the tremors were getting frequent.

"Mr. President," Scarlet whispered as she stood by Rufus, clutching onto his arm, "I've got a bad feeling about this place." Her eyes darted around the chamber, watching the large eye behind the glass wall.

Rufus turned to her, comforting her a little bit. He took her other arm and held it, "Perhaps you're right, we should return to the ship now. We need to prepare for the inspection anyway." He glared to Hojo who were standing beside Heidegger, dwarfed by the bearded man.

Scarlet nodded, slipping her arm though Rufus's offered arm, preparing to leave the chamber. She gasped as another figure shot through from the chamber, having a slightly wild look in 'his' eyes. She recognized him, calling out to the blond ex-Soldier, "Hey! Where did you come from?"

Cloud's eyes were blank, nearly white, reflecting the color of the cavern; she stopped before the group of ShinRa. She turned to Scarlet and said with a monotone voice, "I do not know."

Scarlet frowned, "Something's wrong with him. Look at his eyes." She gestured to the blond fighter.

Rufus nodded, frowning as well, "Yes…"

Cloud stepped up to them, looking at Rufus with her blank gaze, "This place is going to get rough. Better leave things to me and get out of here while you still can."

Rufus discerned that Cloud was under a spell of sort but the hint in her voice told him that 'he' was struggling inside, giving them a chance by warning them. He understood and nodded and ran his free hand though his hair, "What do you mean, leaving things to you?"

The blonde turned away from them, looking down at the beautiful but cold smooth floor, "This is where the Reunion is happening. Where everything begins and ends." Rufus gave a confusing look and glanced around to the others and saw that Hojo had glee on his face, he growled inwardly, making a mental note to talk to the doctor.

Another person skidded though the entranceway and they all saw it was the barmaid of Seventh Heaven. She stopped before them, shouting, her voice echoing in the chamber, "Cloud!" She too looked a bit wild on the side, wide-eyed and haggard.

Rufus raised an eyebrow as he saw a large red wolf skid right in behind Tifa, crashing into her back, nearly causing the woman to topple. "What now?" He muttered under his breath. His second eyebrow joined the first as the rest of Avalanche came skidding into the chamber as well, their weapons drawn and ready to do battle. He returned his gaze to the so-called leader of Avalanche, Cloud and saw that 'he' didn't seem to notice or care.

"I'm here to help you, Cloud!" Nanaki said as he righted himself and slinked to Cloud's side.

Cloud didn't move or acknowledge them but stood there, blankly staring ahead. Her hands rose to her face as she tried to hide the crystal tears that spilled from her blank eyes. She took a few moments standing there, hiding her face.

Finally, she turned to the wolf, "Nanaki," She reached out with an open palm, "Where is the Black Materia?"

Tifa squeaked from behind them, "Cloud!"

The wolf frowned, taking a step back, "It's safe, I'm holding onto it."

Cloud turned fully to the wolf, an eerily smile on her face as she knelt before the wolf, "I'll take it from here. Give me the … Black Materia." Her voice turned demanding at the end, which sent chill down Nanaki's spine, causing his hackles to rise.

Tifa looked pale, "Cloud! No, don't do it Nanaki!" she begged. Her words fell on deaf ears, her presence seeming far away rather than just a few feet away.

Nanaki frowned, he sat down and reached with a paw to Cloud's shoulder, "Are you all right, Cloud?" He searched her pale eyes, unsure what state the blond fighter is in.

She nodded, taking hold of the paw in a gentle gesture, "Yeah…"

Everyone turned to find the last member of Avalanche hop into the chamber, Cait Sith stopped and the cat hopped right off the mog and made its way to Cloud's side. "Let her have it." The cat said with low voice, turning its head to the wolf. "Give it to her, she will handle everything."

Nanaki growled, shocked for two things, first, the cat knew of Cloud's gender and secondly, the cat had a gall to suggest such thing. He snarled, "Who are you?"

Tifa stepped up to the cat, she had not heard what it had said and picked it up, "What did you tell Nanaki?" She asked, curious why the wolf was upset.

"Give the Black Materia to Cloud." The cat told her.

Tifa gasped, "Zack?" She had recognized his voice, "Is that you?"

"That is not really your business, but you got to let Cloud have the Materia, for the good of all of us."

Cloud didn't move or break her eye contact from Nanaki; however she spoke to the cat, "Thank you Zack, for understanding what I have to do."

"What is he going to do?" Tifa asked the cat and it didn't reply.

Nanaki was hesitant, "Then… here you go…" He moved and slipped the pack off his shoulder, the flap came free as it hit the floor, the black orb rolled out. He caught it with his paw and moved it to Cloud's knees, "I was a little apprehensive holding this thing."

Tifa became desperate as she clutched the cat tighter in her arms, "No! Don't, please stop, Cloud!" She watched helpless as Cloud took the black orb and stood up.

Everyone watched in stilled awe as Cloud moved to the center of the room, directly under the large stone nestled in the root above. Everyone had moved out of her way simply as she said, "Leave the rest to me."

Out of the thin air, Dark Sephiroth appeared, floating in the mid air, smirking down at Cloud, "Come on, the Black Materia, and bring it over."

Cloud didn't give him any heed but turned to the others, her eyes still blank but it shifted this time, between the paleness to her normal colors, "Everyone, thanks for everything. And… I'm sorry." She looked directly at Nanaki again, "You can tell them, afterward." Then she finally turned to Tifa, "Especially you, Tifa. I'm really sorry. You've been good to me… I don't know what to say… But you will understand later." She shook her head and heaved a long sigh.

Hojo, though the whole time was grinning, almost laughing at his own secret idea of accomplishes. "Ha, ha, this is perfect! It means that my experiment was a complete success!" He moved to Cloud and grabbed her free hand, "What did I mark you with?" He attempted to remove her glove but she snatched her hand away.

"Doctor Hojo, you never gave me any number to mark with." She pulled herself away from the doctor, "You'll never use me, ever again."

Hojo glared at her, "You were a best accomplishment I've ever had next to Sephiroth. Don't worry, my uses for you is over, I've done enough to make you perfect for Sephiroth." He glanced upward to the floating Sephiroth who had a small smirk on his face. "It's a pity; you're the only one who made it here despite being dead." That had stabbed Cloud. "There were many others like you, with Jenova's genes but you're the only one who showed up, that mean, you're the chosen one."

Cloud narrowed her bright blue eyes, finally clear of the paleness, "The chosen one?"

Sephiroth lowered himself next to her, taking her chin in his hand, turning her toward him, "Yes, the chosen one, to be alongside me, share my power, rule this pitiful planet, take the galaxy on, like Mother once did."

"You're saying, I'm the next host for Jenova?"

Sephiroth gave a smirk that sent chills down Cloud's spine, "Yes and no. You're the only one who Jenova wants. Mother and I will once again join together. You and I will create a new race, far more superior than those pitiful ones here."

Cloud closed her eyes, an odd smile appeared on her lips, "No, I came here on my own will; I have a different purpose here." She held the black orb in her hand tightly as she looked up to the blue stone above her.

Sephiroth scoffed and disappeared in the air, yet he remained, fading in and out all over the room, his face stoic with a small creepy smile on his lips.

Cloud felt herself lift; she let her body go lax as she rose in the air, allowing herself to simply float upward to the roots. Her feet finally landed on the large one, standing suspended in the air. Her focus was only on the large stone Materia in the center as if the world around her didn't exist.

On the ground below her, Rufus stared, his mouth gaped, "Who was that?"

Hojo waved his hand to dismiss Rufus, "Cloud's an experiment I worked on a while ago, escaped from my lab." He paused and glanced around the room to the others and shrugged, "He has Jenova cells and Mako, with my knowledge and skills, I am not quiet sure where I failed with him… he's resilient." He had known that she hid her gender and decided to humor the rest of the people.

Rufus turned to the doctor, "There's more than you're saying here. I swear I'm going to get it out of you soon." He muttering, leaving a threat hangs in the air.

Hojo scoffed, "At least, the Reunion is happening. There," He gestured to the root above. "The whole thing is happening and be glad you're witnessing an event of the age."

Rufus gave a confused look, "What? All I am seeing that the ex-Soldier is putting a Materia in the bigger one, what's so special about it?"

Hojo gave a long sigh and rubbed the bridge of his nose and slipped his glasses up, "You're dense. We're dealing with Jenova here, her body was dismembered, scattered across the four corners of the planet, they're all trying to return here, up here, that ex-Soldier happen to have the most next to Sephiroth, in between them both," He laughed, "I've been waiting for the Reunion to start, five years has passed and now, the Clones have begun to return." His beady black eyes turned to Sephiroth, "This is my most successful Cloning Experiment ever to happen and my own pride, Jenova's Son."

Gasp filled in the room as Sephiroth gave them all a smirk, becoming solid for a moment where he stood.

"You see," Hojo continued, "this was all his doing, moving Jenova here, bringing the Reunion here. He knows what Jenova wants. He can diffuse his will into the Lifestream; he can manipulate the Clones himself. Yes, it's starting now…" He crossed his arms and smirked in satisfaction.

Cloud settled onto the branch crouched to listen to Hojo. Her mind went into turmoil, unsure what she should do. She knew in giving the Black Materia would destroy the planet yet something nagged inside her telling her that she should give the Materia over. Her inner mind argued, struggling, giving her rather a painful headache.

She closed her eyes and whispered to herself, "I wasn't pursuing Sephiroth… I came here to end his suffering, his pain. Oh, Sephiroth, my love," She stood and turned to face the large bluish green stone in the center, walking toward it, she could tell the outline within. "Are you here?" She reached out to touch the warm stone, it pulsated like a heartbeat.

Within the crystal stone, Sephiroth's body was encased in all his glory, his silver hair cascading down his bare chest and around his legs, almost billowing in the liquidness of the stone. His coal black eyelashes rested on his pale cheeks, his face set in the most angelic peaceful sleep.

Cloud smiled sadly, "You're here…"

_::Yes Koibito, I am here, always and forever in your heart. Will you trust me if I tell you to give the Black Materia over?:: _His voice rang in her mind.

She leaned onto the stone, clutching the Materia to her chest, "I trust you, always. I do wish to know why I should give it over."

_::I cannot say because I do not know but I feel strongly that in the end, everything will be all right. We will be reunited once again.::_

Cloud nodded as she stood back up, facing the large Materia that held Sephiroth within, "Very well." Her senses went wild with alarm but she ignored it.

The chamber below started to shake more violently, Rufus and Scarlet had already left after the first violent tremor, not interested to stay and watch and get into troubles that would come.

Hojo still stood in his spot, watching with glee, "Did you see it? It's Sephiroth! Oh ho ho, my dear Clone took the original body! This is perfect, both Jenova's Reunion and Sephiroth's will! They won't be diffused into the Lifestream, but gathered here!" He threw himself back in a wild laugher.

Tifa glared at the doctor, "What are you so happy about, Professor? You know what this means, don't you? Cloud has the Black Materia! Sephiroth is going to summon Meteor! Every single person is going to die!" She shot at him.

Rufus came back into the entrance, "Whatever I say now is too little… too late. We must evacuate!" The remaining people in the room turned to him, "I want you all come with me. There is still so much more I want to hear."

Nanaki glanced up to Cloud above. He gasped as he noticed Dark Sephiroth floated to the stone, as if he was to enter from the bottom. "Cloud, No! Stop! Damn it!"

Cloud pressed her hand that held the orb to the surface of the stone and felt her hand pass though, she gasped softly as Sephiroth's eyes opened and his hands grasped her arm, taking the orb away from her. Their eyes locked together.

"Here… destroy it, for me, for us all…" She murmured as her hand reached up to caress his cheek. He blinked and gave a soft smile.

Suddenly, his eyes shifted as the pupil slitted, glittering with malice, _:Thank you, and dear, I don't think I'll destroy it.:_

She gasped softly as she withdrew her hand; a tear fell from her eye. Everything around her fell to her deaf ears as she gazed into Sephiroth's eyes. Her body started to lift away from the branch and started to spin in the air.

Tifa gasped, "Cloud!"

The blue stone became more liquid, flowing and shifting around Sephiroth as he held the orb in both hands, his eyes glowed brilliant green, bright as Mako. Sparks of energy shimmered around him as the liquid stone melted away from him and turning into pieces of shards that came crashing down below. The branches rumbled and snapped as they broke apart, coming down as well.

Everyone who was below ran toward the exit of the cave to retreat from the cavern. Few members of Avalanche met up and joined with Rufus and the rest onto the airship he had. The airship's engine roared to life and lifted itself right out of the crater, moving away with speed, just in time as a massive burst of energy exploded from the crater, whizzing by the airship like sonic boom, forcing it to shudder in midair.

A few parties on the deck of the airship held on for their lives as they watched, Tifa was screaming as she was grabbed by Barret to steady her balance as the ship tilted from the force of the energy. Several odd shapes moved though the wall of crackling energy and billowing smoke. They saw the shapes shift and transform, clearing away from the smoke, turning out to be massive monsters that dwarfed the airship.

"Oh no… the Weapons…" Tifa whispered as she held onto Barret for support, watching the monstrous giants of different colors shoot by them, heading for different parts of the world, over the dark horizon.

The airship finally regained control and took off, heading toward Midgar. Tifa's eyes drooped to close as she felt blackness overtake her.

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Tifa found herself once again in the dark void. She sighed and rubbed her arms as she walked ahead, seemingly to nowhere. She was starting to hate being thrown in and out of unknown voids. The last encounter had shaken her enough, she had faced an illusionary Nibelheim from Cloud's memories, it was horrendous and she knew she would be having nightmares of the scene.

She remembered meeting with Sephiroth in the illusion, and she was thrown right out promptly by his command before she could learn anything more. She couldn't help but feel a nagging sensation in the back of her mind that she actually learned something and it was removed from her mind, there was something shocking about Cloud and she couldn't put her finger on it.

She knew there was something going on between the three men, Cloud, Sephiroth and Zack. All she knew they were in the same group of the Elites for the ShinRa, they did share some sort of friendship, but she felt it was deeper than it appeared to be. Yet, there was one thing that bothered her the most, what was it about Cloud that the other two knew?

For the first time in her life, she so badly wanted to know something but couldn't figure it out; it was like it was right there in the front of her but she just couldn't grasp it. It was so frustrating.

She sighed as she found herself in Midgar, recognizing that she was at Sector Seven train station. It was a year ago, she gasped softly at the knowledge, it had been a year ago when she had first found Cloud again.

"Cloud?" She knelt beside the ex-Soldier that lay near the steps going up to the train platform. It was exactly how she had found him then. She realized there was no response from the blond, she stood back up and stepped away in time to see her younger self coming around the corner. "Gods, I didn't know I'm like that…" She muttered as she watched the other Tifa bouncing unaware and nearly tripping over the blond fighter.

"_Sir? Are you all right?" _Her younger self asked the blond, attempting to roll 'him' over. As she did, she gasped as Cloud's eyes opened, dazed. The Buster Sword, battered and dusty lay beside 'him'. 'He' coughed and struggled to sit up.

"_You're hurt… wait, you're familiar…" _Her younger self helped Cloud to 'his' feet.

Cloud's eyes cleared up and 'he' frowned as in pain, _"Uh… Tifa?"_

"_You know my name, do I know you?"_

"Tifa… what are you doing here? I thought… no… I can't remember…"

"Oh!" the younger Tifa's face lit up in recognition, "Cloud! You're alive! Thank Gods!" Then she helped 'him', drawing 'his' arm over her neck to support him, "Come on, we gotta get you cleaned up."

Tifa watched the two walk away into the darkness, leaving her in the memory of the barren train station. Suddenly, Cloud stood before her; she realized it was the current Cloud, wearing the same thing 'he' wore as always during their travel.

Still clutching her arms to her chest, "How long had it been since we last saw each other?" She asked.

Cloud looked to her hands and started to count her fingers, "I left for Academy a long time ago. Four years in Academy and Soldier, then some… Close to seven. Yes, seven years, it's been total of eight by now."

Tifa looked away, her hands still rubbing her arms, "That's why I didn't recognize you at first. You grew up… changed." She turned back, "Then why didn't you look older than eighteen? Shouldn't you be twenty something?"

Cloud averted her blue eyes, "Why did you call me here? This…" She looked up and waved her hands around to show where they were, "Your dream."

Tifa shrugged as she dropped her hands to her side, "I have a lot of questions. There are things that are not clear."

Cloud chuckled, "A lot of things are not clear and they will never be. Tifa, I have questions of my own and I need to answer them myself before I can answer anyone else's."

Tifa nodded and turned away, "You're right."

Cloud looked away to somewhere as if she was seeing something Tifa couldn't. "Hmm, soon, I will find out what happened to me in those three years. Zack knows and refuses to tell me. "

The brunette turned back to Cloud, "What do you mean?" Then, everything went black.

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"Uggh…" Tifa rolled over, trying to block off the stubborn glare that shined down on her eyes. "Damn… that glare's annoying…" She muttered and rolled back over.

"Hey… you al'rite?"

She recognized the voice and sat up, "Barret?" She rubbed her eyes to clear away the drowsiness.

"You'll be better soon." Barret answered as he moved around the room.

Tifa looked around and found herself in a room with two cots; similar to the prison she had been before at the ShinRa Headquarter but the room was in better condition. "You've been asleep a long time."

Tifa stood up from the cot and winced as her stomach protested in pain, "I'm starving…" She rubbed her stomach and looked around. The window glared odd orange red light, like if it were sunset, but it was brighter as if the sun was closer. Time was already lost to her.

Barret sat down on his own cot and rested his arms on his knees, "Why don't you ask?" Tifa gave him a confusing look. "About him, ask Zack?"

"How did you know?"

Barret looked up to meet her cinnamon eyes, "You were talkin' in your sleep."

Tifa sat down again and buried her face in her hands, "I don't know. I don't think Zack would give me any answers."

Barret stood up again and moved to the window where the metal blinds ran across the glass. "Don't worry. I don't know what happened to Cloud back then, either… No one knows." He reached up to rub his head, fingering the cornrows, "Guess I shouldn't tell you not to worry… None of them know if he's all right or not."

Tifa looked up, feeling pang as if something were wrong, "He's still alive? Isn't he?"

Barret didn't answer for a long few moments, gazing out of the window between the blinds, and then he nodded once.

Tifa let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. "You said a long time, how long was I asleep?"

Barret turned around to face her again, "Lessee now… must've been about seven days…"

Tifa gasped and leapt from the cot, "What about Sephiroth?"

Barret exhaled a long sigh, "You ain't over it yet. Remember that huge light, at the Northern Crater?"

Tifa assumed he was talking about the blast of energy that blew skyward at the Northern Crater. She shuddered as she remembered several monstrous creatures known as Weapons coming out as well.

"Since then, the crater's been surrounded by a huge barrier of light. Everyone knows Sephiroth sleeps in that big hole, protected by the barrier. We can't do a damn thing about it. We just gotta wait till he wakes up." He turned away again, to the window, "And on top'o that, some huge monsters called Weapons've been on a rampage."

Tifa gasped softly, "Weapons?"

"Remember that huge monster that was at the bottom of the crater? Well, it's up here now. They say it's some legendary monster from the past."

Tifa's brows furrowed, "Weapons… Gaia's self destructive force. It's protecting Sephiroth?" She knew it didn't make any sense, something was missing.

The dark skinned man shook his head, "Dunno. But it's up here goin' around tearin' shits up. Right now, Rufus' fightin' it. I hate to say it, but he got guts."

Tifa moved around the room to his side.

"We shoulda been the ones to destroy it, but we ain't got no time…"

"Time…" Tifa echoed his last word, "Hey! How about that Meteor?" She asked.

Barret didn't reply but gestured to the window. Tifa turned and peered between the blinds, her mouth fell open as she paled. Outside, she could tell she was at Junon Harbor for the sea was right below the window but that wasn't what had amazed her. It was a large fiery ball that hung in the sky like a dark sun.

"Oh, gods… Do we have to give up?" She asked with strained voice.

"Dunno…" Barret replied and turned around to see the door opening.

Rufus walked into the room, "I though Cloud would show up to save you all… Doctor Hojo wanted to check up on Cloud, too."

Tifa scowled at the young President, "What are you going to do to Cloud?"

Rufus's lips curled up into a smirk, "Sephiroth's alter ego…" He ran his hand though his hair, "Meteor had been summoned. Essentially, it's all but over now. So, there's no need for you now." He paused as to think for a moment, "No, maybe there is an important task for you."

Heidegger entered from behind Rufus, smiling behind his wiry black beard, "President! Preparations for the public execution are complete."

Barret jumped from the cot he had sat on, "Execution! What're ya gonna get by excutin' us?" He spat at the young President, wishing he could shoot the man out but his barrels had been removed and he was left with a dud for an arm.

Rufus gave him a cold glare, "You are to be executed for causing this situation." He gestured to the window, "People are ignorant. They'll feel better as long as someone is punished."

Barret growled as he shook his mechanical hand, "I take back what little praise I had for this damn jackass!" He spat at Rufus's perfect black shined shoes.

Rufus only chuckled at the black man, "Well, enjoy your last moments together." He turned and left, the door sliding close and locked behind him.

Barret moved to Tifa's side as he found her silent with shock, she looked pale. He sat next to her and drew her into his embrace and held her there as she cried onto his tattered cargo vest.

Heidegger returned with few guards with him, the guards were carrying shackles as well, "I'll cuff you two up now." Heidegger gestured to the two Avalanchers and waited as the guards did their duty. Barret and Tifa didn't give a struggle as they were cuffed. Heidegger waved his hand, "Now, if you two will follow me."

The guards helped them up with little respect for their bound condition and almost shoved them through the door. There was not much fight from the two though, as they followed the bearded man.

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"Ooy…" Yuffie muttered as she sat on the outskirts of Junon Harbor, watching the little naval base. "Geez, good thing we hid on Highwind and got away with it. Poor Barret had to be caught." She snarled as she strained to rip the jerky between her teeth and chewed on the meat.

Cid glared at the girl with irritation, "Shut up girl! We're going to move in soon with our plan. We'd have to wait for the right time."

Yuffie leapt to her feet and spun to face the pilot, "Damn it! Look at that ball of fire in the sky!" She pointed to the large Meteor hanging above them, "Freaking everyone out now, we ain't got no time! How do the hell we save the whole Planet now? Huh?" Her voice had risen until she was practically screaming at the end of her tirade.

Vincent grasped her hand and tugged her gently; trying to hold onto what little patience he had left. He tried a second time but finally lost his patience, stood, and grasped her by both of her shoulders and roughly pushed her down, "Sit down and shut up." He growled.

Yuffie stared wide-eyed at the sniper and clamped her mouth shut.

Cid gave a grateful smile to the red clad man and glanced on the tattered paper he had in his hand, he murmured and started to discuss the plan. Nanaki sat beside him, glancing on the tattered paper, a makeshift map of Junon Harbor.

"Now, we need to get into Junon Harbor again when they plan the execution, that's when everyone's not paying attention to the Highwind…" The four members of Avalanche's chatter drowned by the jungle noises. A small radio sat in the middle of four of them, advertising events in Junon Harbor.

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Cloud blinked and looked around; she found the familiar green eyes looking back at her with love. She smiled and moved to him, "Sephiroth…"

Sephiroth took her into his arms and held her, "Koibito…" He nuzzled into her chocobo hair.

Cloud looked up to him as the noises around them was starting to creep into her consciousness, "What's going on, where are we?"

Sephiroth reluctantly let her go, letting her take in the surrounding, "We're in the Lifestream, Jenova had focused onto other things for now and I've slipped through to the Lifestream. So have you. Aeris and Zack are here too." He turned to the two aforementioned people. Cloud's eyes widened with delight as she ran to the pink-clad woman and Zack grabbing them both in a bear hug.

Aeris laughed softly as she held onto Cloud, "Cloud."

The blonde stepped back, frowning, "What's wrong? Why are they shouting?" She turned to look around herself; she was in the Lifestream, a green void shimmering with stars here and there. There was no other but she could feel thousands of presence around her and they were angry, agitated and upset.

Aeris shook her head, "They're upset because Sephiroth summoned Meteor."

Sephiroth nodded, "Yes."

Cloud spun to him, "Why did you? Why did you let me give you the Materia?" Her voice hinted slight accusation.

The silver-haired man stepped up to her and gazed down into her face, he took a gentle hold of her shoulders, "I had to. Fate's plan has to be served out."

Cloud shook her head, "What's going to happen now?" She asked, her question answered by the increasing volume of the Lifestream's shouting. She glanced around and met with Aeris' worried face. She strained to understand and gasped, "They want to kill us?" Sephiroth nodded sadly.

"You three, in fact. They believe you three are responsible for releasing Jenova again on Gaia, responsible for summoning Meteor, and yes, it's true on the last part. They want to blame everything upon three of you; reject you all from the Lifestream, to suffer a horrible death of being exiled from Gaia." Aeris explained.

Zack scoffed, "Had to drag me into this too, I'm just here for the ride, I didn't do anything!"

Aeris gave him a small smile, "I know, dear. Whoever is bound with those two has to go too. They all wanted to prosecute me too but they changed their mind, considering what I had done."

Cloud nodded, "You summoned Holy, didn't you?" Aeris nodded.

They turned to face a handsome woman in green and blue robe, her brown hair swayed in the mist of the Lifestream, shifting colors from brown to green and blue. They all recognized her as Gaia, the entire Lifestream stilled into silence.

"Mother Gaia." Aeris greeted the woman.

Gaia gave a somber nod to the young Cetra and turned to Sephiroth, "You," Her voice held accusation as she glared at him, "You attempted to hurt me. You should be exiled! I can't believe my own children would do that to me."

Sephiroth bowed his head, "I apologize, my Lady, I have a good reason, I do not wish to hurt you any more."

Aeris nodded, "He's right. It's all foretold by your own children."

Gaia turned to the Cetra, frowning, "You four, took my own life in your hands and played a foolish game. I had enough! Weapons are gone, I can't control them anymore, I'm very ill, I can't do anything much, it is taxing me to go on, with so much going on now."

Cloud felt deep regret, "I am so sorry, Mother Gaia. We're trying our hardest to help you. I don't realize that we were actually hurting you instead. Please, give us another chance, don't exile us."

Gaia gave a complementing gaze at the blonde, "You and you," She turned to Sephiroth, "Are the last of my daughter's kind. I had hopes for you two. I was thrilled when you two met and clicked, I dreamed of more children to come from you two, but now, it's not going to happen, it's all messed up."

Aeris smiled, "Mother Gaia, they had to help you before they can put their future together. You're wounded. Sephiroth says he has a good reason to summon Meteor. His reason isn't what we all think it is. Jenova and Dark Sephiroth had every intention to hurt you, we are trying to get rid of them, to complete what Cetra had started a long time ago."

Gaia nodded. "Very well, I shall give you one more chance. You have very little time left." She raised her hand and Zack stepped up, taking her hand into his.

"Mother Gaia, allow them the little time to say good bye once again. They've been apart so long." He held the woman's hand into his own, pleading with his eyes.

Gaia nodded, "Very well, you have that time with her as well." She stepped back, slipping her hand away from Zack. She watched Cloud turn to Sephiroth and embrace. A pang of guilt welled inside her heart.

She had seen such love between a similar pair of people a long time ago, so powerful that she could barely live with the thought of tearing them apart. She knew she had tried several times, and in the end it had wounded her more than the two people she tried to separate. She lowered her head and a tear fell from her eyes, "Oh, Megamiki, I'm so sorry, I didn't realize the power of your love for Madoshi."

Aeris smiled as she let go of Zack, "I miss you Zack. If I had known, I would have said yes."

Zack smiled as he toyed with her hair, "If I ask now, despite our situation, what would you say?"

Aeris laughed and swatted his chest, "You're funny. Yes, I would say yes… But…"

He held a finger to her lips, "Aeris… Shh… I believe we will be together once again. I'm going to wait. I love you." Zack leaned down and gave her a soft kiss.

Aeris watched him step back and fade away from the Lifestream to return above.

Cloud smiled as she watched Zack fade away. She turned to him, "Sephiroth. Hang on, I'll find you, I'll get you out."

Sephiroth nodded, "I believe you will. That's what kept me going, and I will try. Remember always, koibito…"

Cloud nodded, "Yes, you're always with me, no matter what." She sighed as he gave her a kiss as well, caressing her cheek one final time as he faded away, she felt her heart wrench as she saw his last look on his face, he was in pain. She knew Jenova had found him and wrenched him away from the Lifestream.

Gaia stepped up to her, taking hold of Cloud's shoulder, "If he believes that you will find him and help him, and then I should believe that too. My life is solely in your hands now, little daughter." Then with a wave of her hand, Cloud disappeared from the Lifestream.

"Mother Gaia," Aeris came to the goddess's side, "Don't give up."

Gaia turned her gaze to the young Cetra, "Everything is out of my control now." She closed her eyes in deep regret, "I should've let my daughter have her happiness."

"She will… What happened in the past is past; she will be reunited with him." Aeris smiled, reaching out to touch the other woman's arm. She gazed to the woman's shoulder and shook her head, the wound was open, bleeding and it looked infected.

Gaia felt Aeris' eyes on her shoulder and shifted the robe to hide it, "its worse now, and the infection, I cannot do anything. Pretty soon, it will truly infect my children." She waved her hand around, "It's in their blood, biding their time before they surfaces."

"Is there a cure for it?" Aeris asked, worriedly.

Gaia shook her head, "Not as long Jenova remains on my Planet. I lost control of the Weapons; I can't regain the bond with them again, Jenova took them from me. I lost my daughter a long time ago. It's worthless now…" A crystalline green tear rolled down her cheek.

Aeris gave a sad smile, "Sephiroth and Cloud, they'll make everything right in the end. Megamiki will return and she is the only one who can soothe Madoshi's rage. Don't worry; we will all be all right in the end."

Gaia smiled and held Aeris' hand, "I may be a goddess, but I do not know the future's path but I will hold your words to my heart and believe. I miss Megamiki."

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In Midgar at the Headquarters, Reeve watched Zack roll around in his sleep, mumbling and thrashing about as if he were in the middle of nightmare.

"God… not again…" He murmured as he rubbed his face. Exhaustion was beginning to show on both him and Zack; however Zack had collapsed again and went into another seizure just right after the incident at the Northern Crater. He knew his friend was linked to Cloud and Sephiroth and the bond they shared caused them to experience pain and emotions through each other. It had become weaker for a while up until recently until Jenova became stronger and it came back full force.

Zack had mentioned that he had a strong desire to go north, join with Cloud and Sephiroth but he struggled the entire time, resisting the urge. It had become so unbearable that he had just collapsed. Reeve had then learned that Hojo had injected a lot of Jenova's genes into Zack at the time the doctor had resurrected him.

Reeve had been there with Zack when he had his seizure. Sephiroth had summoned Meteor and it nearly killed Zack then and there. Ever since then, he had been out cold, going though nightmares of wherever his consciousness was wandering. Seven days had passed and there was no change. Cait Sith was turned off and stowed away on the airship, Highwind, hidden and biding it's time until the others came to its rescue.

"I hope Cid and the others rescue Tifa and Barret so we can find Cloud," The dark haired man sighed as he stood up, needing to go and clean up. He knew of the plan to abduct the airship and the rescue, a very basic and quickly thought up plan that Cid had muttered as he stowed away the robot into the chocobo stall on the airship. The stall was almost never used by the ShinRa, and it was the best place to hide the large overstuffed robot.

Reeve turned away to head to the General's bathroom and stopped as Zack shot up from the bed, "Cloud!" He turned and saw the Mako violet eyes had turned an ethereal silver blue. He abandoned the thought of heading to the restroom and went to Zack's side.

"Zack!" He grasped the General's arm, worried.

The raven-haired man groaned as his head slumped back on the damp pillow, "What happened?"

Reeve sighed and closed his eyes, "Meteor had been summoned. You can see for yourself out of the window later. You had been out for seven days."

Zack looked up to the ceiling, studying the cracks, "Seven days… gods… Cloud's in the Lifestream now, with Sephiroth and Aeris. We were all talking and arguing with the other Cetra in the Lifestream. They wanted to kill Sephiroth, Cloud and me. Aeris had objected and told them that we should be given a chance to save the Planet. There was something about Holy being already activated… But I don't know much about it, and then Cloud was gone. Sephiroth was taken back by Jenova and is in her hold again. He's dying; Jenova is having a hard time trying to hold onto him, he keeps slipping, willingly or not. The Lifestream wanted to grant him life again and be killed by the Meteor that he had summoned" He used his fingers to indicate the word summon, "I don't know what the whole insane idea of his… it's just confusing and everything."

Reeve looked at his best friend, "You're saying Sephiroth, not the evil one summoned Meteor?"

Zack nodded, "He wouldn't tell us why. The evil one had convinced him somehow because Sephiroth has better control to summon the blasted thing. Sephiroth mentioned he had a good reason, Dark Sephiroth simply want to gather the Energy. I don't know, I think Sephiroth is losing it. He had been in Jenova's claws for a long time now." His hand snaked out to grasp Reeve's pale hands that were clutched onto the sheet tightly, "At least, I'm back now." He gave a weak smile.

Reeve gave a small smile and brushed Zack's drenched hair away from his forehead, "Yes, I'm glad for that."

Zack nodded, "So, what's going to happen now?"

"Well, I'm heading to Junon Harbor soon. You're going have to stay here and help to get ready for the Highwind…" Reeve launched into telling Zack the plan, as he knew it.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	30. S3:4: Attack Upon Junon

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Four: Attack upon Junon

_David ran and stood over him. He took hold of the Philistine's sword and drew it from the scabbard. After he killed him, he cut off his head with the sword. When the Philistines saw that their hero was dead, they turned and ran. _

1 Samuel 17:51, the story of David and Goliath, the Holy Bible

Tifa trudged after Barret, in shackles, not caring if anything happened to her, the world was ending soon and there was nothing much she could do. Her hopes were lost. Silent tears streaked her face as she kept her head bowed to watch the floor as she followed the black man.

Barret glanced over his shoulder several times to check on Tifa and noticed she was crying. _Dammnit! She's crying over Cloud. He's gone._ He sighed and turned back to follow Heidegger ahead. He had came to conclusion that he felt strongly and respected Tifa for who she was but knew she would never see him in the way he would like her to. Maybe this was the time he would tell her, after all, they had short time to live left. Yet, there was a feeling deep in his gut that it wasn't the time. Gods, this was confusing.

They entered a large room with rows of seats facing a glass plane wall. There were few people already in the room, seated and waiting. A small camera crew was there as well, to document their death. Barret and Tifa had to make a double-take on the camera crew, they appeared oddly familiar. The camera man wore shades and non-descript hat, his cigarette hanging off his lip in familiar gesture. The young woman with blond bob had a wide grin while a man in black tending to the equipments had one of his arm covered entirely. The way he moved himself was also familiar and he wore a long brown trench coat.

As Tifa and Barret were placed in front of the room, before the glass, Heidegger had them turn to face the camera. Scarlet was standing next to the woman reporter, smiling and fixing herself up every so often. The camera man was scowling deeply, as if he was boring glare through his sunglasses and the camera at the woman.

"Is everyone here?" Scarlet called out, glancing around the room and smiled, "Good." She turned to the reporter, "you can start now."

The woman nodded, "Thank you." She had Wutaian accent and Tifa gaped, finally recognizing the woman who turned back to the camera which had started to roll, "Hello, I'm Kara Yu'Fi, reporting live from ShinRa Co.'s Junon Harbor. Today we have execution for the two renowned rebel members of Avalanche, Barret Wallace and Tifa Lockheart." She turned back to Scarlet, "Scarlet Rouge, do you have anything to say?"

As soon Scarlet opened her mouth, she was interrupted by Barret screaming in outrage, "Who the hell are these people?" They turned to him, Scarlet appearing affronted and the reporter staring with mock shock. Tifa moved to stand nearly behind Barret, her head bowed, keeping to herself the whole time.

Scarlet snorted, "We will be broadcasting your miserable deaths live on national television."

"You make me sick…" Tifa murmured softly. Barret turned to find Tifa's eyes blazing with fire as she raised her head to glare at Scarlet.

The woman in red laughed, "They'll never admit it, but everyone loves this stuff! We'll start with this girl!"

Barret struggled against his shackles to protect Tifa, "If you've gotta do it… me first!" Tifa gave him an unreadable look as he returned a concerned one.

"Tifa… this didn't have to happen…" He choked as the guards took her away to set her up in the execution room. He could see her being strapped down in the chair.

"Camera, this way! Make sure you get this, the audience just eats up tearful good byes!" The camera turned to Barret who had forlorn expression on his face as he watched Tifa though the glass.

Scarlet moved into the chamber and kicked the woman in the chair. Tifa glowered at her, "What are you doing?"

"This is my special gas chamber." Scarlet twirled around to show the entire small chamber with pipes turning across the wall and ceiling, "You see, there's sleep gas, monoxide gas and all kinds, enough to kill you in few seconds." The woman giggled a bit more as if she was proud of her own creations, "Take your time, and enjoy a slow, painful death…" She drawled out as she left the room. The guards followed her and locked the door.

Scarlet came to stand beside the cameraman, her face dark as she watched Tifa struggle in the room, murmuring under her breath, "ShinRa is cruel, I sometime wonder why I ever work for them, creating things to kill, not help."

The cameraman gave her a surprised glance, "Why bother being with them?" He asked softly.

Scarlet frowned and turned to the cameraman, "Do I know you?" She shook her head as if dismissing him, "Whatever. Once you work for the ShinRa, you're bound for life; all I do is just merely an act." She sighed and turned back to the glass wall. The cameraman gave her a long stare and finally turned back to his camera.

The reporter turned to the camera, "The show's about to begin." She turned back to the glass wall. Suddenly, the klaxon blared.

"Emergency! Emergency! Weapon approaching! Attention all military personnel: take your positions!" Then, nearly everyone scrambled out of the room, including half of the guards. Few scrambled and tackled Barret, holding him down.

Scarlet scowled and stomped her red shoe on the floor, "Hey! Hey, oh why now?"

The cameraman next to her dropped the camera, sending it to crash on the floor, he threw off his disguise and Scarlet gaped at him, "Cid Highwind!"

"You bitch! How does it feel now, despite what you just said?" He spat at her.

Scarlet gasped, "How dare you!" She turned to find the reporter throw off her blond bob to reveal darker hair, she and the other tall man ran to the help Barret. The third man came in the room, throwing keys to them.

"Thanks, who're you?" Barret asked as he rubbed his wrists, free from the shackles.

The third man smiled, "Reeve, come on. Get Tifa and get her outside, we're getting the Highwind." Barret frowned and then socked few guards as they came in the room.

Cid towered over the woman in red, "Damn you, you had to choose ShinRa, after all the times, and you could have been with me!"

Scarlet slapped him hard; her nails scraped his cheek, "No! Damn you, I had a dream but you ruined it!"

Cid shook with rage as he restrained to slap the woman silly, "You think Cody was worthless? You left him without a mother! I had to raise him!"

The woman's face changed, softening at the name of the boy. "Cody… how is he?"

Cid slumped his shoulders, staring at the woman with aghast. He was shaking, "Damn it." He cursed softly, "If you bothered to check up once in a while, you would had known. He died years ago."

She stared at Cid, steeling as she slipped into emotionless mask, "Humph, as if I cared."

Cid growled and with lightening speed, he slapped her cheek, sending her to the ground. Her head had hit the floor with resounding crack. He shrugged as he saw her falling unconscious and stepped over her, knowing she was just out cold with a terrible headache. "The only thing good that came out of you was Cody, and he was worth it to the moment he died. You bitch." He spat at her and turned to Barret, "Meet you at the Highwind." He then ran out of the room.

Barret went to the door of the chamber, trying to pry it open. He cursed, "Locked…"

Tifa had gotten herself free from the straps; the guard was idiot enough to drop the key on the floor when he ran out. She pounded on the door as Barret tried to open the lock. The key she had wasn't the key for the door and Barret didn't have the right one either. "It won't open!" She looked up as she heard hissing noises, "The gas…"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

In the large President's Suite of Junon Harbor, there was an entire wall of window overlooking the sea, a beautiful sight except for the oncoming doom coming toward them. Rufus stood by the window, watching the serene ocean; it looked calm and shimmering with reddish glow from the orange glare of the Meteor hanging in the sky, slowly coming toward them from outer space.

The wiry bearded man ran into the room, lumbering as he reached the young President, "It's a Weapon." He heaved heavy breaths seeing that he had run all the way from the control room to the office.

Rufus tilted his head toward the man, not breaking his gaze on the ocean, "There had been so many attacks lately. Can we handle it?" He looked tired with stoic expression but deep in his grey eyes, there were tings of sorrow. He wasn't sure of his Company's ability.

Heidegger didn't fail to notice the doubts in the grey eyes of his young boss, "I believe so." He told with assurance, "Your order?" He asked as he pulled out his little handheld walkie-talkie that connected to the control room.

Rufus leaned forward, his hand splayed on the glass, "No need to ask." He simply said. In the short time he had been President of the ShinRa Co. he had learned there was a burden on his shoulder, a world sized one left by his father. He found so many things unimaginable and to his disgust, there was a lot of mess he had to clean up after his Father. He wasn't sure which was his priority, but it seemed as of now was to deal with the Weapons.

They were attacking all over the globe, wrecking havoc, destroying paths where they went. He had gotten reports that there were four of them. One had disappeared somewhere over the valley of waterfall in Nibel continent. He knew one was somewhere under the sea already and one had stationed under the sand in the desert as well. However, this one was being troublesome; it was deliberately attacking the Junon Harbor.

He ran his fingers in his hair, idly thinking of the other priorities, there were several unauthorized projects that Hojo had created and he had only glimpses of the reports and he didn't like them. It was because of Hojo; Sephiroth was on loose, Jenova causing threats to the Planet and because of the damned fiery ball that was slowly approaching the Planet, indicating doom to come soon.

Finally, there was a small threat to his very power, his control of the ShinRa Co. The Avalanche. He had only gotten two of them; the rest had given him a slip at some point of escape from the Northern Crater.

"Sir," A low class Soldier came into the room, "The execution plan had been breached."

Rufus waved his hands, "Get back to your station, we got bigger problem to deal with." He knew his father lost the entire Elite Soliders, now he lost the next best, the Second Class, practically weakening his military power. He wondered if Wutai was waiting, to attack at the right time in near future for revenge. But he couldn't think of it now, there was too much at hand.

"Yes sir!" The Solider left.

The bleached blond finally turned to the older man, "Well, go on and operate the cannon."

"Yes, sir," Heidegger turned to several naval officers that stood behind him, awaiting his order. "Get on!" He held up the walkie-talkie as the naval officers scrambled out of the office. "Open the cannon door…" He waited and heard the garbled response, "Activate it," another garbled response, "Target the Weapon!"

Rufus leaned his head on the glass pane, watching the older man barking order. The entire Junon Harbor had been renovated into a battle fortress, several large doors across the deck facing the ocean opened to reveal massive cannon extending outward. A larger one, so massive that it was wide in width and it extended slowly, reaching nearly a half mile in length, laid on top of the Harbor itself, drawing power from the fortress. It moved slowly, aligning with the sea to the unseen target.

Heidegger smiled under his bushy black beard, "Preparation's complete, sir." Rufus stood straight up and gave a single nod. "The cannons," He held the walkie-talkie to his mouth, "Fire!" He barked loudly that Rufus winced.

The smaller cannons along the rows of the deck fired volley of energy balls out to the sea, exploding onto the surface of the water, sending loud waves of sonic booms. Tidal waves rose and spread out in all direction, crashing onto Junon Harbor's steel wall below. The Junon Harbor was made to withstand the strongest gale of hurricane.

"Did we get them?" Rufus asked as he watched out of his window as the water drained from the glass, it was so thick that there was no impact, protecting the office within.

The older man frowned as he watched the small screen of the walkie-talkie. It was a radar sensor of the area around the Junon Harbor. A small red dot representing the Weapon disappearing, "Seems so…" He stroked his beard, waiting for some reply from the other end, few voice garbled though, reporting.

Another alarm went off. Rufus closed his eyes, feeling onslaught of headache coming on. "I do need to change that sound of the blasted alarm." He rubbed his head and gave Heidegger a glance, "Well?"

Before Heidegger could reply, the announcement blared, "Weapon approaching! Speed: fifty knots!"

Rufus groaned, "It's heading right toward us…" He glanced to the window; he saw the dark shadow under the surface of the water, rippling the top.

"Shit! It can't be! We hit it dead on!" Heidegger gasped as he gripped his walkie-talkie in his beefy hand, nearly cracking it.

The young President turned to him, "How about the cannons?"

"It'll take time to reload."

Rufus nodded, keeping calm cool the entire time, "Then, use the regular firepower in the mean time." He felt as if his fate was resigned.

The massive man barked more order though the walkie-talkie and soon, they could hear firepower going off outside. The artillery doors were opened and several of energy bombs and large bullets were fired upon the dark shadow under the water surface.

"Seventy knots! Weapons closing in! No good! It's attacking!" The speaker announced in panic.

Rufus shook his head, "How brash, that announcer is fired after this." He stepped away from the window, his eyes widening at the sight outside.

The large dark shadow loomed, breaking though the surface with explosion, hovering over the Harbor and it shook violently as light of energy began to gather from within its mouth and shot toward the harbor. The energy ball smattered right into the fortress, causing an earthquake as it shook the place.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Meanwhile, inside the gas chamber, the gas had turned on from the impact of the Weapon's attack and started to fill the room from below. Tifa gasped and started to take in fresh breath of air and held it. Barret moved to the window and saw Tifa making gesture to go on ahead.

Barret gave her concerned look and shook his head as he pounded onto the glass but failed, it didn't crack under his powerful pounding, "Damn! Tifa! We gotta get you out!"

Tifa shook her head and waved, gesturing him to get away. Barret gave her one last look and ran out of the room, making his way though the maze of the corridor and found himself out onto the deck of the airport. He recognized the airship ahead and saw few figures on the deck waving at him. He ran toward them and got on the airship, dubbed, The Highwind.

He shouted as he climbed up on the ladder, "Go! Go! We got to get Tifa out first! Oh damn!" He turned his head to see the sight of the large Weapon.

The Weapon rose majestically deadly out of the water again after the first impact, looming over the Harbor, looking ever menacingly in its silver, white and black body of natural armor.

Barret leaned over the railing of the dock, watching the scene below, "Damn, man!" Amazed at the Weapon's size and ability, the beast looked so crude, dominating and undefeatable.

The robotic cat hopped toward Barret, "We're going to try to get Tifa out now."

The man turned to the cat, "How can we do that?"

In the chamber, Tifa held her breath as she went over the control that was next to the chair, trying to figure which buttons to turn off the gas. She poked few of them and the gas hissed to stop and the vent opened, draining out the poisonous gas. Tifa exhaled a sigh and took in breath of air. She turned and stomped her foot, she was still stuck in the room.

Another boom shook the building, shaking her off balance. She suspected that the Weapon had made another attack.

The weapon, rising to its full height as it gathered more energy and released it upon the fortress once again. The energy hit dead on the tower, ripping open a hole in its metal surface, exposing rooms to the sea.

Tifa gaped as she looked to the wall she was standing next to, it was gone. However, Weapon was right before her, she stared in awe. She got to her feet and climbed out of the wall and onto the thin ledge. She started to slither down the wall to the level below, and as she reached to the bottom, she saw familiar airship hovering nearby, still keeping distance from the Weapon.

The entire compound of Junon Harbor shook with a low rumble as the large cannon aligned toward Weapon. Tifa watched it move and she felt the ground below her feet shake, she knew the cannon was drawing powers, the barrel of the cannon shook and sparkled with energy, glowing.

She swallowed hard as she pressed herself on the wall; she was so close next to the cannon. The cannon had large lettering on its side, deftly naming it 'Sister Ray'. She knew who had created such monstrosity of weapon.

Tifa yelped, her voice so teeny compared to the Sister Ray's loud booming explosion, shaking her off her feet. The entire fortress shook as well, the energy ball shot out of the barrel, hitting dead on the Weapon, exploding, sending another wave of shock. The smokes cleared and the Weapon sunk back down under the water.

"What d'you do? Hey!" Tifa looked up to find Scarlet in the hole, screaming at few guards and they started to follow down toward Tifa.

Tifa sneered and spat at the woman, "You bitch! You tried to kill me for fun! You deserve that slap Cid gave you, Sank!"

Scarlet's face turned deep red to match her dress as she ran toward the martial artist. Tifa turned and ran, giving a chase for Scarlet. They ran across the barrel of the cannon, facing the sea. Tifa came to the dead end, she glanced down to the sea below, and the Weapons' shadow could be seen from where she stood. Turning back to Scarlet standing before her, she scowled.

Scarlet approached Tifa, seething, her hair in disarray. There was a dark bruise on her cheek from Cid's slap. "Our little game of chase the mouse ends here. The execution may have been unsuccessful, but your death by falling from here and crashing into the water below might be pretty exciting." She strode up to Tifa and slapped her.

Tifa stumbled back from the slap, gasping at the bleached blond woman.

Scarlet smirked, "Stuck up to the end!"

Tifa narrowed her crimson eyes at the woman, "Quit slapping me! You old wrench!" She slapped Scarlet back and received another one. They went on slapping each other.

Barret pointed out from the deck of the Highwind, "Hey! There's Tifa! Tifa, quit bitch slapping the bitch! Punch her out!"

Tifa heard his shout over the roar of the Highwind and smiled. "You know," She turned back to the woman, "He's right, instead of slapping, I could have done this!" She shot a fast punch dead center on her nose.

Tifa winced as she felt the nose crack under her punch and backed up to drop over the edge, only to catch the ladder that was thrown her way by Barret. She had grabbed the ledge and winced as she felt her shoulders wrench at the force. She started to climb up, knowing she would have to have some healing from the Cure Materia. She turned her head back, "Sayonara, whore!" She yelled at the fuming Scarlet left behind on the cannon.

Scarlet held her nose, bleeding down her chin and her chest, glaring at Tifa as she took off with the Highwind. She could see a young girl on the deck giving her an obscene gesture, which offended her to no end.

Barret helped Tifa onto the deck as the Highwind turned and flew away from Junon Harbor. "You okay?" He asked as he noticed red handprints on her cheeks. Yuffie bounced along and handed bag of ice.

Tifa thanked the teenager and turned back to Barret, "My cheeks hurt a bit, and she's real nasty. My shoulders' going to be sore for a month…" She winced as she rotated her shoulders. "So, what's this all about?" She looked around the deck of the Highwind.

The cat bobbed from the top of the mog, "Well, I'll catch the details later. In any case, the airship, Highwind is now yours." He directed toward Cid who was beaming as if he had gotten early Christmas gift.

Barret laughed and steered Tifa below deck to show her the quarters and a bit of the Highwind. After a little tour, they returned to the control room, Cid smirking at them, "Welcome!"

Barret shook his head, "Dammit! Why didn't you tell me you owned this?" He sighed and looked over to Tifa with masked emotion, "I thought…. Tifa was gone for good."

Tifa smiled softly as she held the ice pack to her cheeks, "Thanks Barret, for caring." She giggled slightly as she saw the man blush, as possible he could with his dark skin.

Reeve's voice broke though the cat, "We did it. Thanks to Cid and Vincent, they came up with the plan." Everyone turned to the two men and grinned at them. Vincent only nodded and slithered back into the shadow of the control room.

Tifa turned around and saw every member of Avalanche, except for Cloud, was present. "I think I should go down to my quarter and get some rest."

Yuffie pushed herself off the unused control and followed Tifa, "Me too… gah, motion sickness get to me." She was already looking a bit green.

Cait Sith stopped Tifa, "Tifa." The woman turned to the cat, "I'll give you information on ShinRa, ask me if there's anything you don't understand. Whenever anyone talks to me, I get all nervous and mess things up!"

Cid twirled around and yelled at the cat, "Hey you! What the hell are you doing? All we have to do is just pilot. They don't have to talk to us!"

"Right."

Tifa sighed at the cat, "Reeve… who is Zack?"

The cat paused in his movement as his head turned slowly to Tifa, "That… uh, why?"

Tifa turned around as Yuffie left the room to the quarter below, already interesting shade of green. "We know very little about Zack and I know he was part of this whole mission. All we know he was a friend of Cloud and somehow I suspect that he has similar problem as Cloud does with memories. Recently, I discovered that he has more memories than Cloud but is not telling him everything. I am not sure if he should be trusted or not."

The cat turned to face Tifa fully, "Err… Zack has his own problem to sort out."

Tifa groaned in exasperation at the cat, "That's what Cloud told me. Lemme tell you one thing; they are holding something back from us about Sephiroth."

The cat's eyes averted from the woman, "You're right about that. But I am in no positions to say anything about this."

Cid grabbed the cat by the throat before Tifa could, "You mean, you also know?"

Reeve's voice cracked though the cat, "Not all of it. But I know enough that we gotta do something about Cloud and find her…er... him!"

Tifa frowned as she noticed the slip up, "What are you talking about?"

Cid also noticed this too. "Yeah, you're referring Cloud as her. What's up with that? We all know he's a he, right?"

Vincent narrowed his eyes in the shadow, watching the whole scene; he had caught the slip up as well. He turned to find Nanaki nearby, lying down, covering his eyes with his paws. He knelt beside the wolf, "Nanaki?"

Nanaki looked up to the sniper, "yes?" He whispered back.

"You know something, do you?"

The wolf sighed, "Do not ask me anymore of this. I do not know everything. I cannot break my promises to Cloud."

The sniper nodded as he stood back up, "Very well. We shall wait until he is ready to speak to us."

Nanaki laid his head back down, "Thank you."

Cid shook the cat violently, "what's the hell matta with you?"

"Yes, voice error in the mog. We gotta fix it."

Tifa sighed and shook her head as she waved her hand to dismiss the cat, "I'm too tired to think any more. I'm going to my quarter. Since Cid's the captain of the Highwind, he has says where we're going now."

Barret watched the woman disappear from the control room of the airship, "She's right. We need to rest a bit. Cid, take us wherever we should go, especially away from those damn ShinRa." He then followed Tifa to the quarters below the deck. Nanaki went off to find a place to lie down.

Cid and Vincent stood silently in the control room with several other pilots' worker. "All we know that Cloud disappeared, but where?" Vincent said surprising Cid with his presence.

Cid clutched his heart from fright, "Damn, stop doing that, it's bad for my heart."

The sniper smirked behind his mask, "And smoking isn't bad for you?"

"Shut up!" Cid shot as he lit another one.

Cait Sith hopped back to the corner of the control room, ready to power down, "One thing I can tell you, he is in the Lifestream."

Vincent turned to the cat and nodded, recognizing the voice belonging to Zack. He saw that there was no use to get any more information out of the cat since it had turned itself off. "Lifestream."

Cid frowned as he rubbed his chin, "Where can we find the lifestream?"

"Anywhere there is a crack upon the surface of the Planet, much like the Northern Crater, a river or a lake of Mako. If Cloud disappeared in the Lifestream, he is bound to resurface somewhere, usually a large opening will do."

"Let's start looking." Cid steered the airship toward the reddening horizon across the sea.

Vincent and Cid remained awake though the whole trip, piloting the Highwind nearly all over the world though the night. They searched with their naked eyes and infrared radar on the ship, searching for any signs of Mako River or lake upon the land. There were few but not wide or big enough for a body to pass though.

It wasn't until they hit a small town on the Southern Isle, named Mideel; it was a small infamous resort with hot springs, which was fueled by the heat of the Lifestream. Near the town, there was a large Mako River hidden in the forest.

Vincent used the airship phone, calling the small town ahead, "Highwind here, I'm calling about if you have found any stranger from the Mako River nearby your area?"

The phone gave garbled static but Vincent could barely understand, "Yes, we found a John Doe from the Mako River, heavy Mako Poisoning, but it turned out to be a Jane Doe."

Vincent frowned, unsure if he had heard it clearly, "Thanks, we'll be coming in to check up if it is our missing person. Highwind, over and out."

"Oh, this is where we can find Cloud?" Tifa asked as she had woken up as they landed near the town. They realized they were near the island that had the Temple of the Ancients.

The dark clad sniper moved to Tifa's side, "While you were asleep, we called around and got some information, even searched. This is the town where they had found a John Doe in a terrible state, with the exact description that matched Cloud's appearance. We will have to go and see if it is him or not." He had doubts.

The woman turned to him, her eyes shining with tears brimming, "I really do hope so. I don't think we can go on without him."

Vincent gave her a silent agreement and moved back into the shadow near Cid, pondering some of the things he had uncovered.

After the Highwind landed, Cid opted to stay and give the airship a check up. Nanaki decided to go out hunting and bring back some meat supply since the airship had small kitchen and food storage.

Vincent and Barret had dragged Yuffie into town to go shopping to restock their supplies while Tifa went asking around for some news and to search for where this John Doe could be. Cait had abandoned the mog on the Highwind and is trailing after Tifa.

It wasn't long until Tifa was directed to a small clinic on the other side of the town by some people and she dashed there, wasting no time. The black cat was seen hopping behind her, keeping pace.

Upon entering the small clinic, she saw a nurse treating someone in the wheelchair and gasped, recognizing the patient, "Cloud?"

The nurse turned around, smiling at Tifa, "Ah, you know this person?"

Tifa gave a timid nod, "He's a friend. I had been looking for him."

The nurse gave her an odd look and shrugged. The doctor came in from another room, upon hearing what Tifa had said about Cloud, he also had strange look on his face. "Ah, this young fellow's Cloud? All right, I'm afraid," He paused there and glanced on his clipboard, scribbling something off and writing something in as well, "his condition is not so well, he is being treated for Mako poisoning and I am amazed that he survived it. It is not usual for anyone to survive the Mako poisoning, let alone being in the lifestream."

Tifa shook her head as she knelt by Cloud; 'he' appeared to be dressed in clean clothes of a simple cotton slack and sweater. 'He' was also covered to the neck with blanket, to keep 'him' warm since 'he' was shivering violently every so often.

Cloud was comatose, Tifa reached out to take hold of 'his' hand, which was ungloved, yet the skin was dry and calloused, "Cloud survived a lot of things. He has those uncanny abilities. Where did you find him?"

The doctor glanced on the clipboard once again, "Hm, some of the villagers found him washed ashore from the Mako River nearby. I will leave you to him; I don't think he will respond to anything any time soon."

Tifa thanked the doctor as he left and turned back to Cloud, sitting limply in the chair, "Oh, Cloud. I'm so glad you're alive…"

Cloud's head rose to look around, her blue eyes disoriented. Her mouth opened and no sound came out as she mouthed something unintelligible.

Tifa stifled a sob as she watched 'him' being so helpless. Cloud's head bobbed back down to her chest and up again few times before giving up to rest again.

"What's wrong? I wish you could tell us… what's going on in your mind?" Tifa whispered as she sat by 'his' side until Cait moved to her side.

"Oh, he's here. Mako poisoning." The cat jumped onto Cloud's lap, sitting there.

Tifa turned to the cat and her eyes narrowed at the cat, recognizing the voice, "Zack, since you know what's going on with Cloud, tell me!"

The cat shook his head, "Cloud is experiencing effect of Mako Poisoning. Nothing more. I can't tell what's in his mind. Usually when one get Mako Poisoning, their mind are unstable, the side effect are loss of memory."

Tifa rolled her eyes, "Do I know that? The doctor told me already, but… did he go though this before? He can't just lose his memory after he just recovered them all again."

The cat looked away for a moment before turning its head back to her to nod, "Yes, three years ago. Before you found him in Midgar."

Tifa stood up, towering over the cat, "How did you know that?"

The cat hissed, "I just do. ShinRa is monitoring lots of things going on. We know lots more than you do."

Tifa growled at the cat and shook her head, "So, you're spying for ShinRa?"

"They don't know anything of what's going on right now with you Avalanche. They're so concerned about the Weapons right now. Nothing else mattered to them except that Hojo has some other insane idea going on relating to Sephiroth and Jenova. But I can tell you this; we shouldn't worry about them right now. All we should worry about the Meteor."

The other members of Avalanche came spilling into the clinic, asking all kinds of questions about Cloud and what was going on. Tifa stood up as the doctor came in, they ushered the others out of the room, leaving the cat and Vincent with Cloud.

Vincent pulled out a package, "I got clothes for Cloud." He turned to the cat, "I…" He became quiet as he rummaged though the pack and pulled out a roll of bandage. The cat eyed him carefully, "I figured they would burn her clothes."

The cat narrowed its eyes, "So, you figured it out."

"Yes, Zack." Vincent replied, "From Reeve's slip up on the Highwind and from the doctor's mentioning of a Jane Doe, I put two and two together. I suspected Nanaki knew for a while, he had confirmed that he did and wishes to not break her promises. I understand and respect her wish as well. I will keep it from the others until she is ready to tell."

Zack sighed, "Thanks. I can't dress her with these paws; you'll have to do it. I'll stand by and watch; she's rather picky on how she is bandaged."

Vincent shook his head as he moved to lift Cloud out of the chair and moved her to the bed, "I am not interested in her, if you wish to know. I believe the correct term for our relationship in the future would be in-law. If Sephiroth gets though this."

The cat bobbed his head, "So, you believe you're Sephiroth's father, aren't you?" He watched as Vincent carefully held Cloud up to bandage her chest, binding her breast.

"I've suspected for a long time. Lucrecia gave birth to a boy, I only got a chance to see him, hold him once when he was born. That was before Hojo took her and the boy away. She didn't tell me of anything else but his name, Sephiroth Crescent, the second name being after her own."

"Sephiroth and I had researched about the identity of his father several years ago, we didn't believe Hojo being his father and we narrowed our search down to you."

"I see." Vincent slipped the Soldier crew-neck top onto Cloud and moved her to lie down. She was still awake, yet comatose. He had found her very light and noticed that she had lost weight as well. "Are they in love?" He asked as he slipped the clinic slack off.

The cat bobbed, sitting next to Cloud's hand, picking it up to rest it on her now flat chest, "They were supposed to be engaged. This ring was from him, nice, isn't it?"

Vincent pulled the pants on and zipped it up; he turned to the ring and took a glance at it, "Yes, very nice. It's a pity to cover it up." He took her hand and started to pull on the gloves. "I do hope they get though this. They seem to deserve each other, the passion she has to go after him and rescue him is amazing."

Zack chuckled, "You wouldn't know half of it."

Vincent looked up to find Tifa return with the others as he finished slipping on the last of the gloves. He moved to the feet and slipped the boots on quickly and stood up, "I've taken the liberty to dress him up in his clothes."

Tifa nodded, smiling sadly, "I'll stay with him tonight. You guys go ahead back to Highwind."

Vincent nodded and glanced to find the cat settle in the crook of Cloud's arm. He turned and motioned for the doctor to follow him. They went into the other room and he turned to the doctor, "Did you mention to the others her gender?"

The doctor shook his head, "I caught on that they didn't know. What's going on?"

Vincent closed his eyes, "Thank you. Cloud wouldn't wish for the others to know. She hid the truth about herself from the others for a long time for a personal reason. Thank you for not revealing her secret."

The doctor nodded, "I am going have to write up a new report soon because they wish to have it by tomorrow. I was rather surprised when she was brought into my clinic. Dressed like a Soldier, her chest bandaged to assume male gender."

Vincent nodded, "She was a Soldier, Elite in fact."

The doctor gaped, "You mean she is one of the last ones that disappeared over few years ago in Nibelheim?"

"So, you heard about them. Yes, that's Cloud Strife."

"No wonder, I researched Doctor Hojo's work a little bit. Insane man. Now I understand why she survived Mako Poisoning, she was administrated Mako before, she has a strong immune to Mako. I will not reveal any of her status, she will be confidential. Hojo is searching for her."

Vincent narrowed his eyes, "When did you find that out?"

"Recently. He sent out news all over the world to different doctors, requesting if anyone had found a blond female with Mako Poisoning. I wasn't sure; he was sketchy so I didn't report. I'm glad you guys came sooner."

Vincent clasped the doctor's shoulder with his good hand, "Thank you very much. We will remove Cloud early tomorrow morning. You will be paid handsomely then."

"No problem. Just stop that Doctor if you can."

"We will and that is a promise." Vincent turned to the door and opened it, "We better go back to the Highwind for the night." He announced and left the clinic with Barret, Nanaki, Cid and Yuffie in tow.

Tifa sat by the bed next to Cloud, holding the gloved hand, "Why… what do you want me to do? Please… Cloud, talk to me." She pleaded as she watched Cloud lull herself to sleep with heavy distortions.

Tifa leaned her head on the edge of the bed, clutching the hand, "Tell me you can hear me, and see me… tell me." She whispered as she still watched Cloud's face.

Then, for the moment, Cloud's head bobbed once. Tifa smiled, "Oh gods. I came this far thinking we had so much memories together growing up but now, I know I know nothing about you or who you are. Cloud, tell us. Tell me, soon, please? What had happened in the past? This is too cruel…"

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	31. S3:5: Gap Filled

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Five: Gap Filled

_I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body,_

2 Peter 1:13, the Holy Bible

Morning didn't come too soon for anyone, but it came eventually and they were all boarded on the Highwind outside of Mideel. Cloud had been moved to the Doctor's house for a longer term stay. The doctor had gone with the party to the Highwind to discuss with the party before they left.

Everyone gathered on the deck with the Doctor. Barret was first to ask, "So, what about him? You know, Cloud?"

The doctor rubbed the back of his neck, "I'll say it again, and he's got Mako poisoning. I've never seen a case this bad, usually no one survives. He's a survivor, a lucky one. There is not much we can do, just let him ride it through."

Nanaki narrowed his eyes to the doctor, "You're not sure when he will wake up?" He was speculating as the Doctor knew of Cloud's secret and decided it had not been revealed. However, he saw Vincent staring at him as if he wanted to say something.

The sniper made a mental note to talk to the wolf to inform him that he also knew and to discuss the issue about taking care of Cloud when she was out of it. Nanaki felt twinge of nervousness when he saw the sniper's head nod toward him. All he could think was, how?

The doctor shook his head, "An immense amount of Mako, pumped in his body, his blood test showed his blood was almost a hundred percent Mako, it was amazing that he's still alive, his heart's still beating the Mako though his veins. It's known to be poisonous, to eat the body vital organs, it is known to eat the brain away first because of it's acidity but his body is not fighting it, but embracing it. It's a miracle."

Cait snorted. "Bullshit." Then everyone froze, staring at the cat as two voices came though, arguing with each other.

"No! You can't! Not yet!"

"Shut up, Reeve! I'll tell them if I want to. They gotta to know something, beside it's time!"

"Can't you wait until Cloud wake up or something?"

"No! Beside, he will know anyway."

Barret frowned as he picked the cat up by its scruff, "Hey! What the hell ya'll talkin' 'bout?"

The cat's head finally turned to the black man and squeaked, "All right, Zack'll tell ya something." Barret set the cat down on the back of the mog, ready to listen.

"All right…" Zack's voice came though the cat. "Cloud wouldn't survive the Mako Poisoning if this had not happened. It happened after Nibelheim…"

"Wait!" Yuffie yipped as she leapt of the railing where she was sitting on beside Barret and Cid, "Can ya hold on? I think Tifa would like to hear this."

The cat grumbled and waved its hand. The teenage girl took off in a dash towards the town Cloud was at, while everyone waited. It wasn't long before they returned and Zack continued.

"You see, it happened after the Nibelheim Crisis, I'm sure Cloud told ya'll that part. It's pretty much the same in my view as I was there as well. I was the other Elite on the mission with Cloud and Sephiroth. Tifa would remember me."

Tifa frowned, "But what about Sorano?"

Zack paused and behind the cat, he chuckled, holding his hand over the microphone, not letting anyone hear him chuckle. Reeve shot him a look. He removed his hand and continued again, "Right, she was there." He saw Tifa nod with satisfaction and rolled his eyes. "Doctor Hojo, that bastard… After Nibelheim, Sorano went after Sephiroth, she confronted him after I fought with him, and I was wounded pretty badly. She went in, I could guess, to fight with him, and managed to wound him pretty bad. At some point, she threw him down into the Lifestream below the Reactor. Anyway, we were all wounded, Cloud, Sorano, and I. When Doctor Hojo came around, he found us all. I was at the death door. Cloud was barely alive, just hanging onto life because of his sheer will power. Tifa was taken away, if I remember, Hojo said to send her to Midgar, treat her for her wound and set her free, she wasn't necessary. He wanted Sorano and us. We weren't taken far, I don't think ShinRa even know about this, if they were behind rebuilding Nibelheim. It was a nightmare, terrorizing me for two years, and perhaps for the rest of my life."

Few years ago, as Zack told the story, in his eyes, Cloud and Sorano was one person but to the other views, they were separate individuals. The story still had a lot of holes because the most gruesome details were left out, Zack felt was not necessary to tell the others. He knew in time, he would have to tell Cloud and Sephiroth directly someday, if that day ever come.

"I remember this, I woke up to find myself in a green liquid chamber, a small one, just enough for my whole body to float in. Doctor Hojo was staring at me on the other side of the glass. I was enraged, I tried to break the glass but I couldn't, I was weak and Hojo, that bastard, he laughed." Zack scowled at the memory and continued.

"Cloud wasn't with us," Zack paused and smirked, continuing, eluding the story a bit to not reveal such information to them about her gender, "He was in another room. I was with Sorano. She was in another tube, floating almost lifelessly. I remember this, seeing her, naked and tied up to many tubes, feeding her body with Mako and many other things. Cloud was the same.

This memory, I wish to not ever relive it but you all must know what Hojo had done to Sorano. It was horrible. It took me a while to realize why he did this. He did this because it was what Jenova wanted him to do. I suppose, Hojo must had injected himself with some of the Jenova cell and the virus figured he had a use for her, doing things for her.

What they did to Sorano, they practically changed her body slowly. It took a year and the entire time, she was comatose. Several times, she had died, weak and without will to live but Hojo forced her alive again. Hojo wasn't alone on this project of his, there was another Doctor as well, Doctor Gates.

Gates is known through the ShinRa as the cloning technician, he is the mastermind behind cloning, not Dr. Hojo. They worked on this project, the Adam and Eve project, a private one that Doctor Hojo used the Nibelheim Reactor to power.

One day, they prepared her body and took her out of the Mako tube and laid her down…" Zack paused for a long while, his voice cracked. The group could hear Reeve on the other end, assuring Zack it was okay and comforted him.

Finally, Zack was able to continue and he spoke with hard voice, "They… they, damn it." His voice cracked and everyone could hear him cry softly behind the microphone. "They prepped her; I could hear their entire conversation, Dr.Hojo and Dr. Gates'. They were talking about the Adam and Eve project and how Hojo had been searching for a perfect sample to continue the project, he was thrilled when Sorano landed in their hands.

Dr.Hojo had some samples, semen sample from Sephiroth from before Nibelheim Crisis. He also had Jenova's egg cells and he mixed them together, with Mako, pure Mako, like the one you would find in the Lifestream." He gave a long deep sigh. "Jenova's egg cells were not completed, so they used Sorano's as well and injected the fertilized eggs in her body. It was a violation, I saw the whole thing and it disgusted me to this day and perhaps for the rest of my body as long I remember this." Zack grounded out, his voice filled with anger.

"Oh my god!" Tifa whispered, "Poor Sorano!" She had her face wet with tears, in grief and anger.

"Yes. My statement exactly." Zack said, continuing. "It took three months for… for the fetuses to develop." He heard everyone gasp. "Yes, Sorano was a Valkyrie female, and all Valkyries carries pregnancy to the full term only in three months instead of nine. It wasn't long before Sorano was heavy and ready to give birth. Hojo and Gates came back, took her out and cut her open, removing three… yes, three babies." He paused as he heard the others shout in objection and commotions. Once they had quieted down, he continued again, "the babies, as I remembered, they had silver hair, much like Sephiroths and they were all males."

"Shit! So, there are more of those out there, little boys by now?" Cid asked as he flipped his cigarette off the side of the airship.

"I don't know what happened to them. Dr. Gates took them away after they were finished with Sorano, sewing her up close and returned her back in her tube. It wasn't for another month and she woke up. I told her to be ready to escape." Zack paused and there was silence through Cait Sith.

On the other end, Zack held his hand over the microphone. "What?" He asked.

Reeve frowned, "You've left Cloud out of the story, and they're going to suspect. They don't know Cloud and Sorano is one."

"I know. I'm getting to that." Zack turned back to the microphone and cleared his throat. "I waited for the right time to come. The orderly came in, with dinner, they do this every day, drain my tube, open it up and give me dinner, and I had ten minutes to eat before they close the tube and fill it up with Mako again. Usually, I was weak to do anything and they had to feed me themselves. But then, I was saving my strength. This orderly, he drained my tube and I fell to the bottom, appearing weak and I waited. He opened the door and I shot out to him, knocking him out and I was out. I went over to Sorano's tube and opened her up…" He paused and sighed, "Sorano was weak the whole time, and she had lost her will to live. She died and there was nothing I could do." The Avalanche and the doctor gasped.

"That bastard! When I see him, I'm gonna wringe his neck!" Cid muttered.

"That's horrible!" Yuffie squeaked, she was already crying with tears streaking her face.

"Yes." Zack said. "I found Cloud and took him out; he was very, very weak. He couldn't move, talk or anything. I got some clothes, found our weapons and I left. I was surprised once I got out of the mansion to find Nibelheim as it was never burned. But I didn't care; I took Cloud with me and ran. Cloud was able to move his legs by the time we reached the jungle south of Nibelheim. It was when the Soldiers were chasing us, looking for us. Cloud could follow my footwork; he was trained to do so. His muscle memory was coming back and I held him while I fought with the Soldiers.

It was a very long journey; it nearly took me a year. I wanted to get back to Midgar to find out what the hell was going on and from there; I could set out and search for Sephiroth. We traveled mostly by foot. I stole food for both of us, I hunted. We snuck onto the ship from Costa Del Sol and to Junon Harbor. There, I was able to grab some uniforms and some rations. We traveled under the cover of the forest and jungle all the way through. Cloud still had not regained his memory, he was silent the entire time, usually I could catch his responses with his eyes, and how he glares or rolls his eyes every time I talk. It was the only way he could communicate. I knew his mind was working then.

I got a ride from Fort Condor, this old man; he was driving a yellow truck and was heading toward Kalm, close enough to get to Midgar, so we hitchhiked on his truck.

I remember how Cloud's eyes looked when we got closer to Midgar. I suppose we were like five miles out. His eyes, I just knew he sensed something out there. I noticed this and went on alert and waited, Cloud had a better sense for those things than I was. Suddenly, the Soldiers came out and started shooting at us, I grabbed cloud and we fell out of the truck. The stupid truck ran off, leaving us to dust.

When I stood up, I told Cloud to run. He lay there, he just didn't move. I saw his eyes, he saw the whole thing. I was shot, I didn't have any chances, they shot me and I fell back. It hurts like hell, I remember this." He stopped and sighed, closing his eyes.

"Is that all?" Barret asked, his voice roughened with emotions.

"No." Cait moved to look at Barret, "When I was down, those stupid Soldiers came and shot me some more. Then the Turks came, I think they killed them all. The next thing I knew, I woke up in the lab at the ShinRa Headquarter. I didn't remember anything then, they told me that I was lucky to live and they wanted me to do what they commanded me to do. They named me General and that was it, I was their slave."

"Whew. What a story…" Cid muttered as he finished another cigarette and fished for another one but found he was out and cursed under his breath.

Reeve spoke, taking over the control of the cat, "I met with Zack about a week later. He caught me expressing my dislike for the ShinRa and my disagreement with Hojo's experiment. We became friend after that, Zack had already recovered most of his memory by then but did not let it on with the ShinRa. All they knew that Zack was their mindless slave, nothing more."

"Yeah. From what I understood, my chest was riddled with gunshot wounds, damaging all of my vital organs, Hojo used his experiment, a part of his few pet projects, cloning my organs and replacing them, and presto, I'm here, alive and kicking.

To be honest, I'm thankful that he brought me back alive, so I can get to kick his ass, or else, see his ass being kicked. I don't care either way, as long he gets some ass kicking.

You see, he did this to four of us, Sephiroth, Cloud, Sorano and me. I don't know who else he had done this to, I am sure there are others." The cat finished his tale with malice in his voice.

Tifa had paled though the story, "How terrible, how a man could do this?"

Nanaki snorted, "Hojo is not human, and he has no soul. He enjoys doing this."

The doctor shook his head, "Amazing, now I know the truth of the renowned Doctor Hojo, and he is utterly insane. That's all I can say."

Barret barked a laugh, "You're right. Good thing Cloud's alive anyway. We need him for this mission if he has any idea what to do with that ball of fire." He pointed to the red scorching meteor in the sky.

"I'm going back to Cloud." Tifa whispered as she headed to the town. The doctor bade his farewell and got off the Highwind, heading back to town as well.

"I think we all better see to getting ready for the next leg of the journey, are we staying here for one more night before we go?" Vincent asked, his quiet voice nearly spooking everyone.

"Damn it; give us a warning if you're going to talk!" Cid snapped at the sniper and trudged off to the control room. Yuffie snickered, standing beside the sniper. Nanaki shook his head.

"I guess; I'm going into town to restock our inventory." Barret grunted, heading to the exit.

"I'll go with him." Yuffie piped, following the black man.

Vincent watched the teenager and the gun-armed man retreat away from the Highwind and he finally turned to Nanaki and the Cat, "I know who Sorano is." He knelt beside the wolf who stared in shock.

The cat nodded, "Don't worry wolfie, he found out last night. It's safe."

Nanaki turned to the cat, "Zack, are you sure?"

The cat bobbed its head as it leapt into Vincent's arms, "Yeah, I trust him. The others will know someday soon. It's not best for Tifa to know and I don't know about Barret's sanity if he finds out. Cloud doesn't trust anyone of us at the start. It takes her time to eventually trust people."

"How would you know if Cloud will trust him?" Nanaki nodded his head to Vincent.

"Vincent has a past that ties to her past. She will trust him once she knows who he is. She did mention when she first met him that she has a tie to him."

"What is this tie, if I may know?"

Vincent sighed, "The others are not to know of this, I believe I am Sephiroth's father."

Nanaki stared at the red-clad sniper in shock, "You are… come to think of it," he sniffed the sniper and gave a nod, "You are. The scents are similar. This is one big strange clash of fate with all of us. We all have ties to Cloud's past one way or another."

Vincent gave a small smirk, "Fate brought us all together for a reason. We are to stay by Cloud's side, stand by her and see things through."

"I agree."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack turned to Reeve, "there, that's all I wanted to tell them."

Reeve looked very tired, "Yes, at least they know what happened to Cloud in that three years gap of memory of hers. Hojo had done too much on this whole things and he is helping to destroy the Planet."

Zack ran his fingers through his mane as he sighed deeply, "Gods, I wish I could see Cloud personally again and give her a nice long hug to comfort her. Gods above know what she is going through. I'm not going to mention what happened to Cloud during that time until she is ready. It's horrible."

Reeve leaned over and wrapped his arms around Zack in a comforting hug, "I know, I know. You're going through similar things… no one could ever tell but the three of you together… and you're all apart, it's tearing you apart inside."

Zack gave into the hug and cried softly as he felt the other two's feelings far away, even if they were distanced from him, he could feel their souls.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

On the deck of Highwind, Barret and Cid lounged, waiting, watching the scenery around them. Meteor still hung in the sky, even to the naked eyes, they couldn't see but it was a little bit closer than the last time they glanced at it. No one knew how long they had left to live before the big fiery rock crashed onto the Planet. Few suspected it wouldn't be very long; others think they had a bit longer than that.

Burgenhagen had researched and studied the Meteor to the extent and informed Reeve that there was no prediction on when the Meteor would crash on the planet. In fact, it was hanging there outside the orbit of the Planet, orbiting the Planet, as if it were waiting for something.

Zack suspected it was waiting for the Dark Sephiroth's command. It cannot crash on the Planet unless Dark Sephiroth's plan was complete. And he knew, without Cloud by his side, he cannot allow the Meteor to damage the Planet. The longer Cloud stayed away, the longer the Meteor hung in the sky, waiting.

"What're we gonna do now? What can we do?" The black man grumbled.

The robotic cat hopped onto the deck with the mog, "Oh, I've got some news."

Barret turned to the cat and snarled at him, knowing it was Reeve behind the cat, "Yeah, what? That you're a spy?" He snapped.

The cat rolled its eyes, "Yeah, I've already told you I was. Anyhoo, Scarlet and Heidegger are up to something. Wanna eavesdrop?"

Cid sat up in an instant at the name of Scarlet, "Come on, bring it on! I wanna know what that bitch gonna do with the whole thing… damn her…"

The cat made some noises and they soon could hear few voices from inside somewhere in the Headquarter.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

In the ShinRa Board room, several people stood or sat around the meeting table. Rufus sat on one end with Zack standing behind him in the shadow. The red clad Scarlet stood beside the massive bearded man, Heidegger, both snickering and laughing over some personal jokes. Reeve had just entered the room, concealing a small microphone recorder in his jacket that connected to Cait Sith.

Rufus stood up as everyone sat down around the table, ready to start the meeting. "Now then… we're faced with two issues. Number one: Destroy the Meteor and number two: remove the barrier around Northern Crater and kill Sephiroth." He then flipped his head to brush the blond strands that got into his eyes, "Any ideas?"

Heidegger laughed his booming laugh, "We've already solved the first problem! Meteor will soon be smashed to bits! The plan has already been put in motion. Namely, to collect all Huge Materia from each region."

Rufus looked almost bored and irritated, "Well, exactly why do you need the Huge Materia?"

Scarlet stood up, "Huge Materia is highly density special type of material made up though a special compression process in the Mako Reactors." She saw Rufus made a hand gesture to get to the point, "Right, they're bigger than the normal Materia, powerful and stronger, with combined abilities that individual Materia has. The energy extracted from it is about three hundred thirty time the strength of the normal Materia." She giggled and smiled a flashy smile, which made Zack want to punch her light out.

"We will gather all the Huge Materia together and ram it into Meteor! That will cause a huge explosion! Reducing Meteor, literally, to bits."

Rufus frowned at her, "You're going to ram into Meteor? Do you think we have the technology to do that?"

The blond woman nodded enthusiastically, "Don't worry about that, more importantly, we've got to collect the Huge Materia from each area."

Heidegger didn't skip beat from Scarlet's last work, "We've already collected one from Nibelheim Reactor. All that is left from Corel and Fort Condor. I've already dispatched a troop to Corel."

Zack's face twisted into something of anger but no one noticed except for Reeve who gave him a glance.

Rufus nodded, "Very well, I want to see report on this plan. The meeting is adjourned for now." He waved his hand and soon everyone started to leave the room.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Barret exploded, "Corel! What else can they do to Corel!" Corel was his hometown and it was reduced to almost nothing by the ShinRa in the past.

Nanaki paced around the deck, he had joined them and heard everything earlier, "The Huge Materia, I've heard about it. It's big, the normal ones resonate with the bigger one, and it calls to the Planet, using the power. Scarlet is asking for trouble, using the Planet's power to destroy the Meteor, the result will be disastrous for the Planet, rather than the Meteor."

Barret exploded once again, not being able to suppress his temperamental anger, "Can't let ShinRa get hold of the Huge Materia! Beside, when Cloud's back, I wanna show him his Huge Materia. He's gonna be shocked."

The others had joined and listened to Barret rant. Only Tifa wasn't present, she had remained by Cloud's side at the doctor's house.

Zack's voice came though the cat, "So, what are you saying, big man? Even though you're always knocking him around, you really want Cloud to come back."

Barret suddenly became still and quiet as he stared at the cat, "I ain't sayin' nothin' 'bout nothin'. You jes…" He shook again in renewed rage, "Shut your face! Every group's gotta have a leader!" Then he beat his chest with his good hand, "An' that's me!"

Zack's voice laughed loudly though the cat at Barret, "Right!"

Barret growled at the cat, "Yo shut up until I finish! Or at least I wanna be the leader… But I ain't cut out to be no leader. I never knew that till lately." He turned to the railing of the Highwind, standing near Cid, "An' that's what is… you've been chosen to be the new leader, "He pointed to Cid.

The pilot snorted at the man, "Pain in the ass, forget it!"

Yuffie shook her head and jumped up and down, yelling so she could be heard, "Hey! Hey, why don't we split up and get all the Huge Materia at once? So, some of us can be leaders until we all come back together and Cloud's sure be all right then?" Everyone turned to her in surprise.

"She speaks wise." Nanaki walked around the young shinobi. "Perhaps we should split up as she said, but who will get which?"

Yuffie's head bobbed in excitement for being able to do something right at once, "Right! Like Barret can go to Corel since he know the place! Cid can go to Fort Condor! And… Uhmm… is there another reactor? There has to be a few more Huge Materia."

Vincent grabbed the girl's shoulder to stop her from bouncing all over the place. "You're right, kid. However, there is a slight problem. We all only have the Highwind."

The girl turned her head to the sniper, "Aw, you're forgetting something else! There's Tiny Broncos up near Bone Village with the yellow buggy! The red one's still at Rocket Town, they've must fixed it! We're famous and they'll give them back to us if we needed it!"

Cid rubbed his stubby chin as he listened to the girl, "Hm, that's right. We can drop some of us over in the area to get the vehicles and go on to getting the Huge Materia. Highwind can hold all those vehicles. Well, we better get Tifa and tell her! So, who's going to get which one?"

Vincent shook his head and glanced around the group, "Well, I think it is set that Barret is to go to Corel and Cid should go with him, isn't there a train over there?"

Barret gave him an affirmative nod, "Da right."

The sniper turned to the wolf, "Then, you and I should go to Fort Condor and get the Materia. I am sure we all can trust Yuffie with Cait Sith to the third location, Cait?"

The cat bobbed, 'Right, the underwater Reactor at Junon Harbor. I think I can get Zack to transfer there temporarily and help her out in person. After all, he has the access being the General."

Yuffie beamed, "Ooh! So I get to meet Zack in person?"

The cat turned to the girl and the voice changed, "Hey, I'm sure I can handle you. You're a nifty little thing." Zack laughed then.

Yuffie grinned, "Thanks Zack!"

"So, are we all going to do that?" Cid asked.

Barret stomped his massive foot, "Damn right. We have to!"

The sniper, who still had his hand on the shinobi's shoulder, tilted his head in a nod, "Then, that's what we have to do."

Red sat on his haunches, "Let's do it."

Cid grinned at everyone with his cigarette hanging on his bottom lip perilously, how he had recovered more, no one knew. "Yeah!"

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedback, review, please?_


	32. S3:6: GhostPastPresentFuture

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Six: Ghosts of the Past, Present and the Future

_In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will: That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ._

Ephesians 1:11-12, the Holy Bible

After making arrangement, Cid flew Highwind over Fort Condor, dropping Vincent and Nanaki off and made plan to pick them up in a day and half if they were still alive afterward. They even had their cell phones set to contact one another.

Reeve had gone the length to clear off few red tapes to get Zack over to Junon Harbor; he had told President Rufus that Zack was needed there to oversee the new recruits at the harbor. Rufus gave the approval immediately, feeling it was safe enough for Zack to handle Junon Harbor under control during the crisis. The exception was only if Zack was confined to Junon Harbor, which wasn't a problem for him.

Cid then flew toward near Junon Harbor; he had parked the airship in the cover of the forest nearby and rode out to the gate of the port with Yuffie, personally delivering her to the raven-haired General. He felt he should meet with the man, to see if he could trust the man, and after a few minutes of conversation, he liked him enough to trust him with Yuffie.

"You better keep her alive, I wouldn't be too happy if I find anything happen to her…" Cid pointed a finger to Zack's nose with threat underlining his words promising a spear up somewhere it didn't shine.

Zack laughed as he pushed the hand away from his face, "No worry, I'll take care of your kid here. She's great and useful for this mission; I've seen her move and everything. I'll be sure to keep her safe."

"Good." Cid puffed his cancer-stick; he gave Yuffie a nudge on the head, "Listen to him."

Yuffie rolled her eyes, "Yeah, Daddy, I'll listen to him." She combed her hair back in place with her fingers as she watched Cid take off on the chocobo to return to the hidden Highwind. He was going to head to North Corel with Barret, then pick up the remaining vehicles Avalanche had left off in Rocket Town and Bone Village for future uses.

During the entire mission, Tifa was to remain behind at Mideel with Cloud, to keep watch over 'him'. And Cait Sith was powered down for the time being, stowed away on the Highwind.

At North Corel, Barret and Cid had made their way through mazes of old rail road track over the jagged mountain and cliff to the Reactor that laid deep in the valley. By the time they reached the Reactor, they saw a train leaving with several ShinRa Soldiers.

"Oh, shit! It's going to Corel!" Cid cursed as he jumped out of the way as the train passed by.

"Damn, the rail ends in Corel. They're going to crash!" Barret concluded. He was familiar with the area and suspected the Soldiers didn't realize the rail ends in Corel. If the train crashed, it would destroy half of the town, perhaps taking half of the population as well.

The blond pilot stomped his javelin on the ground in frustration, "Looks like they're takin' off with the Huge Materia in the train, let's get them!"

Barret twirled around, nearly knocking the pilot off his feet, "No! You damn bonehead!"

Cid pushed the black man aside, "Hey! I'm Cid Highwind, that's who the hell I am! Now let me handle it! There's a train we can use to catch up!" He jerked his thumb toward the Reactor, sure enough, there was another train, sitting on the track.

They scrambled toward the train and hopped onto it. Barret moved to remove the cars from the train as Cid started it up. It moved slowly at first, the wheels grinding and chugging for the first time in a long time.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey!" Cid laughed as he drove the train, making it go faster as it caught up with the first one ahead.

Barret goggled at the switches and pulleys which Cid worked at, "How can they even drive this?"

Cid shrugged his shoulders as he grinned around his cigarette, "Don't ask me. I suppose they're trained to. ShinRa trained me in nearly everything they make, but I'm still a Fly-Boy!" He whopped.

The black man gaped at the pilot, "What?"

Cid laughed and pulled a pulley and the train jolted faster, "That'd work. Don't touch this one. That's the brake, I think."

Barret exploded, "You think? My ass's dependin' on yo! Foo!" He sent a worried glance around and saw they were alongside the other train. He noticed the tracks were going to split ahead soon, "Let's get on that train now and forget this one!"

Cid nodded, jamming the pulley, "Right, gap ahead, and jump now!" They scrambled to the side, preparing to jump.

The trains started to apart in distance a bit and Barret shouted, "Oh Shit, you dumbass!"

"Hey, hey, jump and call me names later, you shithead!" Cid shouted back as he shoved the other man off the train, the other train started to descend while their train was ascending.

Barret hollered some blue string of curses as he landed on one of the car with a heavy thud, making the entire train jolt a bit. Cid yelled and landed beside him. They stood and saw their train go off the track, plummeting down below the mountain behind them.

"Hoo, let's stop this train before it crash into Corel." Barret muttered as he got up. The two made their way from car to car, fighting off the troopers and robots stationed on the train.

"Oh, they're a dirty shitty thing, dem ShinRa." Barret said as he wiped out the last of the creatures and the two of them turned to face the locomotive where the two ShinRa Soldiers stood, one piloting the train and another pointing gun at them.

Cid rolled his eyes and swiped his javelin toward the Soldier with the gun, knocking him on the head and forcing him right off the train. The Soldier rolled behind them, forgotten in a smoke of dust.

Barret jumped into the locomotive and pointed his gun-arm at the pilot, "All right, hand over the Huge Materia!"

The Solider, obviously smaller than the two men in size, nodded in fright, he pointed behind them to a box. As they turned their heads, he jumped right off the train.

Barret cursed as he realized the man jumped off and noticed they were heading toward Corel at faster speed, about ready to crash. "Shit, Cid, do somethin'!" He hollered.

"Shaddup!" Cid spat back as he grabbed a pulley and yanked it back. The train jolted faster. "Oh shit! Wrong one!" And he pulled a second one, which made the wheels churn to stop, making the train emit sparks as it ran over the rail. Sparks and fire blew from the sides, screeching loudly as the little town of Corel were alerted and scattered out of the way at the end of the rail.

Cid and Barret were thrown ahead as the train finally came to sudden stop, crashing into the pulleys and tangled up in each other's limbs.

"Get off me!" Cid shouted from under Barret.

The black man stumbled backward and grinned as the cheer of the people from Corel filled his ears. "lookit! We saved the town!"

Cid gave him a look as he rubbed his side where the pulley had jammed into his ribs, "Sure, sure, let's get the damn Huge Materia and go."

Barret pulled out a large crystal yellow Materia from the box. The town's mayor came up to them and handed them another Materia in thanks, the Ultima Materia and soon, they left Corel with heroship in their heads.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

At Fort Condor, Vincent and Nanaki found the fortress that guarded the massive bird, the Condor. There were Soldiers trying to break in, swarming around the area. The people of Fort Condor were fighting back with all their might and were failing.

Nanaki and Vincent made their way into Condor with little troubles, weaving though the artillery and managing to get in. They were welcomed by the Condorians and met up with their leader.

"We've been fighting the ShinRa for a long time, now it's all out battlefield. You guys going to help us fight them?" The leader asked in midst of shouting orders to the others. The sound of gunfire and explosion went around outside.

Vincent glanced out of the window from the top of the fortress and he could see the majestic Condor bird, sitting on its nest while the people dedicated their lives to protect the bird. It seemed unaware of the events going around it, he was rather curious why would the bird stay in the midst of the battle.

"We will help. We are here for a reason, the same one they are." Vincent replied as he turned back to the leader.

"You want the Huge Materia? Well, if your reason is good, we will let you have it, if you help us to push back the ShinRa."

Nanaki moved around the sniper and looked up to the man, "We want the Huge Materia so they can't use it. We're going to use it for the good of the Planet."

The Condorian leader's face lit in recognition, "Hey! I've heard of you guys, you're the Avalanche, aren't you?"

Vincent nodded, "Yes, now…" The three went into deep planning of how to push the ShinRa Soldiers back, with Nanaki's wisdom, Vincent's Turk trained strategy and the Leader's knowledge of the area and events.

Soon, with the plan in motion, they had dispatched the Condorians out in positions and, shortly, the ShinRa was successfully pushed back and defeated, they retreated and left the area, and the fortress as once safe again for now.

"Thanks," The leader sighed, "At least we can restock and recruit more help before they come back and take the fortress. We once belonged to the ShinRa but after what we learned happened to the other reactors, the one in Gongaga and Nibelheim, we decided to call mutiny."

Nanaki tilted his head, "You know what happened in Nibelheim? I thought it was well kept secret."

The leader chuckled, "No, a few of us helped to build most of the reactors around the world; we know of the Nibel curse and were forewarned. We were rather surprised what happened four years ago, when a group of Elites went in, it was all they had at the ShinRa, their best Soldiers, none came out."

Vincent nodded, "They're all alive and the ShinRa are after them. That's all I can say."

"Wow… Can our hope lie in the three of them to overthrow the ShinRa?"

"You can rely on that hope. Right now, our leader is one of them. We're here to help the Planet, that's why we want the Huge Materia."

"Excellent, you can have it, but I need one more thing from you two."

"What is it you ask?" Nanaki asked.

"Turn off the Reactor, many of us know how to take care of it, build it, rebuild, but none of us actually know the secret of turning it off."

Vincent gave a nod, "It is one of our other goals, turn off the Reactors. We are able to do that, but you will have to find another source of energy to keep going."

The man shrugged, "We already have back ups. We just wanted to turn the Reactor off. The Condor bird, for some reason decided to build a nest on the top of the Reactor and sit there. It has been for a long time now. We fear that the Reactor is hurting the bird."

"Show the way." Vincent held his hand up to be guided. Soon, the leader took them deep into the reactor to the control room and they went to work.

Vincent and Nanaki worked on the control, familiar with the system and recalling, from Cloud's knowledge, how to turn it off. It was difficult but they managed and worked to make sure it would never be used ever again by the ShinRa. The power died and went out. The Condorians cheered outside, celebrating the shut-off of the Reactor and soon, something roared and geared up, the power returned, by a different source other than the Mako.

"They just turned on the generator. We use oil, kind of dirty. We do not have the money to rebuild a new power system yet."

"Don't bother just yet. Keep defending the fortress and the birds, I believe in short future, things will change."

"Thank you. Come on, I'll get the Huge Materia for you." The leader took them out of the reactor and back into the fortress tower, leading them to a large box. He took a large blue rock and handed it to Vincent.

Outside the window, they all saw the Condor bird shift and stand up, revealing a very large egg, it was moving and cracking. "Look, its hatching! That's a rare sight!" They went to the window to watch.

Outside the fortress on the top of the Reactor, the large egg in golden color glowed, soon it shimmered in rainbow colors from the unseen light within and the surface cracked, seeping out illumining lights. The shell fell away as the entire egg cracked open, revealing a young golden colored chick of a Condor. The large mother bird went to care of the chick right away.

After the rare event, Vincent and Nanaki gave their thanks and farewells to the Condorians; they left the fortress, calling the Highwind to pick them up. It wasn't long until Cid brought the Highwind around and picked them up and they took off toward Costa Del Sol.

Yuffie had called, saying it would take her longer to get the Materia from the underwater Reactor near Junon Harbor because the place was swarming with Soldiers and under tight surveillance, it was already difficult enough to be hidden by General Donovan who had to keep the place under control at the same time.

The teenage girl was given a few more days' time and would be met at Costa Del Sol across the sea. The Highwind landed on the sandy beach and the rag-tag group went into town, shopping for supplies, rations and going around asking questions. Cid and Barret decided to hit the bar while Vincent and Yuffie did the shopping. Nanaki had found a nice cool shady spot and took naps, ignoring the people that gawked at him.

Cloud was still in the same state, Tifa still remained by 'his' side, watching vigil over 'him'. Often, when it came to taking care of Cloud, such as cleaning her up, and checking her vital signs, the doctor and the nurse kicked Tifa out of the room, demanding for her to go eat and rest a bit, they took the advantage of the time without the brunette to take care of Cloud, knowing the two Avalanchers didn't want the woman to know of Cloud's secret.

They had contacted the doctor in Mideel, to discuss about Cloud's condition, there was no other things they needed to do to help her. All they had to do was to wait until Cloud wakes up. Vincent suspected that her mind and emotions were under such state that they were shut down to heal more slowly than her Mako-assisted psychical.

The doctor suggested for Cloud to return to the clinic, Cid made quick flight to Mideel to check up on Cloud. Vincent went with Cait to help make sure Cloud settled in all right in the Doctor's private room at his clinic.

Vincent shook his head after he had changed Cloud's clothes and looked up to find Tifa returning from the Highwind, "No changes, but he seems to be simply sleeping."

Tifa took her usual seating, "Coma?"

"No, just normal sleep, self induced. Cloud needs to heal in mind and heart before he can go on."

"Makes sense."

"You have feelings for him?" Vincent asked, curious why Tifa would stick by Cloud.

Tifa shrugged, "I'm not sure. He was my friend growing up. He's the only one other from Nibelheim that I know. I do have feelings for him, crush, you can call that. But, after the Northern Crater, I am not sure what happened but it changed, I want to love him, but something inside me tells me that I cannot."

Vincent nodded, "You cannot. It's complicated."

Tifa looked up to the sniper, "Whatever it is, I am sure I will understand."

Vincent nodded, "Call us for any changes. We will be at Costa Del Sol until Yuffie returns to us. We will come back for you two then." He took Cloud's dirty laundry and left the room silently, leaving Tifa with Cloud.

Cait had intercepted Vincent in the hallway at the clinic, "Cloud all right?"

"Yes, for now. She hasn't awakened, yet. I have a feeling she will soon. How is Yuffie coming along?" He asked, knowing it was Zack; he had a small handheld remote for the Cat.

Zack chuckled as he held the remote in his hand, it looked like a game console, the screen showed the world though Cait's eyes while the small earphone attached to his ear gave him communication.

Yuffie bounced and grabbed the thin microphone from Zack's cheek and yelled, "Vinny, don't worry! I'm good here. You wouldn't believe the storeroom of Materia! We gotta loot this place soon."

Zack wrenched Yuffie away from him, chuckling, "Ball of energy, isn't she. Thanks, I'll keep in touch."

In Cloud's room, Tifa took Cloud's hand, holding, "It's no use. I don't understand a thing, Cloud… What should I do? What if you never recover for the rest of your life?" She whispered as she watched the blonde lay on the bed, helplessly, sleeping.

Tifa screamed slightly as she felt the floor shake and looked up to realize it was an earthquake. She gasped as Cloud grabbed her hand, she was awake, yet her eyes seemed dazed, slowly she whispered, "They… are…. Coming…"

Tifa stood up, leaning over Cloud, "What did you say, Cloud?"

Cloud groaned and closed her eyes, her face wrenching up as if something was tearing her apart inside painfully. The ground of the clinic tore apart as the green of the Lifestream gushed upward toward them. Tifa gasped as she held onto Cloud tightly. The air filled with the cries of the Planet, screaming torture in her ears. She looked up to find the place falling apart around her as the green of the Lifestream swallowing the clinic whole.

She closed her eyes as she held onto Cloud, feeling the hot liquid of the Mako surrounding her ankles, rising to her knees, burning her skin. It was so painful, so hot and cold all the same time.

Looking up, she found Barret and Cid in the doorway of the disintegrating clinic. They were yelling at her to come over, but she couldn't hear them over the cries, she couldn't get her legs to move though the thick stinging liquid. Shaking her head in reply, she held onto Cloud.

"Damn it! Tifa, come on! The whole ground's tearing apart!" Cid yelled at the woman, reaching out with his javelin.

"I can't!" She yelled back.

Barret grabbed the pilot back as the Mako gushed onto their boots, "Damn it. We have to get her and Cloud out! She's afraid!"

Over the cries of the Planet, the air filled with loud echoing roaring sound from above, Cid turned and ran out of the Clinic, what was left of it. He returned shortly after, "Damn! That's the Weapon! Of all the time, he had to show up!"

Barret cursed, "Damn, Tifa, you gotta move. We're going out to help the others. You can do it!"

Tifa stared at the two men, watching them struggle with the decision of what to do. She knew she had to stay, hold onto Cloud, but for what reason, she had no idea. Something was holding her down, making her frozen where she stood, now waist deep in the Mako. Cloud was in her arms, limp.

Tremor rose, causing the Mako to gush from the earth, swallowing Tifa and Cloud whole. She had no time to gasp for air but swallowed lungful of the green substance. Her lungs stung as if it was on fire and her vision went white with white heat.

The entire town of Mideel went under, quickly becoming a large lake of Mako with no trace of the town left. The people had retreated, and now stood around the edge, staring at where once their home was. A few didn't make it; Tifa and Cloud were those who didn't make it.

"What happened?" Nanaki asked as he came around.

Cid let out a long blue streak, ending with a loud explosive, "Dammnit! We had to get out! The steam will blow! Come on!"

True to Cid's word and prediction, the steam of the Lifestream was hissing and everyone made mad dash toward the safety of the jungle and the Mako went up with loud explosion, spewing the green liquid all around.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

It was the last thing for Tifa to expect, to wake up. She knew, being swallowed by the Mako, she had died. She groaned as she looked around, "What's going on? Where am I? What's happening?" She stood up in the darkness and found herself in familiar situation. Lowering her head, "I'm in a dream?" She sighed, wondering if she was stuck in this place for good now.

Soft whispering surrounded her, she whipped her head to find the voice then realized, it was thousands of voices, she turned a full circle in the darkness, finding nothing but hearing the soft whispering.

"Wait a minute!" She shouted as she finally made senses of the voices. They were asking if she was responsible for the Meteor. "I don't know anything about that! No! It's not me! I'd never do anything like that!" She gasped as the voices grew louder.

"No, stop it! Stay back!" She shook her head violently and then grabbed her ears, "No! Somebody, help! Please!" She called out as the voices cowered onto her.

The voices finally stopped and everything went deathly still. The darkness started to lift; she looked up, finding herself in a rocky area, a tall rock in the center while there was some kind of greenish wall surrounding the area. There were windows on the wall. She glanced around, finding the windows had familiar pictures in each one of them.

She gasped as she found Cloud lying in the middle on the top of the rock, motionless. She looked up and felt her heart in her throat as several ghostly Clouds floating above her; they were reclining in the air, sitting or lying, watching her.

"Cloud! What is it, Cloud? What is this?" She demanded as she stepped toward the nearest ghost Cloud. The blonde didn't reply but gazed at her.

Tifa turned to take in the area a bit more, trying to find a clue or some; an answer. "Cloud? Is this inside your dream? Or it is your sub-coconsciousness?" She looked down to the ground she stood on, "You're searching, aren't you, Cloud?"

The first ghost shook 'his' head. "Then, what is this? What do I have to do with all of this?" Tifa asked, almost desperately.

The ghost descended toward Tifa, "No. You wanted the answers, this is the answer. Take a look around. I cannot reveal everything, but you must come to face with my past to accept the truth about me."

Tifa looked around and recognized a window showing Nibelheim, "Nibelheim. That's where it started."

The ghostly Cloud nodded. "Go and look, it's only memories, but it will lead you to some understanding. We have all the time in the world, or even, the universe. Time doesn't exist here."

Tifa gasped as she turned back to Cloud, finding an odd smirk on 'his' lips. "What do you mean?"

"Just look, you will find only truth here, no false illusion or lies."

Tifa went up to the window; it widened enough for her to pass through.

They found themselves at the entrance of Nibelheim, when the ShinRa Elites had first arrived in town. Sephiroth and the others were standing before the town, talking softly to each other. Tifa found only four of them in front of the truck.

"This is our Nibelheim, before it all happened…" Tifa whispered as she watched Sephiroth turn to the female Soldier. She watched them converse to each other. She stepped closer, circling the two, watching their expression as they talked. Sorano looked at ease in Sephiroth's presence and he even had soft smile and expression of sadness afterward.

"So, this is Sephiroth. That's when I saw the real Sephiroth for the first time." Tifa watched the group enter the town. "But to tell you the truth, I thought he was very cold. Now I get to see it up close, he truly loved Sorano, didn't he?"

Cloud gave a soft smile. "He never was cold. He was just closed off. That is him, he was kind and friendly if you get to know him, and he was very insecure. Yeah, he loved Sorano very much."

Tifa turned to Cloud, "When Sorano came into town, and no one wanted her there. I remember the whispering gossip going around. Everyone was afraid of her."

Cloud closed her eyes and nodded, "Yes. Because she looked like what they feared."

"The Woman of Nibel Mountain. They're afraid of her because they thought she would come and destroy the town. She didn't, did she?"

Cloud shook her head, "No. The pseudo-Sephiroth did. In the truth, Sorano was a Valkyrie."

"I know, so was Sephiroth."

"Yes, both of them, the last ones on the Planet. They found each other and they were meant for each other."

"How romantic… but she died."

"No."

"What?"

Cloud chuckled, "That's another story for another time. Come, you wanted to see what was in the reactor, right?"

Tifa nodded. "I remember that was when I felt something foreboding then. Something did happen, didn't it?"

Cloud turned and Tifa followed, they stepped out of the window and went to the next one, entering the window with the image of the Nibel Reactor.

"Something did happen. In the Reactor, we found something. There were monsters in there." They stood as the area swirled and they found themselves inside the reactor, the alcove chamber before the door of Jenova.

Tifa gave a small gasp, "I remember this… where I supposedly got killed."

"Yes, but look…" Cloud gestured to Sorano and Sephiroth as they entered the chamber. They watched them converse in silence, Sephiroth had checked the door and they checked the alcove, they looked distressed. Then they went to fix the Reactor, shutting off the valves to the Alcove.

Cloud waved her hand and they froze in the scene. Tifa turned to Cloud and asked, "What's happening, why did they looked upset?"

"I didn't think of it until when I remembered… Look inside the alcove, this one." She pointed to the one Sorano had peered into.

Tifa went to the alcove and peered inside and gasped, "Oh my gods! It's terrible!"

Cloud bobbed her head slowly, "That's what Hojo had been trying to do. Induce Mako into human body, making them into Super Soldiers. But all of them failed, all but one." She turned and pointed to the far and strange alcove that was different from the others. "This one held the body an experiment, a clone of a Soldier. Only clones can withstand the Mako, not the real bodies." She went over to the strange alcove and held her hand to the surface, "Hojo discovered something. Human bodies can withstand distilled Mako, in just enough amounts. Too much will kill them, too little will not work. That's what happened to many Soldiers; they just had enough Mako to be strong, but not strong like Sephiroth."

"He's different, he's a Valkyrie…" Tifa looked up to Cloud.

"Yes. His body was different. Valkyries are the true race to the Planet, with stronger bond with Gaia, they can withstand raw Mako. So, Hojo decided to clone him, in his bizarre experiment, the clone had a better tolerance of Mako because they were fused with Jenova cells and using Mako instead of blood. Take a look." She gestured to the window.

Tifa moved to the said alcove and looked inside the window. She gasped softly as she stared right into the serene face of Sephiroth on the other side of the glass. "Oh my." She nearly screamed as the eyes opened, glowing brilliant green.

Cloud shook her head, "That's right. Here's the real Sephiroth," She pointed to the Sephiroth with Sorano at the base of the stairs. "And, this is pseudo-Sephiroth, the one we're after."

Tifa stood there, finger to her face as she complemented the facts, "You said the clones can withstand raw Mako, not the real bodies. Are you a clone?"

Cloud shook her head, "No, for a while, I was rather confused to who I was."

Tifa's eyes went wide, "So, that could only mean one thing… you're a Valkyrie, but it doesn't make any sense."

Cloud gave a strange smile, "it will in time." She watched Tifa glance over to Sephiroth and Sorano, staring for a long time before she finally turned back to her.

"So, in the Northern Crater, the real Sephiroth was in the Mako stone?"

"Yes."

"The whole time, we didn't know until the Temple of Ancient… oh, I'm so sorry!" Tifa said as she fell to her knees.

"No, Tifa. You have every right to be angry with Sephiroth, but please, not the real one. I am trying to save him."

Tifa looked up at the ex-Soldier, "Why?"

"Come with me…"

Tifa stood up and followed the blonde until the scene changed to the ShinRa Academy. "This is the Academy, where I went after I left Nibelheim." Cloud explained as they crossed the Academy toward the gymnasium and entered.

Tifa drew the scene in as she followed the blonde, in the gym, she found herself in a massive room with padded floor and several paired up people practicing kendo and in the far side where three people stood with swords in their hands. They were Zack, Cloud and Sephiroth in their younger days.

"Oh!"

"That's right. We were all best buddies. I was the youngest of the three, and in academic, I was ahead so I had lots of time to do anything, as much I wanted, and Sephiroth and Zack decided to train me so I could get into Elites. Which I did, within a year, but for a very short time until Nibelheim."

"I understand now. I shouldn't judge you for the people who you hang out with." Tifa turned away and gazed around the gym, recognizing other people, "There's the Turks… You knew them?"

Cloud turned and smiled, "Yes, Reno was my roommate. A wild one." She laughed, "He always was around Rude and Elena before they met Tseng and Rufus. Those three were best friends like Sephiroth, Zack and I. Zack and I usually hang out with them from time to time."

Tifa gave a soft smile, "So, they're not all bad."

Cloud shrugged her shoulders, "ShinRa corrupted everything after a while. It was peaceful and simple before, like this. I miss this."

Tifa turned back to Cloud, "What about my question? What does all this have to do with me?"

Holding a finger, Cloud said, "Just in a moment. You need to know this; you need to know who I am. This is what I have shown you. Come on." She turned away and walked ahead as the scene around her changed again back to where they had started, in the rocky area. "Now, pick another window."

Tifa moved to another window, a scene of the Nibelheim town center. "That starry night where you made the promise…" Tifa whispered as she recognized the scene. Cloud joined her side, watching the scene in the window. "What about that promise you made before you left to Academy?"

They watched their younger selves talk together on the top of the old well. The scene was silent, but they remembered what they talked about, about Cloud going to the Academy, meeting Sephiroth and soon, the promises.

Cloud crossed her arms on her chest, "That was the only time we were truly friends. I wanted to tell you something, but I never got the chance."

"What was it you wanted to tell me?"

"Not yet. The time was right then, but not now. This is something you have to find out on your own, in terms of accepting who I am. You still wanted to know who I am. Back then, you asked me to be your hero, to save you whenever you were in trouble. To be honest, I didn't want to make that promise. It sounds so wrong to me; I wasn't the one you should ask. You should have asked someone else, not me. I never was the right person; I would never be the one for you."

Tifa looked about to cry, "But…"

"No, Tifa. I saved you that night in Nibelheim Reactor and that debt was paid. No, I never loved Aeris in that way. I never love you that way. You must understand, I will never and it is impossible. I can only be your friend, but only if you will let me."

Tifa's eyes shimmered with unshed tears, "But, why?"

Cloud sighed, "Aeris understood before she died and accepted. She even knew why. I don't want to tell you why, not just yet. It is my life that is at the sake for that 'why' part."

Tifa bit her bottom lips and turned to the scene of the starry night, "If it is so important for you to not tell me, then don't. Does anyone else other than Aeris know?"

"Few." Cloud laughed softly, "Zack and Sephiroth found out by accident. That was a long time ago. No one in Nibelheim knew, but my mother and that doctor that died few days after my birth. Nanaki knew from the start when I first met him, it's unavoidable. I suspect Vincent knows now. You see, they all found out on their own, I never told them, they came to term and accepted the truth, without condemning me for who I am."

Tifa frowned, "Oh, why can't you tell me?"

"I'm not sure if you would accept me if you knew, after all, you're from Nibelheim, it is in your nature to condemn me."

Confused, Tifa decided to not ask any more questions. She followed Cloud to another window and entered the scene; they watched a young teenager Cloud run around them in the town of Nibelheim.

The young Cloud ran up the stony street toward 'his' house and Tifa's. Soon, they found themselves in Tifa's old room. The younger Tifa was in her bed, wounded and bandaged up. Several teenage boys stood around her. One was her brother and another was a cousin. The young Cloud stood in the farthest corner of the room near the door, darkened by the shadow. Tifa's father entered the room, angry look on his face.

"I was hurt. I fell off the path in the mountain." Tifa said as she watched the scene.

"Yes, but everyone blamed me for the accident. I only followed you up the mountain because I wanted to see where you were going. It was dangerous path you took. We barely knew each other then."

Tifa tilted her head down in remorse, "You're right. I ignored you through our childhood. I was always with my brothers and his friends. You didn't trust me, like you don't trust anyone else."

"Why did you ignore me?" Cloud asked, her voice had hint of harshness in it.

Tifa stared at the ghostly Cloud; she could tell there was anger on 'his' face. "I… I ignored you because of what the others said about you. They called you freak. They were afraid of you. You were always so smart, fast and small. You weren't normal. Your eyes glowed in the night. You were always disappearing in the mountain all the times, you would always come back in one pieces. No one could go into the mountain without getting hurt or killed."

Cloud nodded, "That's right. They bullied me, abused me. Your friends, they never wanted me to be your friend. I didn't know they went to Academy until I got there. They made my life hard there, but thanks to Zack, Reno and Sephiroth, they helped me to become stronger."

Cloud turned and the scene changed to the dark alley between the Academy and the ShinRa headquarter. Tifa followed Cloud to the horrendous scene where five men were beating up a smaller person. Tifa gasped as she recognized Cloud being beaten up, she froze as a shrill scream echoed through the alley.

The scene froze as Cloud waved her hand, "That night, about a year and half before the Nibelheim, I almost died. Recognize them?"

Tifa went closer to the five men, peering into their face, the alley was so dark, and it was almost hard to see their face. She gasped as she looked closer, "My brother, and my cousin… their friends!"

"That's right, they were called the Nibelheim Gang at the Academy, and their favorite target was me. If it weren't for Sephiroth looking for me, I would not be alive today." She turned and the scene replayed, Sephiroth came rushing into the alley, his Masamune glinted in the light. The five thugs looked up, dropping Cloud to the ground and they dashed out of the alley.

Tifa watched as Sephiroth came up to Cloud, picking 'him' up. She saw the emotion across his face, concern and anger. Sephiroth soon dashed out of the alley with Cloud in his arms.

"That was when Sephiroth and I became friends. Zack had been trying to introduce us together for three years, finally a month before this, we met. After this, Sephiroth and Zack protected me, trained me harder. The Gang, they were moved to Junon Harbor under his order because he had no real evidence to throw them out of ShinRa."

The scene faded once again and they were in the middle with the windows around them. Tifa nodded, turning to Cloud, "The more you show me, the more I get to know you. I understand that you want to do this mission, to save Sephiroth, because he's your friend. You'd go through anything for your friends. They're the only ones you trust, Zack and Sephiroth, aren't they?"

Nodding her head, Cloud turned away, studying the other scenes in the different windows, "That's part of it. It's also because of my life that I am thrown into this whole mess. I want to end Jenova for all, for Sephiroth, for Zack, for Aeris and for the Planet. The reasons grow more and more as I get closer."

"But, my question is not answered yet." Tifa pointed out.

Cloud smiled and turned back to the brunette, "Oh, yeah. You never really needed me. You could do this on your own if I never made it or even existed. You have your own reasons to save the Planet. Barret has his own, Cid, Vincent, Reeve, Zack, Yuffie and even Nanaki. All of us have our own reasons to help and save the Planet. All of us combined, together, we all can do it. Alone and divided, we can't. Even the ShinRa want to destroy Sephiroth and the Meteor, but we cannot let them. We cannot let the ShinRa get the wrong Sephiroth. We have to get there first and get the right one. We have to do these ourselves.

But, you all never really needed me, but you all appointed me the leader. A very risky thing to do, knowing my past and my connection with Sephiroth. But, it was fate that I have to save the Planet; you all were dragged along in this with me."

Tifa scowled, "No! We do need you! If we never did, we would have gotten the wrong Sephiroth!"

Cloud smiled, "You're right, but still. If you guys had gotten the wrong Sephiroth, I would still die with the right one. We are connected too deeply, he dies, and I die, either way, we are together forever."

Tifa gasped at the information, "Oh Cloud!"

The blonde shook her head, "No. Don't give me that pity. It's a gift that we have this connection." Then, she smiled again, the odd smile that threw Tifa out of loop.

Tifa clutched her hands together as she gazed at Cloud. "Still, there's one thing I do not know about you. I do not understand why it was me that you have to keep a secret from."

Cloud looked up to the other ghostly Clouds, they were coming in closer. "My fate lies in any Nibelheim people; they fear me for a reason. If they knew, they would put me to death for a simple fear. My death will throw the predestinated plan that the Cosmo set for me and Sephiroth."

Tifa frowned, "You're saying, if I knew your secret, to the truth of which you are, I would want to kill you?"

"Maybe, maybe not. It's changing now. When you finally know, you will not want to kill me anymore. But I am not sure of now. Are you afraid of Valkyries?"

"I don't know anymore. Sephiroth was one, I am not afraid of him, the real one. Sorano, you said she was one…" Tifa sighed, watching the several ghostly figures of Clouds approaching the one she was talking to, their features started to shift. One turned into a young boy that she knew from Nibelheim. Another became the teenage one. The third became an Elite Soldier in full regalia and a sword in 'his' hand. "Sorano was a Valkyrie, she didn't destroy the town, but a clone of a Valkyrie did. Our fears are laid in the wrong person. Now she's not here anymore. So, what reasons should I be afraid of?"

Cloud smiled, "Then, you're ready."

The fourth ghost shifted and Tifa gasped as she watched the image of Sorano merge into Cloud. The fifth and the last one stood apart from Cloud, they both stared back at her. Tifa knew she had visited Cloud's past, and each ghost represented different time of Cloud's life. Sorano was part of Cloud's life and she gasped as the fifth one shimmered and shifted into a beautiful goddess-like woman, with long golden hair and white gown. Identifying her as a Valkyrie, she turned to Cloud, "Who is she?"

Cloud smiled, "Sorano. I am Cloud Sorano. She is of the future that we haven't met yet." The fifth ghost merged in with Cloud, shifting and finally Cloud stood before Tifa, nearly solid, longer hair that fell to her shoulders, curvaceous body showing female gender, the solider uniform was bare of any armors, only she wore the crewneck top and the pants, yet she was beautiful standing before Tifa.

Tifa gasped, "You… you're…"

Cloud nodded, "The one and only. Sephiroth and I are connected because we are soul-mates. The Planet's fate is in our hands, it is only up to us to truly save the Planet."

Tifa stared as the surrounding area faded, leaving only her and Cloud. Cloud rose from where she stood and descended into the lying body of Cloud, fading away along with everything else. Blackness shrouded them at last. Tifa closed her eyes and she felt her body becoming light and she was gone from the Lifestream.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedback, review, please?_


	33. S3:7: To Fight For

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Seven: To Fight For

_When thou goest out to battle against thine enemies, and seest horses, and chariots, and a people more than thou, be not afraid of them: for the LORD thy God is with thee, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt._

_And it shall be, when ye are come nigh unto the battle, that the priest shall approach and speak unto the people,_

_And shall say unto them, Hear, O Israel, ye approach this day unto battle against your enemies: let not your hearts faint, fear not, and do not tremble, neither be ye terrified because of them;_

_For the LORD your God is he that goeth with you, to fight for you against your enemies, to save you._

Deuteronomy 20:1-4, the Holy Bible

The destroyed Mideel lay under the large lake of Mako. Avalanche had walked around the edge of the lake, searching out for survivors and helping them out. There were few, and thankfully not too badly hurt. Barret pulled away a large board and found Tifa and Cloud lying on the ground, dazed and soaking in Mako, yet they appeared unharmed and unwounded. He was surprised to find Tifa waking up, "Yo! You awright? Tifa?" He asked as he helped the woman to sit up.

Tifa gasped as she took intake of fresh air and looked around, "Barret…"

She smiled as he knelt beside her, taking her into his bear hug. "You're all right… I…" He choked as he held onto her.

Tifa smiled softly at him and looked over to where Cid and Vincent had helped Cloud to stand up. She stood with help from Barret and turned to Cloud.

"Cloud?" She asked as she watched the blonde groggily take in the surrounding.

"What happened?" Barret asked.

Tifa turned to him, "I, when I was in the Lifestream, I saw the real Cloud and I understand now." She turned to the blond fighter who was staring back at her. She gave a small nod.

Barret held Tifa with his good arm, "Don't worry about him. He's a tough one."

Tifa laughed, "Yeah, he is." She frowned, finding it was odd to consider Cloud as a male when she knew the truth.

The black man tugged Tifa away, helping her to get away from the wreckage and the Mako Lake, "I can't win against you. You're some kinda lady."

Tifa looked up at the man and noticed him blushing. Realization hit her as she recalled what she and Cloud had been talking about; she had found her hero in an unexpected source and blushed herself, "Are you saying what I think you're saying?"

The man looked away, his dark cheeks reddening. She giggled and leaned her head onto his shoulder. She glanced to the side and saw Cloud giving her a thumb up and a wink, hanging onto Vincent for support.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

After helping the people of Mideel evacuates from the wrecked town and move to a new location on the Highwind, Avalanche were almost ready to go on their next mission, however, Tifa had suggested Cloud to reconcile with everyone else, to keep their trust and faith in her.

The board room was the only room on the entire airship that was furnished to suit the ShinRa's preference with a long table surrounded with plush velvet red chairs that were bolted to the floor and the banners of ShinRa decorated the walls. Cid had removed the banners that had ShinRa logo on it that stood behind the chair at the head of the table.

Cloud stood at the head of the table, facing everyone who all else sat around the table, awaiting 'his' speech. She leaned forward, her hands on the table, "Everyone, I'm sorry. I don't know what to say…" She started as she looked around the table, meeting each faces.

Nanaki shook his head, "Don't say anything, Cloud. All you've been doing is apologizing… there is nothing to be sorry for."

Cloud gave him a small grateful smile, "No, I am really sorry for dragging you all in this mess, even if it wasn't my fault by not letting you on what is my goal and motive through the mission. You all know I am going after Sephiroth, so you are too. But each one of us has different reasons and we should know why we all are doing this." She then sat down in the chair behind her.

Vincent leaned against the table, his metal arm clacking on the wood, "That is true. We cannot go on without sharing our reasons; we would not be able to work together without knowing such. Who will start?"

Cloud raised her hand, "I will. It's better that way. My reason is much deeper, it ties with the Planet. For that reason, I do not wish to follow through but in my heart, it is a personal thing, I am here to avenge Sephiroth." Gasp and murmurs rose around the table, Tifa remained silent and noticed Nanaki and Vincent were also silent. She knew that they also knew.

"What the hell you talkin' 'bout?" Barret's booming voice silenced everyone else.

Cloud smiled softly at the man, "I know that is unexpected but it is true."

Barret turned to Tifa to gauze her reaction and was surprised to find her calm as if she knew what Cloud was talking about. "Tifa?"

Tifa shook her head, "I cannot say, that is Cloud's to tell, not mine."

Barret turned back to Cloud, "You gonna tell us?"

Cloud nodded, "You all saw in the Temple of the Ancient that there were two Sephiroths. One is the real one and the other is the cloned version. We've been chasing the cloned version. The real one would never want to hurt the Planet even if he has the power to do so. He's my friend, we're connected and if he dies, I die, vice versa."

Yuffie leaned forward, splaying her hands on the table, "You said that the Planet is making you do this, why?"

Cloud shrugged, "To stop the fake Sephiroth and Jenova. The Planet had long believed that I am the one to do it. Anyone else?"

Tifa nodded, "Maybe you should explain how the whole mess started, after all, it started with you, Zack and Sephiroth in Nibelheim."

Cloud gave a nod, "I suppose so. You all know the story of what happened in Nibelheim and there are more to it. From what I understand, Zack told you all what happened to me in the three years between the fire and my arrival in Midgar. But, no one really knows what happened to Sephiroth. He told me before our links were severed; he gave me his memory so I'd understand. You all should know too.

After we came back from the first trip to the reactor, Sephiroth took off alone to think. I stayed at the inn and Zack had no idea what was going on until I told him what we saw in the Reactor. There were human beings turned into monsters due to Hojo's experiment.

The next morning, Sephiroth took off to the ShinRa Mansion and went into the basement library, he felt there was more information he could find, and there was a lot of them in the basement. Hojo left a lot of notes and papers there, however, it was messed up, Hojo did not know the truth about the Valkyries and Jenova, he believed Jenova was the Cetera and Jenova's intent was to rule the planet. Hojo was off on the subject.

Anyway, Zack and I found Sephiroth in the basement but Sephiroth kicked us out, demanding for us to leave him alone. We left him alone and stayed in the Mansion, waiting for him to come to his sense and come around.

In Sephiroth's memory, after I left the first time. Dark Sephiroth showed up, he came into the library, surprising Sephiroth. They got into some fight and Sephiroth lost, the Dark Sephiroth was strong and he had advantage over Sephiroth. Dark Sephiroth dragged him away to the Reactor in the mountain, demanding him to jump into the Lifestream where Jenova Chamber was." Cloud paused, she noticed everyone's surprise as she told them Sephiroth's tale. She had the same reaction when she learned of it. She drank the water from the glass that was set on the table and continued, "Sephiroth fought with Dark Sephiroth in the chamber, they both got wounded. They were equal match however Dark Sephiroth had the upper hand; he had the sword, Masamune. He slashed Sephiroth across the chest, causing him to fall backward, into the Lifestream." She closed her eyes, recalling the personal memory where Sephiroth had the last thought of her, thinking of how much he had loved her. She smiled softly at the memory and a tear fell from her eyes.

"I'm sorry." She wiped her face and looked up, "Dark Sephiroth had returned to the office in the Mansion to do more research. He had only been alive for a day and whatever Hojo told him wasn't enough for him to believe and act upon. Zack had checked on him and thought he had seemed different. I came down to check on Sephiroth. I talked with him and found that he had no knowledge of the Valkyries and his intention was different, I was confused at first. Then I suspected it wasn't him, rather he was possessed by something. He talked about his mother, Jenova, the desire to rule the planet." She waved her hand as she shook her head as if the whole thing was absurd. "He knocked me aside and I blacked out." She glanced around, seeing the Avalanche members' faces, they had awe and shock. "When I came to, Nibelheim was on fire. Zack and I found Zangan and learned that Tifa went after Sephiroth. I stayed behind to help Zangan to get out of town. He waited until later, I guess, since he did actually get you out Tifa. Anyway, I went up to the reactor, I found Tifa there, wounded, and Zack too. Zack had fought Sephiroth and was beaten. Zack told me to kill him because he wasn't Sephiroth." Cloud sighed, recalling the face of Sephiroth when she had wounded him. "He didn't know who I was then, now he does and he wants me to be part of his plan." She turned her head to the ceiling of the room and jerked her thumb, "That's why the meteor has not crashed the planet. He is waiting for me to come to the North Crater to join him."

Nanaki huffed as he shifted in the chair he sat in, it seemed difficult for a wolf to sit in a human chair but he had succeeded. "Goodness… now it is all cleared up. So, you want to avenge him for the wrongs of the cloned one?"

Cloud turned to the wolf, "Yes. I want to avenge him, save him if it is possible. For Nibelheim, for my past, and for the future that I could have. For the Planet, because this Calamity of the Skies was the one who started this whole chain of events leading up to now. She is using everything she can to hurt the Planet. Even using me."

Barret thumped his hand on the table softly, his curiosity spiked, "You?"

"Yeah. She's trying to control me, make me switch sides to help Dark Sephiroth."

Vincent gave a pensive stare, "You hear the Planet, and hear Sephiroth and Zack's thoughts and feelings, right?" He asked, making everyone jump, they had not expected for him to speak since he was always so quiet and his presence was usually disconcerting to the others.

Zack replied quickly before Cloud could, "Yes, he can. Three of us can feel, hear and talk to each other when we can. But between Cloud and Sephiroth, there are stronger bond. I'm just a third wheel in this. There is one other I have a bond with but it is severed a long time ago. But that's not the point, right now; we cannot feel or hear Sephiroth because Jenova has him in her grip. Every time we try to reach him, we would feel Jenova and it is quiet painful." Cloud looked pale, looking away.

"Damn. Profound, I'd say…" Barret mumbled.

"That's my reason, what is yours?" Cloud turned back, firing the question toward Barret.

The black man stuttered, "Uh… what…. Oh, right," He rubbed his head and shrugged. "Well, I've always been fightin' ShinRa for hurtin' da Planet with their Reactors…. I guess, after Cosmo Canyon, I wanna help the Planet, make it all better so Marlene can have a better future."

Cloud gave him a smile, "That's a real good one, to help the children to have a better future. I like that."

Cid snorted, "Damn right. Good reason for a child to have a better future. I couldn't do better for my Cody." He sniffed at the name and steeled his nerves again. "Now I have another chance…" He turned to the black cat and smiled, "Yuffie's my second chance. Through her, I see Cody's spirit and they both should have a good future, just like Marlene. Also I wanna see ShinRa's asses kicked, damn them!"

Yuffie's voice filtered though Cait, "Thanks Ciddy-papa!" Everyone around the table stifled their amusement as Cid reddened. "That's right, I though I was going after Sephiroth at first but now; I don't know. He seems to be a good guy. It was him that destroyed Wutai's future but now I think about it more and more, maybe it was ShinRa at fault. It's going have to come down to it after everything, if we are all still alive. I want the best for Wutai; my father, he has not been so good since the war. Hey Cloud…" The cat turned to the blonde, "What should I do about that? The War?"

Cloud shook her head, "I do not know. It is between you and Sephiroth, and between Sephiroth and Wutai. All I know is that he regretted the whole thing, it changed him too. He hated ShinRa for the longest time, after the war. He wasn't the only one within ShinRa to hate the corrupt government, there are many who wanted to leave ShinRa but couldn't. Once you're in ShinRa, you are in it for life; you can't leave without being dismissed by them, which usually was through death. Yuffie, if you want to know a little bit more about Sephiroth and the War, ask Zack, he knows more than I do."

Then there were sounds of yelling from the cat, "Zack! You never told me you were in the War too!"

"Hey! Hey! Back off girl! I wasn't! Am I that old?"

"Damn you! Still, you helped and all that!" Then there was sound of struggles.

Cloud laughed softly, "Don't worry about Yuffie. Zack will handle her just fine without harming a hair on her head."

Cid glowered at the cat, worried and angry at the same time. Feeling helpless as he was unable to defend Yuffie and at the same time wanting to put her in her place.

Nanaki placed a paw on the table, "I think it is my turn." He waited until the cat quieted down and continued, "It had been the responsibility of my family to protect Cosmo Canyon, but with the crisis to the whole Planet, I have been bestowed with a responsibility to help and protect the Planet and I will see to it that the Planet will get the chance to heal fully."

Vincent shifted his gaze from the wolf to Cloud, "When you all first found me and opened my coffin I had no will to live. Now I do, I want to see this through too; I want to have my revenge on Hojo, he was also behind all of this as well. I suspect he was working with Jenova on a deeper level. Also, I need to find the own truth to my past as well. Yes, I also have a blurry past." He looked to his golden arm, resting on the tabletop, the hand clenched together with a clack. "Lucrecia, I shall avenge her as well and her child."

Their blue and red eyes met, Cloud softly replied, "You will get your chance to find the truth. I got mine and I will help you to find yours."

"Thank you."

Cloud turned to the others, "That leaves Tifa and Reeve."

Tifa smiled in return to the blonde, "My reason was similar to Barret's at the beginning, but now, after confronting Cloud's past with my own, knowing his insight on the whole thing, my past and my future have been destroyed by Dark Sephiroth the moment Nibelheim burned. I want to stop the Planet's crisis so the innocent people can live their future in peace, as they deserve."

Barret laid his hand on her arm, "Good one, Teef."

Reeve's voice came through the cat, "Well. I was supposed to be sent as a spy for the ShinRa upon you all. The job ended right when the former President died. Instead of stopping, I created Cait Sith for Zack to keep an eye on Cloud and help along with you all. My perspective has changed drastically, but I've never truly agreed with ShinRa in the first place anyway. I was bound here, but I have hopes that it will change someday soon."

Cloud glared at the cat, knowing well that Zack was also listening in, "Zack!"

Zack's voice came on with hint of embarrassment, "Sorry! I just wanted to make sure you are doing all right."

Cloud sighed as she rolled her eyes, "Sure, sure, whatever."

The others laughed and silence soon filled the air with heaviness. Each one of them considered the other's intention in the mission and Cloud's past for a long while. The silence was broken as Barret stood up, "What's left to do?" He asked.

Cid rose from his chair as well, banging the end of his javelin, "Zack and Yuffie need to finish their mission."

Cait Sith bounced, "Yes, yes. There is another one. At Rocket Town, we all should meet at Rocket Town after we pick up Yuffie from Costa Del Sol."

Cloud clapped her hands together, "Then let's mosey!"

Cid groaned at her, "Damn it! That sounds wimpy!" He was taken aback when Cloud stuck her tongue at him. His lips curled at this, "Now, that looks childish."

Cloud shook her head and gave him a raspberry before leaving the room, causing him to roar in laugher.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack clicked the small control off and pocketed it, knowing full well Reeve would take care of Cait Sith. He turned to Yuffie who was tired up in the chair, glowering at him. He smirked at her good naturedly and sat in the next chair. "Well, are you going to calm down or not?"

The girl strained and struggled against her bond, muffling though the gag in her mouth. Zack laughed and pulled the gag out and winced as Yuffie yelled at him, her high pitch voice smarting his ear drums. "Damn you! I'll have Cid rip you apart for doing this to me!"

"Whoa, whoa… shut up girl!" Zack snapped and Yuffie went still, staring at the man. "Look here, the war was in the past. I'm sorry that had to happen! Let me tell you the truth, I swear on my life, on my mother's grave, on Cloud's mother's grave as well! Damn it! Stop it and listen to me!"

Yuffie stopped making face and rolled her eyes, returning her attention back to Zack. "So what? You're one of them, them brainless Soldiers, pumped on Mako."

Zack closed his eyes, his hand itching to slap the girl silly but he knew he can't do that, it would only prove her point further. In a quiet, dangerous voice he whispered, "Damn it girl! Listen." He opened his eyes to find Yuffie staring at him, pale. He knew that the girl had been pushing the boundaries of his tolerance and she knew he was dangerous when pushed beyond the line. "I never liked what happened with the Wutai War, or as it was called, the Great War. It was one of the biggest downfalls of ShinRa. The former President ShinRa figured he could take Wutai, meaning he would have more power and nearly full control of the Planet. Yes, we won but we didn't get Wutai, which was good. Wutai was in ruins after the war, I'm sorry for that, but that, I can't say for the ShinRa, you have to put the blame on Roscoe ShinRa, he was the one who corrupted the government, he was the one you would call a tyrant."

Yuffie stared at the man, studying his profile as he blamed the former president and the rest of ShinRa. She sighed; fully realizing that he was every one bit a victim as her. Remembering his story of his time in the basement of the Mansion, how Hojo had treated him and Cloud, all of that, it was horrible; she wondered whom else Hojo had done that to as well.

"Yuffie," Zack sighed as he saw her look away, "Sephiroth, being my best friend, he told me what happened and he didn't like it. He was very young; he was eleven or twelve at the time. The war made him grow up, mentally, emotionally and physically too. He told me that he wished to resign from the army, but he couldn't. After the war, he was named the General. There was a plan between three of us, Cloud, Sephiroth and me. We were to go to Nibelheim, do our duty, come back to Midgar, go to ShinRa and tell them something about Cloud. If it all failed, he was going to hand in a resignation notice. It was a long shot and he knew that."

Yuffie looked up, "How can he hand in a resignation notice if he can't get out at all? Didn't you say that there was no way out but death?"

"That's right; he had a backup plan to that. We were to wait until the next mission, and then, fake our deaths and run off somewhere far away to live our life the way we deserved."

Yuffie sighed, "How did he come to Academy where he met Cloud then? If he was a General, it's unusual for him to be at the Academy."

"You're right, few years prior to Cloud joining the Academy, he confronted the President demanding to let him retire, and there was a nasty fight about it. The president cut him a deal, giving him ten-year break, to work with the Academy as a dean, to overlook the new recruits and train them, also build up the Elite. Work was better, easier and he had a good time, it was better for him. Now, you're goin' to be quiet?"

Yuffie gave a nod as she waited for Zack to remove the rest of the bond and stood up after that, rubbing her wrists. She looked up with an odd look on her face, "Fuck that!" She screamed and punched him right in the nose.

Zack stumbled backward after the surprising punch, "Oww! Damn it! Why did you do that?" He grabbed his nose and found it was bleeding slightly. The teenager gave a shrug, rubbing her fist, "At least I feel better now. Now, tell me more about Cloud when he first joined Academy?"

Zack glared at the girl and cleaned his nose away of blood. "All right, geez. At least I can heal faster. I think it was when Cloud turned fifteen when he first joined, not much older than you are."

The girl's eyes widened, "Ooh, really, how long ago was that?"

The man looked up to the ceiling, watching the fan above move at slow pace, "I can't really remember. He was my roommate through the years at the Academy. Boy, he was a quiet one, shy also. But, damn smart, ahead than anyone else by few years. I would say it has been nearly eight years ago since I first met him. It wasn't until couple of years later Sephiroth met him. I had been trying to get the two to meet for a while before that though."

Yuffie smiled at the story and counted her fingers, "So, that mean, Cloud's twenty-one years old… Now I know, I can tease him."

Zack chuckled at the girl's antics. "Yes. Not much older anyway. It seems such a long time ago. Well, let's go and see about that Materia."

At the mention of the object, she jumped from the chair, full of energy, raring to go, "Great! Where are they keeping that rock?"

He laughed and led her out of the room they were staying in, "As long you don't pull any more stunts. Dress in that cadet uniform and we can go and see where they are storing it. Reeve has told me they're going to transport it away from the Underwater Reactor to somewhere. That means they're keeping it in the submarine."

Yuffie looked up from grabbing the uniform she had been given, "Really, it is like the Highwind?"

"Not really. You get airsick?"

"And seasick."

"Ah, motion sickness. I got something for that. Come on!" He watched Yuffie tug the last of the pants over her legs, covering her shorts.

"You got something like that pills Cloud had before?"

Zack laughed at the girl who had transformed into a young cadet. He slapped the hat onto her head and they both left his office.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedback, review, please?_


	34. S3:8: To or Not To

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Eight: To or Not To

_Teach me to do your will, for you are my God; may your good Spirit lead me on level ground._

Psalm 143:10, the Holy Bible

The black feline hopped toward Vincent, wary of the tall sniper standing by the Highwind deck window. "Vincent."

The sniper tilted his body slightly toward the cat, yet not leaving the window, "Yes, Reeve. What is it?"

The cat paused before deciding his safe bet was to hop into Cloud's arms who were standing close to Vincent. The rest of Avalanchers were scattered around on the deck while Cid were piloting the Highwind.

"Vincent. Remember you wanted to find out your past?" The sniper's lips quirked under the shadow of his cloak, his eyes shone a bit as he listened with piped curiosity. Reeve continues, "The name Lucrecia leads me to few things. I had rummaged though the ShinRa database, there was not much about her there but Hojo..." he paused as he saw a dark scowl on the sniper's face. "Well, few things confirmed your suspicions about her and there are documented reports of where she was last seen. There is a cave, not far from here; it is believed that is where she was."

Vincent turned toward Cloud, meeting her azure gaze, "Perhaps I should go there. Do we have time?"

Cloud smiled in response, "Yeah, we do. Yuffie and Zack have not gotten the other Huge Materia, I suppose there some time before they do. Take the gold chocobo from the stable and go on over."

Vincent gave a curt nod, "Thank you."

"We will wait here for you too." Cloud said offhand as she dropped the cat onto the pink mog.

Vincent turned fully away from the window, "Actually, I would like for you to come with me. Will you?" He asked.

The blonde glanced back at him, her eyes wide, "me, why me?"

"Why not?"

Cloud smiled at him and turned away to the others, "I guess that settles it, Vincent and I will be going. Will you all be all right with out me for a bit?"

Tifa gave a chuckle, "Don't be silly. We will be all right, but don't get yourself hurt or in trouble yet without us."

Cloud gave a grateful smile toward the brunette and gave Cid a hand single for him to change direction. Cid gave a hoot and veered the Highwind toward Costa Del Sol so he'd drop the two off there.

"Then, see you guys later." Cloud said as she left the deck, leading the tall sniper toward the sable below deck. Soon, they readied two chocobos and waited as the large airship land to sprint off on the ground of Costa Del Sol toward the hidden cave southeast of the sunny coast.

The two travelers rode in silent across the water and land as fast as the birds could, making the journey short. No words were exchanged between the two and soon enough, they reached the hidden valley within an ancient crater where a waterfall concealed a cave within.

Cloud slipped off the chocobo's back and took in the scenery around her, it was truly a nature paradise, where the crater was lined with green vegetation and the waterfall fell from the ledge into the side, creating a sparkling view, giving a pool in the center. To her, it was a perfection of nature, a scar healed into beauty, it represented peace for her.

They allowed their birds loose within the crater valley and Vincent took lead toward the waterfall and he quickly found the concealed cavern behind the waterfall. They made their way through without any troubles and were into the mouth of the cave, they found the place unusual for it appeared manmade since the ground was smooth and perfect blue, as if it were glass. The cave wall were crystallized and cut in angular shapes, pointing them toward the inner cavern.

They came to the end of the cave and found themselves in a large chamber, aglow with the light from the Mako underneath the crystals, glowing bright blue. On one end of the room was a raised platform with crystals standing upward, twice the size of a man like a statue on display. Upon a close look, they saw a woman encased the crystal, standing in suspended animation of a peaceful sleep, her hands clasped together in prayer.

They stood in silent, staring at the woman behind the crystal. Cloud was awed by her simple beauty; she looked like a kind woman, who gave up so much in her life for love. The woman was tall and lean, her body was swaddled with cloth of pastel blue and lavender and her brown hair was upswept in a high ponytail with long fringes framing her delicate face. Cloud saw that her face feature had a familiar shape.

"Vincent." The woman's voice rang though the chamber like a bell.

Vincent closed his eyes and his posture seemed to droop. He slowly removed his bandanna and cloak, revealing his tall figure and pale face.

Cloud frowned slightly for a moment, trying to put a finger on the familiarity of the sniper's face and it hit her like a lightening as she realized the man could had been twin brother to the one she love.

He had the same feature that Sephiroth had, the straight nose, high cheekbones and long almond eyes framed with dark lashes, even the skin tone were the same. Yet, Vincent was of the shadow with ebony hair and deep crimson eyes while Sephiroth was of the light with ethereal silver hair and emerald gaze.

Cloud felt her heart pang with sorrow of missing her love. Just gazing at Vincent, she just knew and suspected since the moment that he was Sephiroth's biological father. She recalled Sephiroth speaking of his father briefly several times and it all fit, the unknown father, suspecting he would had been an ex-Turk and here he stand before Lucrecia, the mother of Sephiroth.

Vincent looked up to the crystal and his lips spread in a sad smile as a shimmering figure of ghost appeared outside the crystal, forming into a vision of the woman in a homely green dress, unlike the ethereal white gown she wore within the crystal.

"Lucrecia..." Vincent whispered as he stepped up closer to the ghostly woman. She stood bright and nearly solid, her brown hair shimmering behind her and her brown eyes shone bright like sparkling champagne. He reached out to touch her but his hand passed though her body and his face fell in sadness.

Lucrecia gave a sad smile, "I am sorry. I cannot exist or else my body," she turned and gestured to her real self in the crystal, "will cease to living. I had been wounded deeply in my heart and soul, coming here with sadness and lost hope, but I was denied passage to the Lifestream."

Cloud watched with confusion, a question on her tongue but she thought it was wise to keep silent, standing back, watching Vincent converse with his lost love.

Yet, Vincent voiced her question, "Lucrecia, why can't you pass on yet?"

Lucrecia reached out with her hand and rested on his cheek, even she couldn't touch him, he could feel the cool wisp of her illusion and it was enough for them. "I still harbor unfinished business in my heart. I need to give forgiveness and know that my son has found his love and completed the prophecy." She moved away from Vincent and turned half away, "You have doubts in the truth, ask your question and I will answer."

Vincent nodded and sighed, "It was figured Sephiroth is my son, yet I doubt that in my heart... and I do not remember how it happened. How did he and I come to who we are today?"

Lucrecia held her hand out to stop him. Behind her, the crystal shimmered, showing image on the surface. Cloud gasped softly as she recognized the ShinRa Mansion in Nibelheim, not like it was now but when it was in its finest.

Three people appeared, they all were wearing white coats of scientist over their clothing and they went into the Mansion. They were Doctor Hojo, Doctor Gast and Lucrecia, the doctors went on into the building while Lucrecia turned and went into the courtyard full of beautiful flowers and lush green grass under her shoes. The fountain sat in the center with benches around it and Lucrecia sat on one of the benches, enjoying the scenery.

A different man came into the courtyard; he had short black messy hair and dark blue suits. He approached the woman and took her hand and sat next to her on the bench. Cloud noticed the man was a younger version of Vincent and he had compassion on his face toward Lucrecia and thought, "How sweet, it must had been before Sephiroth was born... when they were dating."

The image showed no sound but they could see Lucrecia and Vincent talking in the garden together, it wasn't long before younger Vincent reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box.

Lucrecia gave a soft reaction as she saw the box and she seemed to glow in happiness as Vincent said something to her which made her teary. They stood together and clasped each other in joyous embrace. They parted enough for Vincent to slip the ring on her finger; tears were streaming down her face as she beamed at him. He looked shy and had small smile on his lips.

Cloud found the whole scene romantic and sweet, with expectation of a happily ever after ending but she knew the true outcome and her heart clenched, knowing it never happened and the two parted with regret, sorrow and burden. Yet, a question lingered in her mind, wondering how Sephiroth came into the picture.

As if answering her question, the scene changed to the inn in Nibelheim, where Lucrecia was out of her lab coat and sitting at the table, her head in her hands. She appeared worried or upset and Vincent came into the room, stopping beside her and kneeling on the floor, appearing to counsel her, whispering.

Lucrecia responded and Vincent jumped to his feet in obvious joy, pulling her out of the chair, embracing her, kissing her. She appeared confused then slowly turned into happiness.

The scene changed once again to the basement laboratory, showing Vincent facing Hojo with Lucrecia on the other end of the room, shaking with fear and sadness. Vincent looked livid while Hojo appeared smug.

Cloud started as Vincent's voice echoed in the chamber, "I'm against it! Why experiment on humans?"

The doctor wagged his finger, and then gestured to Lucrecia, saying "She and I are both scientists!"

Vincent snarled and shot a terrible look at Lucrecia, which caused her to break down in tears. He turned and stormed away and the scene faded away into darkness.

Soon, light came on, showing a different one, of Lucrecia in the garden, holding a bundle wrapped in soft green. The garden looked as if it was abandoned, overgrown and dried up, sorrowful scenery. Lucrecia crooned softly to the bundle in her arms and the image zoomed closer to show a child of several months old, his cherubic face lit with bright green eyes and silky deep raven black hair.

"Oh, my baby, how I wish your father would be here with me, Sephiroth." Lucrecia sighed; her body seemed to be burden with sadness. "He fought with Hojo; he should have known the man is horrible, stronger with strange strength... Now he is not here anymore, gone forever. At least, he had met you, even for just one time." Lucrecia whispered, tears rolling down her face.

She stood there for a while, holding the child, watching the red sunset setting over the horizon. Then, as the sun dipped out of sight, Hojo came into the garden with masked soldiers in his wake. Lucrecia gasped as she turned to him, clutching the baby to her chest. The sound was silenced as she appeared to shout at the doctor. Hojo said something and gestured to her. The soldiers rushed at her, grabbing the child out of her arms and restrained her as Hojo was given the baby. She screamed and kicked as the soldiers dragged her away out of the scene.

Hojo gave a spine chilling smile as he held the wailing baby in his arms and the vision faded to the crystal.

The older Vincent bowed his head in despair, "I remember now. Sephiroth is truly my son after all... Hojo didn't kill me, though I wish he did, he made me into a monster I am now."

Cloud snapped her head toward Vincent, "A monster? You are not a monster... you may be a little different than what you used to be..."

Vincent rounded onto Cloud and snarled under his breath, "Different, you say? You don't have to deal with demons inside your head every day, unsure if they would break loose, run rampart and then wake up to the horror they had done." He fell to his knees and covered his face.

Cloud knelt beside the sniper and gripped her hand on his shoulder, her voice firm, "We all have our demons inside all of us. My demon inside my head is telling me to join with Sephiroth, rule by him and destroy this planet. I can't do that, I am afraid too, to wake up from this nightmare and find I have failed. You are not alone, we are in this together. Help me, save your son from this nightmare, and wake up to succession, not failure."

Vincent dropped his hand from his face and met her blue eyes. "You are right, I apologize." Turning to Lucrecia, he rose to meet her. "Lu, forgive me."

She smiled at him, "What is there to forgive, if you had not done anything wrong?"

"I should have been there for you, instead of going after Hojo in anger." He replied with remorse.

"What had been done is done. You did nothing to me or Sephiroth, but if you must, save him, bring everything to right, allow Madoshi peace."

Vincent frowned as he turned to Cloud, suspecting she knew something, "Madoshi?"

Cloud nodded, "Yes, Madoshi has a lot to atone for. He was the one who started all of this, but as his descendant, Sephiroth and I are to end this. Even Gaia herself need to forgive."

Vincent blinked, "I suppose, there are bigger sin out there and mine is nothing to compare."

"Yes, love." Lucrecia turned to Cloud. "When I carried him in my womb, the illness was in me, trying to take over my son, I fought hard to keep him safe. He was born free of the illness..."

"Jenova has him now." Cloud said dejectedly, ashamed to meet her eyes.

"She may have him but she does not hold his heart. You do."

Vincent turned back to the blonde, "Cloud?" curious to the change of subject.

Cloud turned to Vincent, "You remember when I told you that I was of Lucrecia's kind?"

Vincent nodded, "Yes, at the time, I wasn't sure, but when I learned of your gender, I figured you were a Valkyries and with this whole things going on, revolving around the prophecy."

"Yes, you are right, I am one but we are also invulnerable to the illness as well, but we have a better control over them. Sephiroth is the only one who doesn't have it. That is why Jenova have him now, because he is strong and able to summon the Meteor."

Lucrecia moved closer to Cloud and with wisp of her hand, tilting Cloud's chin up, "Yes, but Jenova cannot continue unless she has what she want, his love. This is why we are not all dead yet. The power is actually in your hands or rather, your heart the whole time. You know what you must do."

Cloud's face was streamed with tears, "But I don't want to..."

Vincent had moved close to Cloud and drew her into his arms, holding her for comfort. Burying his face in her golden hair, he whispered, asking, "What is it you must do that you are afraid of?"

She cried softly into his shirt as Lucrecia stood aside, watching with sad face. "Sephiroth, in the crater, he took Tifa, Zack and I into Nibelheim memory, he told me to kill him in order to stop Jenova. I can't. I don't want to. How can everything be all right if I kill him?"

"Tough choices to make. What do you believe in the most?" He asked as he drew her away from him to look in her face.

Cloud stared into his honest blood orbs for a long while; her inner turmoil started to settle down and finally diminished, leaving her with a clear conscience and the decision. She turned to Lucrecia, "I trust and believe in Sephiroth, if that is what he wants me to do, then, I must. I believe if I ever asked him the same, he would." She wiped her face dry.

"Then, sweet daughter, you have my blessing. That is the power you have." Lucrecia smiled and turned to Vincent, "Watch over him well and, it is time for you to move on. Come and see me once again when it is all over and release me." She held out her hand and appeared was a long triple barreled silver and black rifle. She handed it to him, "A weapon forged by my people, it is special and powerful. The Cerberus; guardian of the underworld. For you, my love, my final gift to you. Use it well."

Vincent took the gun and checked it over, impressed by its design and looked up to meet her brown gaze. "Thank you, I love you, Lucrecia." She gave a soft smile and leaned forward, gently meeting her lips to his and then disappeared in mist.

He latched the new gun to his holster and turned to Cloud, noticing she had removed her gloves, studying her ring. "What is wrong?" He asked.

"It bothers me so much; I remember everything except for when he gave me this ring and the three years gap between Nibelheim Crisis and when I found myself in Midgar last year."

"Just believe in Sephiroth for now. If you trust him, then I should. I trust you, you have not given me any reasons to not. I am sure, by the end of all of this, you will remember everything. Perhaps, there are things you should not remember now for a reason." He assured her and slipped his crimson cloak back on his shoulders and buckled it up.

Cloud nodded, "You are right. I should not obsess over the lost memory, but focus on the task at hand now."

Vincent peered at her ring, "It's a rather nice ring there. He got a good taste." He smirked then headed toward the entrance, he stopped, turning back to her, "You also have my blessing with Sephiroth. I can see why he loves you. Yes, another reason to get him back, so we can be family that we never were."

Cloud's eyes watered. "How can you say that if I am to kill him?"

"Believe. Just believe in him and things will be all right. If the Valkyries prophecy says that you two will be together in the end, ruling this planet, then, believe that it will happen. Let's go, the others are waiting for us." Vincent held out his golden claw to her and she took it.

As they started to leave, Cloud remembered something and turned back, her hand tugged slightly on his golden claw and finally let go. She returned to Lucrecia and held her hand on the smooth plane of the crystal, "Lucrecia, if everything goes as it is accorded to the prophecy, how can I bring more Valkyries into the world if I am the only one left with him?"

Lucrecia's voice rang in the air, "You believe you are barren and yet it is your deepest desire to have a child."

Vincent closed his eyes, understanding what Cloud had meant. She had become barren due to Hojo's experiment and his heart sympathized for her, his anger grew more toward Hojo, the man had destroyed her by bringing three demon children from her. He knew it was the memory that Cloud had not yet recalled and rather to not tell her.

Cloud nodded, staring up at Lucrecia in the crystal. "Yes. It tears me apart as well. I have too many doubts."

"Once again, don't doubt. Things will come to you as you wish for. Go my sweet daughter, go and get him." Lucrecia said and her voice faded away to silence.

Cloud sighed and turned to follow Vincent out. They found their chocobos waiting nearby on the edge of the pool. They moved to task in silence readying the birds, adjusting the saddle straps and packs. As Vincent settled himself on his bird, he turned to Cloud, curious look in his eyes, he asked, "I am puzzled, we have crossed path with Hojo, yet he kept mentioning you as a 'he' and it is apparent, according to your tale, he know you are a 'she'."

Cloud climbed onto her bird and shrugged, "At first, I thought he didn't know or remember, but as time went on, I figured, he was playing game with me. He knows and he is not gonna get me again because Dark Sephiroth and Jenova wants me, so his usefulness for them is over. He is the least of my worry for now."

Vincent nodded. "True. Leave him to me; he is mine to deal with. I will not reveal your identity until you are ready."

Cloud shot him a grateful smile, "Thanks. Let's go."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Yuffie had dressed herself in a spare cadet uniform. The hat was slightly large and it covered her face a bit. She slipped the gun issued for cadets over her shoulder and stood before Zack, ready to go.

Zack gave her a look over and held two thumbs up, agreeing she was ready. "Hell, Cloud used to look like that until he started to steal my clothes after I accidentally shrunk them in the laundry. He loves to steal mine or Seph's clothes from time to time." He smirked.

"So, the clothes Cloud's wearing was yours?" Yuffie asked as she followed him through the maze of Junon Harbor's ground. She saw that Junon fortress was built on the cliff overlooking the Emerald Sea. The underwater reactor was several miles underground and well into the bottom of the ocean.

The fortress was designed that anyone who was not familiar would be lost. It was nearly impossible to find the entrance to the underground reactor; it takes one to remember the complex maze leading the way. There are only two accesses to the underwater reactor, that would be using one of the elevator that is heavily guarded around the clock and the other is using submarine to get under. Only the ShinRa owned and created the submarines in the world.

To Yuffie's astonishment, as she had expected it would take long to reach the gate but it didn't as they reached the large metal gate with signs painted across the door to warn people to stay back.

Zack chuckled, "Yep. He didn't have enough money then to order newer uniform, so he took either mine or Sephiroth's. Usually it would have been his undergarment for pajamas. It was humorous when Sephiroth discovered he was short on his expensive silk boxers." He smiled at the memories and heard Yuffie giggle behind him.

They approached the gate and there were two guards standing ready, guns in their hands. They recognized him and stood fast. Zack pulled an indifference mask that the former General was famous for, "Stand aside, we are to do inspection rounds." He handed his identification card.

The guard took the card and swiped it by the machine near the door. "Yes, General Donovan." The machine beeped and gave a green light of approval. "However, there is a toll charge of ten gil each guard."

Zack narrowed his eyes, causing the guard to buckle slightly, "Toll fee?"

The other nodded, "We are not paid enough to do round the clock duty, sir."

Zack glanced at the second guard and muttered, "You got guts."

The first peered at Yuffie and held his gun out, "No cadet allowed."

Zack snorted slightly as he held out few coins in his hand, jingling them. "He is with me; I need his help in the inspection round. Double or none?" He tossed the coins in the air and caught them deftly. He saw both guards were eyeing the coins with lust. The second nodded and he tossed the coins to him, "whatever, you might be getting better paid sooner than you think."

"Don't get your hope high for us lowly soldiers." The first said as he stepped aside to grant them passage.

The second guard asked as they passed, "Why would you need a cadet to help you with your rounds? It is unheard of."

Zack stopped and turned to the two men, resting his hand on Yuffie's shoulder. "You see, this one is one hell of a soldier and his future promises him position down there."

As they stepped onto the elevator, Yuffie gave an exhale of breath, "Whew, that was a close call." She grabbed hold of the bar as the elevator started to grind and it went down into the dark underground, going sideway, down and down. The only source of lights was blinking on the wall, giving multicolor hue.

Zack chuckled slightly, "no, that was the easiest. The guards get heavy below; they are not like the two up there. They are merely class four; the rest would be class three, good enough to be class two or one if they try." He turned to Yuffie to find her slightly greenish. "It is true that cadets are not allowed. We will need to get special clearance and unfortunately, I do not have one to enter the last gate to the reactor."

Yuffie squeaked, "I thought you did! You're the freaking General!"

Smirking, he shook his head, "I may be, but I am also a prisoner to ShinRa as well. We will get one when we get there."

Yuffie watched the wall zip by them, the trip to below was a long one. A thought occurred to her, "Hey! Why did you give me cadet uniform, not the Soldiers?"

Zack smirked. "You would be out of place in Soldier uniform. You are too teeny and skinny to be a Soldier, let alone a cadet."

Yuffie huffed as she jumped, trying to reach Zack's height, pounding his chest, trying to punch his face. "Stupid you!"

He laughed as he pushed the girl back. "Calm down! Come on. We gotta get though the next level and to another elevator."

The teenage girl looked around as the elevator stopped and the door opened to reveal a bright corridor with Soldiers and people in lab coats walking around. She asked quietly, "How far are we underground?"

"Pretty far. We are on the edge of the cliff under the water. We will pass though a tunnel to reach for the second elevator that will take us directly to the underwater reactor. This is the site for the reactor." He said as he led her though the corridor, passing many labs and offices. No one gave them a second glance. The site was also a complex maze and Yuffie was beginning to discover pattern, seeing the place was laid out like honeycomb. It was still mind boggling on how much ShinRa had developed, creating such fortress and sites all over the world.

Yuffie was curious as she took in the sight around her. "What exactly is this place?"

Zack gave a shrug as he turned a corner. "No one really knows. It was originally built as a secret fortress, but them the reactor was built, it became into offices and lab for the reactors. Still, Junon Soldiers come here to train and there are also storage for most of the military equipment here as well. Sh, we are almost there, we need to get you a clearance codes, I have mine, but you will need one." He then paused and checked out a dark office and ushered Yuffie in and held a finger to his lips, "Sh, wait here." He turned and closed the door behind him, standing there as if he were just speculating the corridor.

It wasn't very long before a third class Soldier walked by him. Zack hid a smirk, thanking fate above for a perfect target. Placing stoic mask on his face, he stopped the Soldier, "Lockhart. I need to speak with you." He gestured to the door behind him. The Solider appeared frightful and nodded, following the General into the dark office.

Lockhart didn't have a chance to compose himself as he entered the office and was whirled around by the scruff of his neck, finding himself face to face with a devious General. The light came on; Zack shoved him into the chair behind him.

"It had been a long time, Lockhart." Zack sneered at the brown haired man.

Frightful by the cold malice in the General's violet eyes, he believed the rumor to be true that General were known to be insane. "Sir? Do I know you?" Lockhart asked.

Zack stood to his fullest height, smirking, "Let's see, five or so years ago, you were involved in attempt rape of my roommate. In payback, I need your help with something."

Yuffie barely had time to gasp as she witnessed Zack knocking the man out cold. He then fished a card out of his pocket and handed it to her. "Oi! Geez, did you have to do that?" She looked back at the Soldier sprawled on the floor. "Lockhart, isn't that Tifa's name?"

Zack left the office with Yuffie on his heel. "Yes, that was Tifa's brother."

The Ninja frowned, "But isn't Tifa and Cloud the only survivor of Nibelheim?"

"Technically, yes. There was a small group of Soldiers from Nibelheim, most had died in missions. Tifa's brother back there and her cousins are the only ones left and Hojo had brainwashed them, altering their memories. They don't recall Nibelheim anymore. He believes Tifa is dead.

"Wow, Hojo must had went to extend to cover up Nibelheim." Yuffie quipped as they reached another corridor, approaching to the elevator at last. He saw there was two Class Three Soldiers standing guard at the end of the hall.

"To great extension, he even altered memories of those who knew Cloud, Sephiroth and me personally, meaning, most of the Turks who used to be our friends."

They reached the end of the hall and the Soldiers stood ready, saluting to the General. One asked, "Sir, what is your business here?"

Zack waved his card to the Soldier, "Inspection rounds. I need to check the reactor. Stand down." The two Soldiers stood down and Zack swiped his card on the machine next to the elevator door and Yuffie followed suit, both card gave green light.

As they entered the elevator gate and boarded the elevator, Zack turned and waved his hand to the two unsuspecting guards; the pink light emitted from his hand and enveloped the guards, causing them to sway in their spot. As the door closed, they could faintly hear the guards asking each other if they had seen anyone approach them and they couldn't recall. "Confuse Materia is handy. It covers our trails, Reeve will remove our card from the data as soon we get the Huge Materia, the ShinRa will not have any trace of who took it."

"Won't they suspect you?" Yuffie asked as they rode the elevator deeper, a much longer journey. She could feel her ears plugging up.

"Nah. They are too busy to suspect me. I have restriction, I am not even allowed underground of the Junon Base. Reeve had to hack a clearance card for me. It was difficult for him. Hm, if your ears are plugging, we are well under water now. As we get into the reactor, you are not to say anything or touch anything. Just follow my lead. There are not many guards down there."

Yuffie gave him a now and righted herself in position and gave a salute as Zack showed her earlier. "Sir, yes, sir!"

He chuckled and they got off the elevator and stepped into a long glass-like corridor that had clear dome above, showing the abyss of the sea. Yuffie gaped in awe as she followed the taller man. Fished and dolphins swam around the outside of the glass, playing with each other, giving a spectacular show. They trekked down the corridor and reached the end and entered a large chamber of the reactor.

"Here we are." Zack announced as they walked on the mesh plank across the room. A large machine stood in the center, steaming steams as tubes and wires went around. Green liquid glowed through few large tubes, feeding to the large machine that looked like an odd giant rusty bread machine.

"They make Huge Materia in that?" Yuffie whispered staring bug eyed.

He gave a nod. "Generally, creating energy for Junon Harbor and all along the coast of Emerald Sea." He watched as a large crane with gripper moved over the machine. "Just in time, they are about to transport it into a Submarine."

She watched along with him as the gripper machine dipped into the machine and pulled out a very large crystal stone and moved over to a walled area and disappeared within the wall.

Yuffie leaned forward from where she watched above on the plank that oversees the entire reactor. "Where is it going?" She asked.

Zack moved and led her down from plank to a different path leading toward the walled area. He waved his hand gesturing to be silent, "Sh. We need to get in the Docking Area. That's where it is. I doubt your clearance would let you pass. You need a Level Six codes, only ranks higher then Elites or Turks are given it."

Zack paused as they approached a walkway toward the bolted gate where a Guard stood. He only had a gun and appeared very bored. Zack whispered to Yuffie behind him, "A Level three guards. Usually they appoint Class Two, but all of the Class Two are disappearing all over. Just follow me." Zack approached the guard, who shifted into position as he saw The General.

"Sir, your cards." The Guard said, eyeing the cadet behind the General. As the two handed him the cards, he ran them though the scanner. The General's beeped a green, giving a go while the Cadet beeped red, denying access. "Sir, you may enter but the kid can't." He handed them their cards back.

Zack rolled his eyes and moved to turn to Yuffie but with a quick move, he punched the guard's light out. He quickly muttered a quick confuse spell and entered the code on the keypad to open the gate. The metal doors creaked open to reveal a large pool surrounded by mesh planks that liked the walls and extending outward to the water, giving several slots for submarines to sit between. Two subs were floating in the water, a large red and a small one.

"Come on. We need to get past couple more Guards and there will be Turks around. Set your gun to stun with confuse." He tossed a small pink orb to Yuffie who slotted it in her gun.

Yuffie gave a yelp as she saw Zack draw his massive sword, ready to attack. The two guards patrolling the plank spotted them and rushed toward them.

One shouted, "Halt! We were told no one were to enter!"

Zack laughed, causing the guards to give each other confused glances. Before they could react, Zack had swung his sword, knocking one guard into another, causing their head to collide. They fell on the mesh ground, knocked out. "Stun them with your gun."

Yuffie blanched, "But, they are already out."

"They will wake up sooner than you think. They are Soldiers, enchanted with Mako. We can't have that. Stun them." Zack said with stern voice. Yuffie moved and stun the two guards, yelping as they jolted for a moment.

She followed him around the walkway toward the subs, she muttered under her breath, "They're right, any General of the ShinRa bound to be insane."

He rolled his eyes once again, pausing to round on her. "Get off it." Yuffie yelped and saw that she was left behind and ran after him.

They saw several Turks standing before the red submarine, one were gesturing to the gripping machine overhead, directing it to the top of the red one. The large stone was placed into the sub while the Turks surrounding the sub talked on the cell phones or directing orders, none of them seemed to be on a watch out.

Zack stood there, appearing nonchalant, with Yuffie behind him; the Turks only assumed it was just him. He whispered, "We get on the red one. Luckily, it is the fastest one. We need to get on board. We will wait until the Turks board the yellow."

Puzzled, Yuffie frowned at the plan. "How can we get away without them chasing us? Why are they not getting on the red one?"

Zack sighed, crossing his arms, appearing bored as he watched the latch locks on the red and several Turks getting on the yellow sub. "The Turks are going somewhere else. The ShinRa felt there was no need for the Turks to guard it during transportation. There is another group waiting for the arrival of the stone."

"Ooh. Sound pretty easy."

"It is. Let's go." Zack singled and moved forward as he saw the last Turk boarding the smaller sub. They ran toward the red one and quickly climbed on, opening the latch and slipping in.

The trip though the submarine was fairly easy and quick, they had encountered no one and approached the engine control room, finding three men, sitting in their places, switching the submarine on and talking in their speakers.

Zack pulled out a different Materia and started to whisper spells, soon, the three men leaned over, falling fast asleep.

"Whoa, sleepel Materia. How long they are going to be out?" Yuffie asked as she helped Zack to move the men out of the chairs and set them aside.

Zack checked the three men's vital signs and sat in the main chair. "Quiet a while. The Materia is mastered, enough to knock a dragon out cold for an hour."

Yuffie whistled in awe and quickly shredded the cadet uniform and sat in the chair, waiting as Zack started the control and spoke to another sub. The yellow submarine suspected nothing. "Now what?" She asked as they sunk underwater.

Zack gave her a million-gils smile. "We are off to Costa Del Sol, I will bring the sub back into the sea and leave, to let the men wake up and find themselves lost and without the stone. It is in the box back there, go ahead and get it." He chuckled as Yuffie sprang out of her chair and ran back though the sub, searching for the huge Materia. Reeve were to pick him up after Zack abandoned the sub in the helicopter and bring him back to Midgar before anyone would suspect he was missing. Zack knew he was due to return to Midgar the next day and it was already planned, as ShinRa knew of this, that Reeve was to pick him up at Junon Harbor, but a little side trip was just added.

Yuffie returned with the Materia in her hands, she was glowing with happiness and was nearly bouncing in her seat with giddiness. Despite that they were already in deep part of the sea, Yuffie nearly forgot about her sickness.

"Ooo... I wanna keep this!" She delighted.

Zack laughed at her. "Sorry, no. You will have to give it to Cloud. He know what to do with it. Maybe he will give you some Materia to trade."

The ninja pouted, clutching the stone to her chest. She glanced out of the window and peered into the dark water. "Oi! What's that?" She pointed to the massive shape in the distance, it appeared huge and resting on the bottom of the sea, little light shone from above showed it was greenish in color.

Zack checked the radar and adjusted the direction of the sub, veering them away from the shadow ahead. "Seesh, that's one of the Weapons. I just redirected our course so we won't run into him. He would have given us some troubles."

The girl's eyes widened, "Ayii! Another one! I saw two already, a big one at Junon and Ultimate. We had to fight him, he was nasty."

"As long we stay out of their way, we should be all right until they become aggressive. Reeve had checked them out, they are longing around, biding their time. Let's pray that we get to save the planet before they decide to come out and run rampant. There is another one near Gold Saucer, hiding below the sand."

"Are they dangerous?" Yuffie asked as she swallowed.

Zack gave a nonchalant shrug as he controlled the steering. "We only know they could do real damage. But I think in time, we can defeat them, but not now."

The rest of the ride under water were quiet and spent as Yuffie asked all kinds of questions, getting into some argument and swapping tales. They reached Costa Del Sol without too much troubles and docked near the shore away from the town. Yuffie was delivered to the hands of Avalanchers and Zack went back to sea.

By the next day, baffled and miffed, the ShinRa lost the Materia and the three men had no clues what had happened and several guards were asked question and they couldn't figure for the life of them how they had allowed someone slip past their guards. Under heavy searching and researching, they came up blank.

Cloud and Vincent had returned to the Highwind and heard the tales, both were highly amused, feeling their spirits lifted after such a somber meeting with Lucrecia. Cloud conversed with Zack though the cat about what she was to do and Zack had assured her that everything will be all right in the end, he strongly impressed that he believe, no matter what, in Cloud. She felt a little better, knowing she has a lot of people behind her, supporting her all the way.

Reeve had given a videotape to Cid for his amusement. He cracked up and laughed as he watched the surveillance tape of Scarlet spitting mad, throwing fits like a two-year old child who had lost its favorite toy.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedback, review, please?_


	35. S3:9: Astral Plane

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Nine: Astral Plane

_And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven_

Deuteronomy 4:19, The Holy Bible

Cloud strained as she grasped a grip on the Huge Materia, tugging as she tried to pry it from equally strong grip of the young Ninja. She growled, "Come on, girl! Leggo!" She suddenly had a strange urge to sing the stupid breakfast commercial song she had seen years ago at the Academy and shook her head.

Yuffie whined as her fingers were being pried off one by one by the ex-soldier. She badly wanted to keep the rock. The other stood aside, watching the amusing scene. Finally, Cloud gave a grunt and was thrown back with the rock in hands as Yuffie let go and stomped her feet in temper tantrums.

"Yuffie, here and shut up." Cid tossed two of his Materia to the teenage who caught it. Vincent came up to her and placed a calming hand on her shoulder and handed another one from his own collection.

The girl huffed quietly as she clutched the three Materias in her arms, giving the large one a longing look. "I'll get that someday…" She muttered under her breath and turned away.

Cloud rolled her eyes and stood up, brushing her pants as she held on the rock and turned to the cat, "So, Reeve, where's the other one?" She asked.

The cat hopped over to her side, "The fourth and last one is in Rocket Town, and they're going to launch the fourth one into Space to wham the rocket into Meteor. Scarlet has been really spitting mad and increased security around the town after she found out that we had been stealing the other three from her."  
Cid turned from the control and smirked, "Damn that woman, she should've known! Well, securities or not, we're going to get it!" He then gave an hollering whoops.

Barret shook his head and grabbed Cid's shoulder with his good hand, "No. Not all of us. We cannot risk too much trouble. Not like the last time at the Crater."

Cloud rubbed her chin as she listened to the two men. "He's right. Two or three of us will be enough to get the rock. Hell, from what I have heard, you all paired up in twos and got the first three with success. We should do that again for the last one. Hey, where can we keep the others safe for a while? Surely not on the ship."

Red moved around Cloud like a cat among the owner's legs. "Cosmo Canyon. Grandfather would keep them in his observatory lab and we can learn more about the Huge Materias."

Cloud nodded as she scratched the wolf's ear affectionately. "That's a great idea. How about the chosen party goes to Rocket Town and meets the rest back at Cosmo Canyon?"

Yuffie bounced and clapped her hands, "Yeah! Let's do it!" She stopped and tilted her head sideway, somber expression replacing her hyper one, "But I rather go to Cosmo Canyon for now. I'm finished with all that hunt business for now." She then pouted, remembering the struggle to keep the last one.

Cloud shook her head amusedly at the girl and said, "I think Cid should go, since it's his hometown." Everyone nodded, murmuring their agreement.

"So, who is going with me?" Cid asked, leaning back on the counter with a cigarette lit, hanging off his lips.

Barret pointed to Cloud, "I vote for him."

Tifa smiled and pointed to the blonde as well, "I vote for Cloud too."

Yuffie followed suit, "Yeah, he's better for this job!"

Vincent only shrugged and gave Cloud a pointed look, "I'd have to agree with everyone else, you're up for the job."

Two laughing voices came through the robotic cat, "Yeah, you can do it!" quipped Reeve while Zack snorted in laugher and caused the cat to bounce all over the place, "Cloud's the man, Cloud's the man!" Which caused strange looks from Vincent, Nanaki and Tifa. Finally, Tifa had enough of the cat's antics and bopped him on the head, causing the cat to collapse at her feet. "Hey… watch it…" The cat scowled rubbing his head.

Cid grinned widely and slugged his arm around Cloud's shoulders, "Well, kid. It's two of us now! Let's get going! We're going to stop in Cosmo Canyon and take the buggy!"

Cloud shoved the bigger man away and said with a voice that left no argument. "I'm driving the buggy."

Zack snickered through the cat, "Cid, don't get in his way or he'll slug you."

Barret nodded, rubbing his jaw as he remembered the last time he was clobbered by Cloud. "Yeah, just let him drive." He muttered darkly.

The pilot shrugged as he returned to the control, setting the Highwind on course to Cosmo Canyon. "Whatever floats your boat."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Aw, dammnit! I have enough of this!" Cloud screamed and stomped her foot on the metal mesh plank that was hoisted next to the Rocket. They had reached the town soon enough and snuck onto the Rocket, avoiding the heavy guards of the Soldiers and Turks. However, the Turks had caught sight of them and Cid had disappeared into the Rocket to fiddle around, leaving Cloud to fight the Turks. As usual, Cloud did pretty well against the Turks, driving them away, leaving them feeling sore and bruised. She wasn't too happy to be left alone to fight them.

"Come on kid! This damn rocket's kicking off now! We gotta fix the damn thing! They'd set it on autopilot!"

Cloud twirled around to Cid and shook her head vigorously. "No way am I riding that junk into space!" She stared wide eyed at the pilot.

Cid laughed at her and ran down the plank, grabbing her by the scruff of her collar and hauled up into the Rocket and slammed the door shut. "Come on! Think of it as adventure!"

Cloud scowled and slugged the pilot on the shoulder hard in act of revenge and placed her sword onto the latch of her armor in the back. "Whoa!" She grabbed hold of the wall as the rocket rumbled as the jet engine fired on it's own.

Cid's face paled slightly. "I've gotta save this baby! Come on, we have to get the auto pilot off in the main control room!" And the blonde pilot took off down the small corridor with Cloud tumbling behind, almost looking green as the motion sickness came back in full swing.

She muttered, "Damn Luke…" referring to the guy she had met years ago, "Mako enchantment, my arse! Didn't do shit for my motion sickness… Where the damn pills?" She scrambled, searching in her many hidden pockets and scowled. "Shit, you little… Yuffie!" She yelled the last word as the Rocket lurched.

Soon, the blonde found the pilot in the main control room with wires everywhere which did not looked normal and a clock ticking down time. Cloud paled as she saw the clock, "H-hey Cid… What's this?" She asked, pointing to the clock.

Cid pulled his head out of the small hole below the control next to the clock and shrugged. "Bomb time. Don't worry, am looking for some wire to cut it."

Cloud's face whitened more. "You're telling me you're going to stop that clock?"

Cid smirked as he went back to work. "Yep! Ah, here it is!" He took out a small wire snipper and snipped few wires here and there.

Cloud gulped as she watched the clock tick down faster. "Uh, you made it go faster, you dummy! Cut the red one, the ShinRa always use red one!"

Cid cursed and banged his head inside the hole before coming back out. "Damn! Ow, that hurt… Uh, oh well… Why don't you go find the Huge Materia, I'll handle it here." Cid laughed nervously as he rubbed his bump on his head.

Cloud sighed. "As well let my life end in the sky. You better get that clock to stop and turn the blasted rocket around!"

The blonde fighter turned around and stepped out of the control room and back into the corridor of the rocket, stumbling along as she held onto the wall. Then, all the suddenly, she felt lighter and was floating off the ground. "C-I-D! How the hell am I floating?" She screamed back at the pilot.

The pilot's laugh boomed though the corridor. "Zero Gravity! We're in da space! Whoo!"

Cloud groaned and rolled her eyes; at least she wasn't nauseous any more. Further down the corridor, around the bend, she bumped into someone else and rolled around in the suspension.

"Oh! I am so sorry! Goodness, we're in space now… Cid'd be upset if he knew the rocket took off without him!"

Cloud looked up to find Shera, the brown haired petite woman who once lived with Cid floating too. She jerked her thumb over her shoulder, "Cid's here too. He's in the control room to stop the bomb timer. I'm looking for the Huge Materia."

Shera grinned wide. "Oh! I think I should go and help him. I know how to turn that thing off. The Huge Materia is just around here in a box marked."

Cloud thanked her and took off in the opposite direction as Shera headed toward the control room where Cid was already swearing different kind of swear words in different combinations.

The box was large and white with danger signs marked all over it. She floated toward it and popped the lock easily and lifted the large red stone. It was the Summon Materia, the powerful booster that connected the banished gods, goddesses and legendary creatures.

As she held the stone to her chest, she could hear the cry of the planet and it overwhelmed her. She could hear different voices within, calling, screaming and pleading for help. She realized the Summonses were aware of what was happening and knew they would be drawn out to use their power against Meteor and die, to never emerge again and they did not wish for their lives to end in such way.

"Such an amazing power within the simple things…" Cloud whispered as she huddled near the top of the corridor, cradling the stone in her hands. Her eyes closed as she listened to different voices within and gasped softly as she recognized one of them. "Sephiroth…"

_::You're doing the right thing, love. Keep on going and you will find me.::_

"_Where are you?" _She asked as her mind connected to him through the stone.

_::Within the Planet with the others. They had been here for centuries and longer, being held in Jenova's hold as much as I am. They've survived with the calls of the good people's wish to use the Materia. Soon, they tells me, I will be one of them, a summon.::_

Cloud stiffened as she held the stone. _"Summon… you cannot become one! If you do, you die physically!"_

_::I know. You have some time left. Do not worry about me. Worry for the Planet first.:: _

"_I can't. I love you too much to lose you."_

_::I am always near you, always had been. They've already named me as One Winged Angel if I am ever to become a Summon. Keep that in mind, I am your Angel as you are mine.::_

The blonde sniffled as she smiled at the stone. _"Very well, my Angel. The Planet has my first priority, I will save you, I will have you back."_

_::Looking forward to that, love. I must go. My time with you are limited before Jenova finds out.::_

"Go; take care as much you can until I come for you." Then, her mind was silenced again; there were no cries or sound of anything from the stone at all.

She clutched it to her chest, smiling slightly as she moved back toward the control room to find Cid and Shera arguing but the clock had been turned off.

"Just turn the damn rocket back around!" Shera shouted at Cid.

Cid growled and shouted back. "Just shut up and let me do it! At least you get to turn off the damn bomb!"

Cloud shook her head as she held onto the control with the rock in her other hand. "Come on guys. Let's go back now. I seriously want my feet back on the Planet!"

Cid shrugged as he gave Cloud a look. "Whatever… Course changed, destination. The Planet!"

Cloud sighed in relief and looked outside the bay window and gaped at the sight, it was amazing, vast dark space with thousands of glimmering stars everywhere to the depth of the distance, how far, she didn't know. The planet was as well glorious, floating there in perfect sphere of vast blue, green and white of the wisp of clouds swirling around. On the other side, was the large burning ball of fire, slowing descending toward the Planet, as if it seemed to take time of its own.

"My gods…" She whispered as she stared out of the window.

Cid smirked at her. "That's what I had been aiming for all of my life. Beautiful, isn't it?"

Cloud turned to him and shook her head in amusement. "Beautiful but I'd rather keep my ground on the solid Planet, not out here, floating."

Cid chuckled at her and veered the rocket a hundred and eighty degree, heading toward the Planet, the blue green sphere coming toward them.

"Well, we better strap down and ride the rest of the way." Cid announced and moved toward the chairs and sat in the main one. "Had set this junk of thing on auto pilot, we should be back on the ground by…"He turned to Shera. "When?"

The woman shrugged. "Not too long." She smiled and sat down to strap herself in the seat. Cloud followed suit.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

As the Rocket landed, or so, crash-landed near the valley of Nibel and the Rocket Town, the three of them stumbled out and was greeted by the Avalanchers. There were also mob of angry townspeople nearby, enraged that they had disrupted the ShinRa's plan in destroying the Meteor. They made run to evade the angry mob to the Highwind and took off.

Cloud stood out on the deck of the Highwind that was landed near Cosmo Canyon, watching the world pass by below, lands and sea. She exhaled a long stressful sigh and turned to find Vincent and Red behind her. "Yes?"

The sniper stepped forward, his red cloak swishing gracefully behind him. "What is the next plan, since the ShinRa's most workable plan had been foiled?"

Cloud gave him a half smile and turned back to the railing and leaned on it, "Sephiroth. Up in space when I came in contact with the Huge Materia, the last one, we talked, he is becoming a Summon. Though, our minds touched and I know what we have to do."

Red cocked his head. "What do you mean, what do we have to do?"

Cloud turned around and found the rest of Avalanche had gathered. She gave each one of the members studying look and pursed her lips before she answered the wolf, "the ShinRa wanted to use the Materia to destroy the Meteor. But Jenova and Sephiroth are still danger to the Planet. We have to destroy them. There is nothing we can do about the Meteor. No one can stop it, even if the Rocket rammed into it, it would be futile."

Everyone gave each other a quizzical looks, trying to figure out what Cloud had meant.

The massive black man rubbed the back of his neck, eyeing Cloud. "Anything, even the most powerful, cannot destroy the Meteor?" He asked, carefully.

Cloud nodded. "Right. But I have a feeling…" Barret groaned and rolled his eyes and was received a slap on the back of his head by Tifa. "When we do handle Jenova and Sephiroth, the Meteor will be handled." Cloud smiled a mysterious smile that triggered suspicions among Avalanche. "Well, let's find the safe place for all those rocks." Cloud turned to the red wolf. "Shall we?"

Red nodded his head. "Grandfather Burgenhagen is awaiting the last one."

Avalanche left the Highwind to Cosmo Canyon and met up with Burgenhagen and deposited the four Huge Materias they had gathered. They learned that the Huge Materias was combination of different kinds of smaller Materia together into one kind of each color and can be used if using right spells.

They decided together, that they would return to Burgenhagen to retrieve the Huge Materias to use it when the right time comes. Until then, Burgenhagen would keep them safe and hidden from the ShinRa and the rest of the world.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cid stood beside Cloud before the Cosmo Canyon's candle, watching the eternal fire. "What's next?" He asked. Everyone had gathered around the fire after leaving Burgenhagen's place and gathered around the Cosmo Canyon's candle, replenishing in memories of Aeris.

Cloud frowned as she stared in the fire as if it had the answer to the universe, which it almost seem as it did but in fact only had the power of making one to recall something they desired to know. "Aeris," She started. "We need to go back to the City of the Ancient and find the answer there if Aeris had activated Holy because it is the only thing that would handle Meteor."

Tifa looked up to Cloud, "Didn't you ask her when you were in the Lifestream?"

"No, we didn't get to discuss much." Cloud looked up to meet her crimson gaze, "We were focused on the situation where the Lifestream wanted to expel the three of us."

Yuffie started to bounce, "Oh, oh! Aeris must had! Remember the white ball that fell into the water? Was that Holy Materia?"

Murmurs rose around the fire from the members of Avalanche, questioning and agreeing. Cloud nodded, "Yes, it is. However, I do not know if she actually activated it or not."

Tifa walked around the fire and placed her hand on Cloud's shoulder. "So, you want to find out if she had prayed for it or not?"

Cloud looked up into her red eyes and nodded. "Yes."

Barret shook his arms in the air. "Well, let's get goin'!"

Cloud smiled at the man. "Yeah." She turned to Zack. "Hey, can we still use the submarine?"

Zack's voice came though the cat. "Yes! Just go over to Junon, Yuffie got the clearance card to the Submarine. Why?"

Cloud looked up to the dark sky. "I read the Tome again when we were in Burgenhagen's lab, it gave me clues to where to find the Key. The tome says the key is an artifact that the Ancient has for their technology to recall a memory or event in the past. The tome says it is hidden where kraken sleeps." Everyone gave puzzled reactions and Cloud laughed, "Kraken, a legendary monster of the sea, it's somewhere undersea."

Yuffie shouted, "Hey! Yeah, I remember! There are some caves under the sea when we passed through! But! There's a huge, I mean," She shot her hands out to empathize the size, "Hug-g-ge! Weapon down there, just swimming around."

Cloud nodded as she patted the teenager's head, "Good girl, you did a good job. It is down there, though we might have to encounter Emerald, the Kraken."

"Great!" Yuffie giggled as she bounced in her spot while Cid rolled his eyes.

"Damn hyper kid." He muttered.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

General Sephiroth, or he once was called, opened his emerald eyes, finding himself in a different place. It was starting to become a habit for him, every time he sleep or closes his eyes, he would wake to find himself somewhere else, not where he had before he closed his eyes.

He remembered being in the limbo, which the others had called it Middle Land, it was a place where the unfortunate souls who had died and cannot go on to the Beyond. Those who were still bounded by fate to serve Gaia for higher purpose, they are called the Summoned One, and it was their home, where they rest and wait to be called.

He remembered, somewhere in between the times being Jenova's favorite prisoner, he had faded, losing connection to Cloud and Zack completely, becoming utterly alone. Then, with joy as he felt warmth as he closed his eyes, fading away from his prison, thinking he had been free and able to return to his boy but only to wake and find himself in another place, the Middle Land.

He idly wondered for a moment about Jenova, how she had reacted after finding that she had lost him. But then, he brushed the thoughts away, immediately knowing he was in a better place, it was better than being in Jenova's cold chamber. He knew he couldn't be picky even though he rather to be alive, in his own body, with Cloud by him, holding her and never letting her go.

Here in the Middle Land, he felt peace and welcomed among the other Summoned One. Yet, his heart was heavy with sorrow for it wasn't where he desired to be.

"How are you feeling?" He turned around and was greeted by a pale skinned, violet haired woman whose eyes were so pale that you felt ice under her gaze. Yet, her voice weren't cold as her eyes seemed, in fact very warm and friendly and full of bouncy energy.

"Better, Shiva. Thank you."

"One Winged Angel, soon, your stone will be created." She whispered, placing her cold hand upon his bare shoulder. He shivered under her touch and smiled at her. Despite her cold exterior, her eyes always shone with happiness and laughing personality that she held, he couldn't help but feel comfortable around her.

"I know. I can feel it." His green eyes fell down as he felt heavy sorrow upon his heart.

"Hmph! You should be glad to be one of us, we live and we serve for Gaia." A rough booming voice brought his eyes up again to meet fiery black eyes of Ifrit. The man had dark skin and wild hair that was color of fire, he looked demonic and at the same time, regal as well.

Shiva frowned at him, slapping his chest; her contact upon him caused some sizzles and steam rising in the air. "Shame on you! He wants to be alive, out there with his love! Haven't you heard?"

Ifrit snorted at her as he crossed his massive dark skinned arms across his bugling chest. "There is nothing we can do." He said softly to the ice goddess.

Another voice spoke up, softly with gentle touch, almost like a calm sea washing against your legs as you stand in the warm ocean water. "Nothing until we're summoned." The three turned to find Leviathan slithering about in the suspension, approaching them. She was massive, beautiful water dragon with smooth blue green scales. Her eyes were soft and deep, soulful with aging wisdom. She shifted form and appeared as an elderly woman, beautiful with long graying hair and blue robes before them.

Sephiroth liked the company of the Summons. He had met few so far, there were many he had not met and from Shiva, who had been in constant companion for him from the beginning had mentioned few that made him feel he didn't want to meet them.

The few who he had met were mostly supportive, understanding his sorrow and dilemma. Even from the Fire God who was rough and crude in appearance had been friendly despite his appearance.

Shiva smiled as she greeted another woman who appeared out of thin air, a strange brilliant overdressed willowy woman that had fiery red hair that seemed to be feathery like and orange blazing eyes. Her robes were sparkling with colors of emerald, sapphire, rubies and diamonds. She usually go in the form of a human woman in this plane but her true form, as a Summoned One, she turns into a large legendary bird of Phoenix.

"Phoenix!" The Ice Goddess cried as the said woman hugged her. "Oh, do tell me, how is it going in the real world?"

Leviathan curled up and settled down beside Ifrit who were brooding and playing with a fireball, interested to listen what Phoenix had to say.

"Not too good." The bird-like woman sighed, her voice trilling with song-like tone.

Sephiroth sat down, or it seemed like it. In this world, you could sit or walk about without gravity but still feel the gravity. It was a strange barren place where the Summoned Ones would gather or depart about, as if the whole place were their home. He watched the two woman sat down upon nothing and started to gossip, being oblivious that they had a listening audience.

"Oh dear!" Shiva shook her head in sympathy. She had been recently summoned and saw the world in brief moment. "The Meteor is coming close, isn't he?"

Meteor, who happened to be another Summoned One, was a dark being, with a brooding darkness about him. If anybody were in his presence, they would feel negative emotions, nothing of the happiness or joy, almost as if he absorbed the emotions, leaving you cold and unhappy.

Sephiroth had an unluckily encounter with him when he had appeared in the Middle Land. He shivered at the memory meeting Meteor. The man nearly sucked every hope he had, making him weak until Shiva and Ifrit came to his rescue. He had found the man to be handsome but brooding that he couldn't withstand the presence of him.

"He's approaching closer, so intent on destroying Gaia. Poor Mother, she's so frantic, not knowing what to do. The Cetra had been arguing with her to not unleash Weapons out there."

Shiva gasped. "The Weapons. Dear me, I had been Summoned not too long ago, going against Ultimate. I hope I don't get Summoned again with Ultimate in the battle. He's too hardheaded!"

"I don't understand." The two women turned their head; surprised that Sephiroth was still there. "Why are we fighting each other if we all came from Gaia?"

Shiva shook her head in sympathy. "Don't ask me. I don't understand either. Maybe Ramuh would help you."

Upon saying his name, Ramuh showed up in his ethereal gray robe and long silver beard. He held the staff and was one of the oldest Summoned Ones, wizened wizard god of thunder. He was rather a cross man most of the time but calm and patience man as well.

"We all fight against each other because of the stones we are in falls to both good and bad sides. We have no control on which side we are, only we have to act upon when we're summoned."

The silver-haired General furrowed his silver brows at the thunder god. "Look at what's happening there. Gaia is going to die if we don't do something about it! We have to stop Meteor."

Shiva stepped up to Sephiroth and placed her hand on his shoulder again, drawing his attention to her. "We all can't. Only one will."

"Who?" Sephiroth was desperate to know. He knew there has to be someone in opposite of Meteor, powerful enough to stop him.

Phoenix trilled a sad whistle as she turned away. "Meteor's wife, Holy."   
Sephiroth's jaw dropped as he realized he knew the two of them but didn't utter a word.

"Maybe you should know the story about the two…" Leviathan rose and curled around Sephiroth, offering him to rest on her body as she embraced him like a mother would do to a son. He settled down in between her arm and her body while the rest sat nearby or next to him.

Her voice was ever so calm as she started, "Once long ago, the mischievous sorcerer, a lowly god who traveled in the cosmos, always playing tricks upon the others. He was very vain and greedy, yet a troublemakers. He had no care for other's feeling and many disliked him.

He came upon the galaxy where many gathered in a ball, in celebration for the galaxy. He met a beautiful woman, so beautiful that he forgot about everything, forgot his selfish desire. All he wanted to meet her, to know her. This woman was the daughter of Gaia, Holy. The ball was a masked ball, he slid through, dancing his way toward her, his goal was set on her and when he approached her, he was ever so gentle and kind, taking her hand and they danced. It was love at the first sight; she was attracted to his darkness as he was to her light. They were the opposite.

However, Gaia had forbidden for Holy to ever be married or touched by a male, she was to remain pure. Holy was saddened as she told him that she could not see him ever again after the ball, but Meteor was stubborn, he visited her home, just to see her, to watch her from the distance. Holy knew of his visitation and went out in the dark of the night, just to meet him. It was their happy time, their love grew.

He asked her to marry him and she agreed, rebelling against her own mother's wish. They married in secret and each night, as Gaia sleeps, he visit her bed, spent time with her. It was their moment together. However, each morning, he would leave before the first light of dawn, she would be sad, and through the day, she remained sad.

This caused Gaia suspect and one night, she decided to not sleep, she waited and watched. She caught Meteor visiting in the dark, slipping his way to Holy's bedroom, and to spend the night. She was angry, enraged as she realized how long it had been going on. Little she knew, Holy had been a positive effect on him, changing him from his dark and terrible ways into a kind loving man.

Gaia was upset, angry at her own daughter's disobedience and angry at Meteor for stealing her daughter's heart. She confronted them that night and banished them both, turning them into Summons, forbidding them to be together ever again. Meteor's Summon Materia was sent to be hidden and forgotten forever while Holy was left in the Cetera's hands, to be passed down for generation, to never be used.

The thing is, Gaia learned that her daughter had bore two beautiful children and left them in the hands of her own sisters to raise them. Her own sisters foretold that the two children's descendant will free Meteor and Holy from their banishment, to reunite them once again." Leviathan smiled as she saw Sephiroth wiping his eyes free from tears that had discreetly spilled. "You see, Gaia didn't realize that she had created them into Summonses, only to free them once again when someone uses them. I suppose, in her anger, deep in her heart, she couldn't kill them but banish them until the time came to where she could forgive them."

Sephiroth looked up to her, "I know those stories. Holy and Meteor are Megamiki and Madoshi." He glanced to find Meteor standing far from everyone, in his dark corner, yet their eyes met and he gave a small nod. He then realized, "If the Summonses gather here, where is Holy? I have not met her?"

Leviathan smiled, "Son, Holy is the only Summon that cannot come here. She is imprisoned in her own Summon Materia; she is to never see Meteor again."

Sephiroth frowned, "She has been summoned, she is waiting…" He murmured as he glanced away, thinking.

Shiva jumped up from her seating. "Are you sure?"

Sephiroth nodded vigorously. "Yes… Look!" He pointed to the side, what supposed to be the plane's wall and pointed. Each Summoned Ones has a power to open the window to see the living world and watch. He knew at the moment that Cloud was in the Ancient City, feeling her move, her sight and hearing her world since she was still connected to him, even by thin thread. During the story, she had found the key to get the answer. The suspended air, wall or whatever it was, the void had changed and opened a window of the living world and the Summoned Ones gathered to watch what Sephiroth wanted to show them.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please?_


	36. S3:10: In Memory

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Ten: In Memory

_For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten._

Ecclesiastes 9:5, The Holy Bible

The Highwind airship had took Avalanche back to the Ancient City and the group, with the key they had obtained without difficulty, evading the Emerald Weapon during their search. They had once made their way through the city, reaching to the heart, where a shrine stood in the large building, according to Burgenhagen's research, was once the Council House where all the Cetra came together, to hold meetings.

The place was barren, beautiful with circular rows of stone benches, ascending high and close to the second level. There were pillars and columns supporting the building. The center had a high rising platform where the shrine stood. The entire place, once must had looked beautiful in its splendor and glory now stood in shamble, in ruins.

Avalanche stood, scattered around the place, and had finished exploring, watched as Cloud made her way to the shrine, holding the large key that appeared to be a jagged dagger made out of smooth shell, white with reflection of rainbow when the light hit it.

Burgenhagen had told her what she should do once she had the key. He explained what they should expect once she placed the key in place. She moved the dagger in the slot on the altar, sliding it in place. Burgenhagen explained that the altar was like a music box, and once the key was in, it would activate and answer the key-holder's question.

Cloud held the key as it was in its place, the stone shifted and morphed, creating crystals, shooting upward and glowed in colors. The light shone and music filled the building. The music was soft and ethereal, nothing compared to the music that Cloud had played on the harp before.

She gasped as the water rushed up, creating colorful wall around the shrine, encasing her within. She found she was in the bubble of the water and with her free hand; she pulled out the cell phone and range Tifa, informing her and the other to step in the bubble of water. Soon as everyone entered the enclosed space, the walls of water changed colors and images started to play before their eyes upon the rippling surface.

They recognized it was their memories, together as their view before Aeris was killed. They all saw Aeris, as beautiful and innocent she was, kneeling and praying on the altar, smiles upon her lips.

"Cetera keeps memory of life that goes on the Planet. Right now we all want to know if she prayed for Holy." Cloud said softly as she watched the image.

Dark Sephiroth came down from above and killed her, then she slumped down, lifeless, still with smile on her lips. The image adjusted to view Aeris' hair where the ribbon came free and small white marble fell, so easily hidden in her hair the entire time. It bounced off the altar and rolled into the water, disappearing in the depth.

Tifa held a finger, "look, its glowing green." The Materia did indeed glow a soft green light on the bottom of the pool.

Cloud closed her eyes and the image faded, the wall of water fell all around them to the ground below the altar they stood upon. "Holy had been summoned. She knew what to do…" She fell to her knee, burying her face in her hands, "I'm so sorry it had to cost her life. To Summon Holy, you have to sacrifice your life to meet Gaia and make the request to release Holy."

Tifa knelt beside Cloud, rubbing the fighter's shoulder, "She's not complaining, isn't she?"

Cloud looked up and chuckled, "You're right. We will finish what we are supposed to do."

Barret grinned as he hoisted Cloud roughly back on her feet, "That's right. Stop Dark Sephiroth before he kills everyone."

Yuffie tilted her head in questioning character, "Hey, if Aeris summoned Holy, how come Holy isn't doing anything?"  
Cloud turned to her, "You're right. I don't know. Something must be standing in Holy's way…" she turned to the altar and reached for the key. "Let's see why." She turned the key but it wouldn't budge, "Hey, it's not working anymore."

Nanaki moved to her side and nudged his head on her hip, "It only works once for a person." Cloud then cursed under her breath, preparing to turn away but froze.

Tifa gasped as Barret moved to grab Cloud's shoulders but stopped when Cloud's body racked with familiar seizure. She clutched her head as scream filled in her mind. Everyone watched in abated horror until she was able to calm down, holding their breath.

Cloud sighed as she slumped on the altar, holding herself up. Her eyes showed pain and she was breathing raggedly, "The Cetra… we must hurry. It is Dark Sephiroth who is stopping Holy."

"Damn!" Cid grumbled.

"What's he's doing?" Yuffie's eyes went wide.

Cloud shook her head as she stood back up, "I am not sure. Meteor is dropping, with or without me, he wants to destroy Gaia so badly, and he just doesn't care anymore."

Vincent rubbed the back of his neck, "I am sorry. I think everyone else is lost as I am, how does this fit?"

Cloud looked to him, "You know most of the story about the Valkyries and Madoshi and Megamiki?" She saw everyone nod, "this is new, the Cetra was screaming in my head about all those and a new plot they had learned from Dark Sephiroth and Jenova. Jenova believed it was Gaia who destroyed her planet and wanted revenge, using Madoshi's leverage and anger. Really, everything in between this Calamity of the Sky and Gaia, everyone is a pawn in their war. Even Madoshi and Megamiki… Whatever had happened eons ago, it's really wrecking everything up here for everyone."

Yuffie bounced as she remembered something, "Oh! Oh, the legend! My mom told me stories about all those! Gods! Meteor and Holy, Megamiki and Madoshi! This is sooo cool!" She exclaimed as she hopped around everyone until Cid grabbed her to still her.

"What the hell you talking about girl?"

Yuffie giggled as she stood in Cid's grip, "You see, in the story, there is a good ending! Everything's going to be all right! Holy will stop Meteor because Meteor doesn't want to hurt Gaia but he can't do anything, he is a Summon and he has to do what he was told. But Holy can stop him because they will be free and together again."

Cloud frowned, "What other part of the story did your mother tell you?" She asked.

Yuffie turned to Cloud and grinned her mega-watt smile, "The Queen and King part too, they are the one who will make everything right in the world once they reunite. You say Sephiroth is the last Valkyrie son, isn't he?"

"Yes-s…" Cloud drawled, afraid that Yuffie had made connection.

"So," Yuffie shook herself out of Cid's grip who had slackened and turned to everyone, hand on hip and a finger wagging at everyone, "You see, in Wutai legend, it says that the Last Son," she shrugged, "It never said who, but anyhoo…" She exhaled since she was speaking pretty fast in animated way, "He is the King and he will be reunited with his love," She shot a look at Cloud, "You said Sorano was Sephiroth's girlfriend and she died. I don't think so, she's somewhere in the Lifestream and Sephiroth is gathering all the energy from the Lifestream. We all know that the Lifestream is all the souls that once lived on the planet. So, I think he will find Sorano and together, they will stop everything! And," She struck a heroic pose where her fist shot in the air and she yelled, "Presto, everything's all right!" then she suddenly frowned, dropping her arm, "But why are we stopping Sephiroth for? If they're going to do this themselves?"

Cloud dropped her head, afraid that Yuffie was going to reveal her secret but shook her head, almost laughing. "Good point, kid." She looked up and saw that Tifa, Vincent and Nanaki had wide eyes of horror and laughed. "Okay, okay, you got a good theory." The three of them rolled their eyes then and she continued. "Yuffie, there's one little problem in this situation. Its Dark Sephiroth we are dealing with, the real Sephiroth can't do anything unless Jenova and Dark Sephiroth are out of the picture. Sephiroth and this Sorano can't do anything, basically, they both are in the Lifestream and they have to wait until everything is resolved, so it's in our hands now to deal with Dark Sephiroth and Jenova, once they are out of the way, Holy can deal with Meteor afterward. I don't know what will happen to Sephiroth and Sorano after that." She concluded with a nod and crossed her arms on her chest.

Yuffie looked perturbed. "Aw! You'd have to go and ruin my discovery." She pouted.

Cloud laughed and patted the young ninja on the head, "It was a real good theory. You were almost right, but the order was kind of wrong."

"All right, I guess we should go now." Yuffie beamed.

Vincent pursed his lips. "Interesting. I agree we must get going; we can't stand around listening to some love story."

Cloud nodded in agreement. "Right! Let's go!"

Cait Sith hopped to her side and grabbed her arm. "Wait. We've got a bit of a problem."

The blonde fighter turned to the cat, frowning. "What problem?"

"Remember the Junon's Cannon, the Sister Ray?"

Everyone did indeed; they had recalled the massive cannon built at Junon Harbor. However, it had disappeared and they didn't bother while they went around the world, searching for the Huge Materia, getting them out of the ShinRa's hands. It occurred to them, wondering what happened to it then.

The cat bounced off the mog and into Cloud's arms, intending to draw all attention to him. "Actually, Rufus moved it."

Cloud's jaw dropped a bit. "Moved it? That big thing? Where, why?"

The cat turned its head to look at Cloud. "Rufus wants to destroy Dark Sephiroth with it. The cannon operate on Huge Materia. But the Huge Materia has already been used in the Rocket Plan. So since the cannon's useless right now, he decided to move it. To a place where Materia… no, where Mako is gathered…"

Cloud groaned as she rolled her eyes. "So, they're going to use the power of Midgar. Since we took the damn Materia, shit." She cursed and then frowned, glaring at Cid, "You're a real bad influence, see you got me cursing!"

Cid looked affronted, "Hey! Why now out of all things, you're accusing me for that?" The others chuckled and turned to Cait.

The cat hopped out of Cloud's arms and moved about the Mog's back, getting something out of its storage. He hopped back on the top and held a small box with a screen on it. He flicked it on and everyone saw it was a small television video and it was showing the dark Midgar. Several helicopters whirred across the sky and soon, they all saw the Sister Ray towering above Midgar, on top of the ShinRa Headquarter, looking ominous and scary.

"Oh shit…" Barret mumbled as he stared at the small portable television wide eyed. "How the hell he plans to use that damn thing?"

Cloud shook her head. "Unbelievable… Rufus wants to kill Sephiroth so badly… Geez… He's desperate to save the planet but he's doing in the wrong way."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Inside the President's office at ShinRa Headquarter, Reeve stood among with Heidegger and Scarlet, facing Rufus who were standing behind his desk.

"That's why, Reeve. It's your job to adjust the reactor's output." Rufus gave the ebony haired man a Cheshire cat smile.

Reeve looked away, reluctant to follow in the order. "I see…" Out of the corner of his eyes, he could see Zack standing behind Rufus with a slight hint of scowl on his face. He knew he wasn't the only one who was against the idea.

Scarlet, who happen to choose a short mini skirt and tight top today, still in usual red laughed. "Don't worry about adjusting it, Reeve." She clapped her sharp red talon-fingered hand on his shoulder. "Once you open it all the way, everything will go full speed!"

Heidegger laughed, making his large belly roll. "The President's sure done it this time! If we can only defeat Sephiroth, the idea that Meteor will also disappear is based on different objectives!"

Scarlet moved around the desk and wagged her finger teasingly at Rufus. "Please remember, Mr. President…" She purred as she leaned forward. "It was my idea to fire Mako Reactors powered shells."

The blonde President flipped his hair that was straying over his eyes. "Will the shells really reach the far northern border?" He asked, unsure about the whole situation, feeling there was something amiss. He didn't care unless there were ideas or plan to stop Sephiroth; so far, this was the only idea they had came up with.

The woman rolled her eyes. "Ah, ha. Of course." She waved her arm in a matter-of-fact gesture. "But, Mr. President, please do not call it a Mako cannon. It's Sister Ray."

Rufus rolled his eyes in exasperation and waved his hand to dismiss everyone. Once everyone left the room, only Zack remained.

"Tell me, what you think about this… uhh… Sister Ray Plan?" Rufus asked as he sat down, knowing Zack was behind him.

The current appointed General moved around to the front. "I have no comment."

Rufus looked up, peering into the shadowed face of his General. "The entire time, you had no objections and remain silent. Tell me now, what is truly on your mind?"

Zack scowled at the young President. "Why should I? I have to jump when you order me to jump. Say what you want me to say, think what you want me to think."

Rufus's blond brows furrowed in slight irritation. "Maybe they made you too good. I know there is a real Zack Donovan behind the mask you have there. I knew you once, a jovial outgoing man who were wild in his Academy day, loved by many. A best friend of Sephiroth and this youth… Cloud Strife."

Zack scowled. "How would you know all this? It is all in the past."

Rufus smirked, seeing he had pushed a button and leaned forward, resting his chin on his hands. "Ah. Yes, all in the past. But, it is there. Ah, I think I remember… this little kid that tagged along with you and Sephiroth all the time, he adored you two. Am I right?" Zack's scowl got deeper. Rufus smiled broadly. "Yes, he did." He looked down at the folder on the desk. "Here, it says that he died." He waved the report in the air and slapped it back on the desk, "But why, tell me, why is he still alive and running around out there, making it harder for me to run the company, the countries under ShinRa's control?"

Zack looked away, shrugging his shoulders. "Why should I know? I haven't seen him or spoke to him since I was brought back. It is clear that he is on the other side, not with us anymore."

Rufus frowned again as he leaned back. "Very well. You're dismissed."

Zack gave the usual salute to Rufus and left quickly.

The young President shook his head as he flipped the folder open, looking at the profile on Cloud Strife, a red stamped word across 'his' picture, 'Deceased'. "Cloud Strife… your goal apparently seems to be in every way the same as mine. To stop Sephiroth, but why are you stopping me as well? We could have worked side by side to stop the man." The answer didn't come back, only he was left in silence.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The darker counterpart of Sephiroth grumbled as he sat upon his rocky red throne in the darkness of the abyss of the Planet, watching his mother pace back and forth, fuming and screaming nonsense.

"Oh, shut up mother. Your ranting is not going to bring him back. He's gone."

Jenova glared at him with her deep ebony eyes that never shone with any emotions. "Sephiroth! I had him! He was perfect son! Nothing you could be… so strong, so sweet… pity he couldn't do what I wanted him to do…" She snarled and returned to pacing. "Oh, Sephiroth, my darling…"

Dark Sephiroth rolled his intense jaded eyes. "Really, mother… I have a better plan. You should know better, all of the souls in the Middle Land becomes…"

"Summoned Ones… so what?" She snapped back.

"Right, when he becomes one, I assure you, he will be back with us."

The alien woman stopped and twirled her dark violet hair, pursing her lips. "Hm, you're right… You better make this work, if it all fails. You're going with the rest of the Planet!" She screamed and with a flash of crack, she disappeared.

"Whatever mother…" He drawled and sighed as he sat back down. "I have a better idea…" He laced his fingers together and rested his chin upon them, smirking. "Dear Cloud Sorano, I still wait for you…"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

In the Middle Land, every Summoned Ones except for Meteor and Sephiroth gathered, running about wildly as scream ripped though the air. Sephiroth swished his head from side to side, confused. "What's happening?"

Shiva stopped and gave him a frantic look. "Gaia is objecting to what's happening out there! She's sending Diamond to destroy Midgar!"

Sephiroth's jaw dropped again. This place, everyone had constantly amazed him to no end. "What? But why?"

Phoenix shook her head as she appeared by Shiva's side. "Gaia feels that Midgar is going to destroy her."

Sephiroth sighed deeply, understanding slightly better. "I think…" He frowned as he concerted at a thought that just occurred to him. "Cloud… Zack…" Then, his brilliant green eyes glowed as he looked back up at the two women. "I understand now… Midgar wants to destroy me, no, Dark Sephiroth, but I think Cloud is going to stop them…"

Shiva rolled her eyes. "Good, Cloud to our rescue…" She then soon disappeared in spark of ice and light.

Another angry scream ripped though the air and Sephiroth cringed. "Is that Gaia?" Phoenix gave him sad looks and a nod.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

As soon Avalanche stepped out of the Council house of the Ancients, the ground shook. "What, what the?" Cloud sputtered as she grabbed the wall for support.

Cid stumbled and gripped onto his staff to keep balance while Yuffie grabbed onto his jacket. "What the hell?" And Barret grabbed Tifa before she lost balance.

The ground stopped shaking and everyone made run to the Highwind. One of the pilot greeted Cid frantically. "It's a strange signal!" The entire airship blared and the light flashed on and off wildly.

Cid turned around, "From where? Here?" He peered at Cait Sith. "Hey cat! What's going on?" He shouted at the cat, grabbing its neck and shook him.

"Whoa, whoa, handle the product with care!" The cat yelped back. "Midgar is going into Red Alert, screwing up my single, also it seems to be setting Highwind's alert off."

Cid frowned as he let the cat go. "Why is Midgar going into Red Alert?"

"Weapon came out of the sea and is heading straight for Midgar."

Cloud stepped up to the cat. "The new weapon should stop him, right?"

The cat shook his little head, the crown almost toppling off. "I don't know if it's ready or not."

Barret shook his fist. "Hey! What's gonna happen to Marlene?"

Tifa placed a comforting hand on his hand. Leave it to the big guy worry about his daughter. "I think Marlene is in a safe place now. She's with Elmyra, right? I am sure Elmyra is taking her far away from Midgar."

Barret grumbled and nodded. "Guess you're right."

"Barret." The cat frowned at the man. "As long Marlene is safe, who cares what else happens, right?" He saw the black man nod his head. "I've been itchin' to say this to ya fer a while now!" The cat hopped off the mog and strode up to Barret, glaring at him. "When ya blew up Reactor 5, how many folks d'ya think died?"

Barret paled slightly knowing Reeve was right. Anybody could have cared for anybody, but Reeve cared for the people that lived in Midgar and he deserved to be right. "You're right. I was thinking for the Planet, gotta expect a few casualties."

The cat shook its arms at Barret in rage. "A few? Gah…" Then, Cloud picked the cat up, taking him away from the big guy.

"Hey, hey. That's no time to think about it. We got bigger problem. Look." Cloud pointed to the bay window of the cockpit.

During the argument between Reeve and Barret, Cid had lifted Highwind into the air and was heading on course to Midgar, over passing the massive silver and black monster, Weapon.

"That thing is going to kill a whole lot more people than Barret did," said Cloud, holding the cat to the window to get a good look at the monster. "We got to stop it before it happens. Cid, land over there." She pointed to the land that was right outside Midgar. "We got to try to stop it. We can do it."

Soon as Cloud placed the cat down, she pulled her pack out, pulling several red stones, the Summon Materias. "Come on, get all of your strongest Materia you got, and your best weapons. We can beat that thing!"

Yuffie jumped up and down, grabbing her weapon that already had some of the strongest Materia in the slots. "All right!"

Cid piloted the large airship and landed just far enough for the group to travel over where they would encounter the Weapon.

Yuffie, Barret and Vincent joined Cloud onto the ground while the rest waited on the Airship. The Weapon came closer and stopped just before them, looking down at them before releasing a loud guttural roar.

"Knights of Round!" Cloud called out, holding her sword as the ground shook, bringing forward the thirteen ghosts of Knights to attack upon the Weapon.

"Bahamut Zero!" Vincent held out his hands to the sky as he held the red stone, summoning the great Dragon. The sky became dark and brewed a storm before parting as the large silver metallic dragon came down, attacking Weapon with its ethereal fire.

Barret grumbled slightly before raising his gun arm that held a red stone in it. "Phoenix!"

As the Knight of Round faded away after the attack with Bahamut Zero, Weapon had released a powerful attack upon the party; wounding Vincent, Yuffie and Barret badly as Cloud were missed.

The song of Phoenix filled the air as the large legendary colorful bird in flame appeared, casting it's magic on the party and attacked the Weapon with her fire. She turned and gave a wink to Cloud, "One Winged Angel is all right in our care. Worry not and save Gaia for all of us."

Cloud smiled as she heard the Phoenix. "I will. Thank you."

The Weapon stumbled back and retreated to the water.

Tifa came running out of the airship to the party. "What's wrong?"

Cloud closed her eyes as the brunette approached. "The Weapon… Something's wrong…" She turned and ran to the airship, yelling back at the rest of the party. "Come on!"

By the time everyone got on the ship and went back up in the air, circling around Weapon once before heading to Midgar. They could see that the Weapon was charging up from its place in the water, facing and ready to destroy Midgar.

Cait Sith jumped frantically. "Get out of here! Get away! Something big… I'm talkin' really big coming!"

Cloud turned to the cat just in time to miss a bright light emitting from the Weapon's chest. She turned back in time to see a beam of light blast out of the chest, heading toward Midgar, "Oh shit!"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Inside the dark President's office, Rufus stood, facing the window. He could see Weapon in the distance, coming closer. He had witnessed the Avalanche attempting to stop the monstrous beast.

Heidegger came in, smiling, as he was riled up about something. "Sir! Preparation for Sister Ray is now in order."

Scarlet came into the office, grinning as wide as Heidegger was. "Anytime is fine."

Rufus gave them a nod and turned back to the window. "… Fire." He said without much enthusiasm. Scarlet and Heidegger left the room to comply the order, they never noticed the hesitance in their President's voice. Rufus moved closer to the window, watching the Weapon. "Am I making a mistake?"

"Do you think so?" Zack came out of the shadow, taking his place next to Rufus.

The blonde leader turned to the taller man. "I feel like I am signing a death contract."

Zack turned his head to Rufus. "You just did."

The President stepped back, turning his back to the window, hands on the desk. "Everything you told me about Cloud. I thought about it, you're right. I have been doing it all wrong. It's up to Cloud and his group to stop the right Sephiroth. I didn't know…" Zack moved to Rufus, taking hold of his shoulder.

Rufus turned to Zack, giving him a half smile that never reached his lupine grey eyes. "It's too late. Go, go and save yourself. You're free. Go, take Reeve and get out of here. We are all doomed. It's in Cloud's hands now."

Zack nodded once and made his way to the door and turned around. "Thanks. May you go peacefully. We will see to that the Planet has a better future."

Rufus smiled as he waved Zack out. "Hope you get out in time." He turned to the window to watch the Weapon, already powering up to attack soon. "May God take me in his arms when I meet him."

The ominous Sister Ray, sitting above the Midgar, directed toward the Weapon. The cannon had been connected to each Reactor that surrounded Midgar, one by one; each glowed, feeding powers to the large defensive weapon. The energy kept building until the cannon started to shake, rumbling low at first, glowing with halo of light, illuminating the entire city of darkened Midgar for a moment before blasting a massive wave of energy toward Weapon.

The Weapon's blast met with Sister Ray's energy blast, meeting there for a moment in suspense midway then twisted, spiraling across each other as it misses, toward Midgar and Weapon. Upon the same moment, the two burst in explosive blast.

The Sister Ray had too much power that it didn't stop at Weapon but passed though toward the Northern Crater, blasting away the protective barrier that was erected by Dark Sephiroth.

Everyone on the Highwind was glued to the bay window, had just witnessed the most spectacular moment that went down in history in awe and horror.

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Moment before the blast from the Weapon approaching Midgar, Rufus stood at the window, taking a last drink from the glass he held in his hand. He watched in silence as the rest of the city went about in chaos. The blast wiped out his building, taking him away with it and that was the last of Rufus ShinRa, the only heir of the ShinRa legacy. Rufus was no more.

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Zack stood outside the outskirt of Midgar with some of the people he had rescued from the slums with Reeves. "Gods… The Planet can be resentful." He whispered, standing close to Reeve, holding his small form in protective embrace.

Reeve sighed as he buried his head into Zack's shoulder. "There weren't time… We have to go back for survivors. Zack, I'm going back in, take command and put end to this. Go, take the people to Kalm, if it is possible, arrange for the Soldiers from the Academy to help and transport to Junon base. We will need all the helps we can get."

Zack let go of Reeve and smiled at him. "Right. It's time to put end of this chaos. There are more Weapons out there and we can't let this happen again."

The shorter man hugged the General one more time, whispering in his ears. "Thanks, you've been a best friend." Then, they parted to go back to Midgar or what's left of the Headquarter and to Kalm.

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Cloud was the first to turn away from the window. "Oh man…" She looked up to find the cat staring up at her. "What happened?"

Reeve's voice finally came though. "We got out. Rufus sent us away, he finally came to realization and it is up to you to finish this."

Cloud knelt down to the cat. "He's gone, right? I saw everything, it hit the Headquarter."

"Yes. I'm taking control. It's chaos here. I'm sending Zack out to evacuate most of the city as he can. It's going to get worse. The barrier is down at the Northern Crater."

"Right, we should go there now and stop him." Tifa knelt down next to Cloud.

The cat's head turned away from Cloud and started to speak. "Scarlet! Heidegger! What's going on?" Then, the cat went blank as he stopped moving, but the voice box was still on as Avalanches listened on.

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In the board room, or what was left of it, Reeve stood at the head of the table, half broken to the ground with Scarlet and Heidegger came running in, looking frayed.

The top part of Headquarter had been demolished, leaving half of the building still standing and functioning; Soldiers and employees were running around, screaming and going back and forth, still in effect from the chaos.

"Give me the phone!" The massive man grabbed the phone and dialed the number. Holding the receiver at his ear, listening and looked up to Reeve who was giving him a blank look, "His phone is dead. I can't reach him. No one can get up there."

Reeve looked away. "He's dead."

Scarlet gasped. "How can that be?"

Reeve gave her a cold glance. "This is not the matter. We have a bigger problem. The Reactors' output is increasing all by itself."

Scarlet paled. "W-w-wait a minute! That's not wise! It must be cool for three hours or it won't work. Reeve, shut off the machine!"

Reeve shook his head as he placed his hands down on the table. "We can't do that! It's impossible, half of the building's control is gone, half of everything is gone! We're in shamble!" He reached out and grabbed the phone from the massive man and dialed another line. He mumbled something to someone at the other end and his face paled as his eyes went wide. "Someone has switched the machine over to mainframe operation! That's why we couldn't operate from here!"

Scarlet's eyes went wide. "What about the mainframe? Who did that?"

The two turned to Heidegger. "Hey, call the mainframe!" Reeve shouted.

The man took the phone back and dialed, the other two waited and finally, he placed the phone back in its cradle, frowning at Reeve. "Huh? Why are you giving orders?"

Reeve's face stormed over. "I don't give a damn about the details! Rufus is dead, someone has to take over! Now, what's going on?"

The man shook his head. "Someone took over, we can't reach to the Mainframe, and nobody was able to." Scarlet scowled and quietly slipped out of the boardroom.

Reeve slammed his hand on the table, causing it to collapse under weak support. "Damn it!" Heidegger was already gone by the time he looked up and he took out his portable phone and flipped it open. "Cloud. I might need your help."

Cloud's voice came though. "We heard. We're on our way now. The Mainframe is in the center of Midgar, right?"

"Yes."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	37. S3:11: Demon's Death

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Eleven: Demon's Death

_But the cowardly, the unbelieving, the vile, the murderers, the sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars-their place will be in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death._

Revelation 21:8, The Holy Bible

Midgar was in chaos. The ShinRa building had took most of the brunt of the Weapon's attack and the cannon, which still stood was still running full on power, gathering energy from the Reactors all around the large city. Everyone below on the ground was running around in panic while the Soldiers were set out under Zack's command to regain control and evacuate the city.

At the mainframe control of the Sister Ray, sitting high above the city and before the large cannon, a man in white lab coat laughed. "Just you wait, Sephiroth. I'll give you all the Mako you want. My sweet Jenova… we'll be together!" He crackled.

The intercom buzzed to life and Reeve's voice came through, demanding, "Hojo! Stop, the cannon is unstable! Midgar is in danger!"

The oily haired scientist laughed again, pressing the button on the intercom, "One or two Midgar? It's a small price to pay." He cracked.

Reeve's voice came through, aghast, "No! Hojo! NO!"

However, Hojo pressed few buttons, cutting the intercom dead and worked on the control a while longer. "Show me… Sephiroth. It should be near. Go beyond the powers of science. Before your presence, science is powerless. Show me…" He then laughed more crazily.

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Cid stood next to the young pilot, directing him as the airship flew to Midgar. "Good, you know what to do, right?"

The young pilot nervously nodded. "Yes Sir, Captain Highwind."

Cid grinned at the youth and turned to Cloud who were handing him a pack. "We're here."

"Put that on, we're jumping into Midgar. We got no time to waste." Cloud turned to the cat again. "Reeve, can't you stop the Mako Reactors?"

The cat shook its head; the crown finally toppling off and it didn't bother to pick it up. "We can't stop it."

Barret frowned, growling. "You're from ShinRa, ain't ya? So why's it impossible?" The cat didn't reply for a while.

Cid stepped up; putting his two cents in. "We came a long way to get here. You better not double-cross us now!"

The cat shook slightly. "I can't make you trust me. We lost half of the power and someone had to do it manually and stop Hojo."

"Hojo?" Cloud asked, surprised to hear the name again. "What is going on?"

The cat turned to Cloud. "Hojo is at the Mainframe, controlling the Sister Ray; he cut off the controls from us. We can't do anything."

Cid growled. "You damn fool! Why can't you shut down the reactor?"

The cat's eyes went wide. "No way! If we shut down the reactors, all hell will break loose!"

Cid picked the cat up and shook it. "Why? Can't you just shut off the valves?"

"Yeah, it's easy to shut off the reactor's pipe valves. But the reactors made a path for the energy to escape from below. Once you open that, it'll be impossible to close it until everything blasts out, and we can't try to stop the energy from gushing out."

Barret barked. "An explosion!"

"That's right. This blast'll be way stronger than when the Reactor Five blew up."

Barret turned away. "Damn. What will happen if all da reactors blows up?" He asked.

The cat struggled and broke free from Cid's grips. "It'll make a huge crater where Midgar stand, making a hole. Forget about the reactors, we got to deal with the Cannon! We got to get to Midgar! That's the first thing. If it is turned off, the reactors can be safely turned off and the power will be rerouted back safely."

Cloud patted the cat. "Right, got to stop Hojo, first."

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Scarlet and Heidegger came back and had heard everything. "What are you doing?" Scarlet screamed. "You're associating with the enemy!"

Reeve shook his head. "No. They're going to help us. Stay out of the way!"

Heidegger laughed hollowly. "Don't be so ludicrous! I don't recall you givin' me any orders! The Peace Preservation will give their best effort to make the enemy retreat!" Scarlet smirked along with Heidegger while Reeve's eyes went wide. "The President is dead! Now I'm doing things my way!" Heidegger boomed, laughing more.

"That's right. Nothing can stop us. Come on, Heidegger dear, I'm going to use the new weapon!" She snapped her fingers and two guards came in and surrounded Reeve, taking him by the arms.

Reeve was flabbergasted as he realized he had been betrayed. "Hey! Wait! Cloud, everybody, I'm sorry!"

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Cloud stared at the cat as it went dead. "We're on our own." She announced and moved to the deck of the Highwind with everyone behind her. "Let's do it."

Barret stared over the railing, looking at Midgar below them. "Even if we get there, Midgar's under martial law. There'll be no way we could slip into the slums."

Tifa leaned over the railing too. "Looks like all the transportation from the slums is cut off."

"We're going under." Cloud announced. "We're taking underground tunnels. We'll have to split up into two groups." She pulled out a map that she had gotten from Cait Sith earlier. She unfolded the map and pointed to the blue print of Midgar. "Alpha group go this way, to the Sister Ray, Beta group go this way to the Reactors, to turn it off when Alpha succeeds turning off the Sister Ray. That's the only way we can do that. I hope Zack had evacuated the entire city in time."

Vincent peered at the map. "Whose Alpha group and who's in Beta?"

Cloud looked up at him. "I'm leading Alpha. Barret's leading Beta. It's up to the rest of you to decide which to join. We need just enough."

The red-clad sniper nodded. "I'm going with you."

Tifa pushed away from the railing. "Me too."

Cloud folded the map and put it back in her pocket. "Well, rest of you are in Beta. Got your PHS with you?"

Everyone took out their phones and showed it to Cloud, they had been previously set to speed-dial and open group connections.

"Good. Let's jump." Cloud stepped back and gripped the railing, not too happy that's been the choice of entering Midgar was by jumping.

"You're not goin' chicken' out, aren't ya?" Barret asked seriously.

Cloud sputtered at him. "What? Hell no!"

Tifa giggled and pushed Barret to the edge. "Don't worry about him. He's just teasing ya."

Cloud rolled her eyes. "Whatever, let's mosey."

Cid slapped Cloud on the head. "Wimpy!"

"Mosey!"

Yuffie watched the triads trading between Cid and Cloud. "And I thought I was the immature one?"

Cloud shot her a look and turned to everyone. "Here we go!"

Barret was the first to jump, yelling some curse words as Tifa, and then Cid and Vincent, dragging the unwilling teenager, followed him behind. Red hesitated and then jumped at last. Finally, Cloud stepped up to the railing and took a deep sigh, whispering, "Ikes…"

She made the jump and there were seven parachuting ascending down into the darkness of Midgar.

Luckily for Avalanchers, they landed into some random dark alley, not too far from each other's and met up soon enough. The Highwind was gone from the sky already.

Cloud took out her phone. "Reeve? You're still there?"

Reeve's voice came though. "Don't call me. Heidegger is going after you guys. Be careful. You're on your own. Zack is out of Midgar in Kalm. He's going to Junon for now."

"All right, thanks." She pocketed her phone and stood up. "We're all here. Let's go!" She went over to the manhole and lifted it. "Alpha Team with me now." She leapt down the hole and disappeared into the darkness, followed by Vincent and Tifa.

The Beta team went in shortly after, going in the opposite direction though the sewer until they hit the underground railway tunnels that connected all ten Reactors.

"Sounds strange comin' from me… But it feels like home bein' back in Midgar." Barret spoke roughly as he led the Beta Team, keeping his phone on with connection open, connecting with Cloud's phone. "Kinda makes me sick…"

Nanaki snorted. "I have an old score to settle with Hojo. But I think Vincent should hold the honor for us all."

Vincent's voice came though Barret's phone. "Thank you. I'll make him pay dearly for you all too."

"No problem." The wolf replied as he slithered alongside with Barret and Yuffie on his sides. Cid trudged from behind, guarding the rear ends.

In the opposite end of the tunnel, Cloud, Vincent and Tifa ran into Elena.

"What are we going to do?" Elena gasped, mocking a fake fear and turned into sneer. "I think its okay for you to ignore your orders now."

Reno appeared by her side, looking exasperated. "Elena. Shut up."

Rude came out of the shadow, ever so silently as he was. "We're Turks, Elena."

Elena gave him a nasty look. "Yes, sir. You're right."

Reno ran his fingers in his wild red hair. "I'm not really up for it, but…" He turned, facing Cloud. "Old roommates, it's a pity to see you killed."

Elena smirked. "That's right. Our orders were to seek you out and…" She was suddenly interrupted by Rude grabbing her shoulder and jerking her back.

"Shut up, girl."

Elena ignored him and went on. "Kill. Our company may be in turmoil, but an order's an order. That's the will and spirit of the Turks! Believe it!"

Reno and Rude rolled their eyes behind the dark glasses.

Cloud gave her a weird look. "Uh, I thought they told you to shut up."

Elena looked livid. "Ooh! You are going to get that! Little shit!"

Cloud sighed and pulled out her sword, grinning like a madman at her. "Bring it on little girl!"

Vincent drew out his sniper while Tifa balled up her fists.

By the time Cloud had completed a silent spell she was reciting in her mind. Ifrit appeared and roared fire upon the Turks, scorching them slightly but mostly surprising them.

Reno stepped back, holding his rod tightly, glaring at Cloud. "I know we've got a weird relationship, but… We have to end this like Turks!" He launched forward, zapping his electrorod at the three Avalanchers who dodged easily.

Cloud snorted at him. "Aw come on, Reno. Did you forget to train in the time between?"

Reno jabbed some punches at Tifa but received powerful jabs in return.

Elena ran to Vincent, giving him some high kicks, which he dodged easily.

Cloud rolled her eyes as she batted the jolts with her sword. "Aw come on, we got no time! I have better thing to do!"

Reno stepped back, drawing his electrorod away. "Wait, Elena."

The blond Turk twirled around, missing a shot from Vincent. "Reno! You're not violating the order, aren't you?" She was so furious that she looked out of place, her hair disarray while her uniform were scrunched up.

Reno glared at her, taking his sunglasses off, throwing it aside. "They're right. ShinRa's finished. It's come down to this."

Rude stood back, watching Elena, ready to hold her back because Elena had been furious ever since she had believed that Tseng died.

Elena's face twisted into some kind of pain and confusion as she turned to Rude. "Rude…" Rude shook his head silently at her and she turned away.

Reno moved to her, taking her shoulders and drawing her into a hug. "Elena, you were a great Turk! We can do better…" He let her go and turned to Cloud. "Farewell. If we both survive… If we can save our lives…" He then walked away with Reno and Elena following him silently.

Cloud placed her sword back in its hoist. "They were always the good people, working for the wrong company."

Vincent placed his gun back in his belt. "Let's go."

The three continued down the dark tunnel and found the exit, climbing out, entering the street that faced the Headquarter. "This way." Cloud pointed to the alleyway around the Headquarter that led them to the tower of Sister Ray.

As they approached the tower, making move to climb it, a thundering footsteps stopped them. The blonde fighter turned around and raised a golden eyebrow as she gazed up at the giant robotic mech. "Oh shit, you've got to be kidding me…" Vincent and Tifa turned, their jaws dropped as well.

"Cloud… I think one Knights of Round would do…" Tifa whispered as she stared wide eyed at the dark red and maroon mech standing before them, towering high at thirty stories.

The door on the top of the robot's head swung open, revealing Scarlet. "Hello dearies! You like my Proud Clod?"

Cloud sputtered at the woman. "Proud Clod? That ugly thing? Look like a bunch of junk!" Scarlet turned scarlet, fuming as she slammed the door shut and the mech robot, Proud Clod, moved ahead to attack.

Cloud reached to her sword and ran her hand across the familiar red stone. "Knight of Round, come." The ground shook around Proud Clod robot and the wall of red rushed up, enveloping the mech robot inside while the thirteen Knights bestowed their attack on the mech.

Cloud, Tifa and Vincent waited and watched the Knight of Round do damages. As soon it ended, the mech robot clunked and stirred, unable to do anything more and broke down. Scarlet was heard screaming anguish inside with Heidegger fuming and cursing at her for making a piece of junk.

"Nooo! This is the Proud Clod! Noo!"

The mech robot sparked and explosion was heard from inside Proud Clod.

Tifa shook her head in amusement. "Come on, we got a job to finish." She made her way up the stairs of the Sister Ray tower.

As the three reached the top, they found Hojo at the control, laughing manically. He was flipping some switches and turning knobs here and there.

"Hojo! Stop right there!" Cloud shouted, drawing her Ultimate Weapon. Vincent narrowed his crimson blazing eyes as he drew out the Death Penalty he was bestowed from Lurcecia, a perfect gift for revenge. Tifa moved into positions as she brought up her hands, gloved by Premium Heart gloves that packed powerful punches.

Hojo didn't acknowledge them but ignored as he continued his work. "Oh, that failure."

Cloud sneered at him. "At least remember my name! It's Cloud!"

The mad scientist paused as a crude smirk made its way to his thin lips. "Oh, that's right… The chosen one…" He turned around. "I had a plan, a big plan for you and Sephiroth. But it all ended when you escaped. That's why I evaluated you as a failed project, the failure."

Cloud snarled at him. "What did you do to me?"

Hojo shrugged his shoulder as he stood there calmly. "I only made you stronger, a perfect compatible companion for Sephiroth, to create a better race. You two were my Adam and Eve."

Tifa gaped in horror as she remembered the story Zack had told them and realized Cloud had no idea what had happened to her. "Cloud! Don't listen to him!"

Hojo's eyebrow rose as he glanced to Tifa, "Ah. He-he. So you know Cloud's truth," he turned to Cloud and smirked with oily smile, "You were perfect." Vincent growled, "This does not matter now, Hojo, meet your end."

Cloud frowned, suspecting something was amiss but shook the suspicious thoughts aside, "He's right, none of this matter. Just stop this nonsense!"

Hojo's grin grew wider, "Nonsense? Oh, this?" he turned and spread his arm wide to the Sister Ray before them; "Sephiroth seems to be county on the energy, so I am going to lend him a hand."

Cloud's blue eyes went wide, "why? Why do that?"

Hojo's face twisted into a snarl, "quit asking me why, you moron!" He turned to the control panel. "Energy level is at… ah, eighty three percent. It's taking too long." He went on button pressing. "My son is in need of power and help, that's the only reason why I am doing this. Sweet Jenova…" He murmured.

Vincent raised his gun and fired a shot. The bullet ricocheted off the control panel. "He is not your son." He said with deadly calm.

Hojo turned back around, peering at the tall red-clad sniper. "I know that voice… So long dead, you should be… Vincent Valentine, am I right?"

Vincent held the gun high, still aiming at Hojo. "You should pay dearly for all of your crimes." His voice was ice cold and ever so calm.

Cloud snarled at the doctor. "I can't believe you're the one who did this. The crime against many of us, Sephiroth, Zack, Vincent, Nanaki, and me… everyone who had suffered under your insane experiments. It ends now." She raised the sword, ready to strike.

Hojo laughed. "Hee, hee, hee! No, you're wrong! It's my desire as a scientist! Hee, hee! I was defeated at once long ago but… I've injected Jenova's cell into my own body!" He spread his arms wide as he kept on laughing. "Here are… the results!"

Tifa nearly screamed as Hojo transformed into something ghastly and horrendous. His skin turned green and his hair became thinner, sticking to his face as he became mottled.

Cloud groaned in disgust. "Let's kill him and put him out of his misery." She jumped and attacked Hojo who fought back as strong, surprising the three Avalanchers.

Vincent released few fires upon Hojo while Tifa plummeted few rounds of powerful jabs and punches. Hojo attacked as well and transformed again. He grew double head and turned purple, taking on some familiar appearance of Jenova that the party had encountered before.

Cloud sliced his arms immediately and Vincent started to use some of the Summons to assist them in the battle. Hojo transformed again into unrecognizable twist of deformity, no longer what he was once before.

Tifa blasted several volley of fire upon him while Cloud used her Limit Break, the Braver combined with Climhazzard. Finally, Hojo withered and fell to the ground, weak and spent. The blonde stepped back, gesturing her hand to him for Vincent to have the last attack.

Vincent aimed his gun at Hojo's deformed head. "At last, you're wiped from the Planet." With a single shot, Hojo was dead.

Tifa ran ahead to the control and gasped. "Cloud! It's almost at hundred percent!"

Vincent and Cloud moved to her side and worked on some buttons and switches until the numbers dial started to go backward to zero.

"Barret! In five minutes, it's safe to shut off the Reactors." Cloud announced though the phone.

Barret's gruff voice replied. "Good, 'bout damn time. Hojo's dead now?"

Vincent replied. "Yes. At last." He stared back at the rotting corpse that was decaying fast before his eyes. He knew Cloud wasn't ready to face the truth to what had happened to her during Nibelheim. It wasn't time yet, even though it made him very curious to the three children's purpose in the entire event. He supposed, perhaps, they had no purpose and hopefully didn't survive.

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Meanwhile, up in the Northern Crater, Dark Sephiroth stood in the darkness of his private chamber, holding a red glowing stone that his lackey had brought him, recently discovered.

"Hmm… You got out of mother's grasp. She wasn't too happy about it. But now I know where you went… My dear brother… Come forth…"

The red stone glowed.

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In the Middle Land, Sephiroth was watching Cloud on the plane's wall.

"One Winged Angel!" Shiva shrilled as she made way to his side, gasping at him. "Look! You're being summoned!"

Sephiroth looked down to his hands and feet, surely, they were becoming invisible. "Who would summon me?" Then, he was gone.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth opened his eyes as he found himself floating. Soon, he realized he was floating and looked to his left, seeing a black wing and on his right, he had white wing as well, almost transparent.

"Ah, you're one of the Summonses now."

He looked down and a frown knitted on his brow. "Dark Sephiroth, what's the meaning of this?"

Dark Sephiroth shrugged as he held the stone up to show his counter part. "You're mine now. I'm your master and you will do whatever I want you to do. You see, you're no longer in Jenova's hold but I have a better plan."

Sephiroth descended and stood on the ground, facing Dark Sephiroth as he curled his wings around his body protectively. "I will never be yours."

The darker counterpart laughed. "Oh, how wrong you are… you see, they're coming and I have a plan for you. It's such a pity that I am going to use you against your sweet little one…" He drawled and clutched the stone tightly, taking it away from Sephiroth's sight.

Sephiroth, or rather, the One Winged Angel stared at his darker counterpart, not replying back as he disappeared back to the Middle Plane.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	38. S3:12: Journey's End

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Twelve: Journey's End

_Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you._

Romans 1:10, The Holy Bible

"Seven days." Cloud turned away from the bay window on the Highwind, facing everyone. They had left Midgar after shutting the Sister Ray and the Reactors down successfully. They were currently hovering in the sky, circling while the Avalanchers held a meeting. "The Meteor is going to fall, in seven days."

Nanaki rubbed his head against Cloud's hand. "That's what Grandfather said."

Cloud turned to the red wolf. "You… you want to see everyone in Cosmo Canyon again?"

The wolf turned away, whispering, "Yes."

The blonde turned to the massive guy who was hugging himself, staring out of the bay window at the clouds below. "Hey, you want to see Marlene, right?"

The massive black man turned to Cloud, frowning. "Don't ask me that."

Cloud shook her head as she closed her eyes. "We'll beat Dark Sephiroth. Then, if we don't release the power of Holy in seven days… there won't be a planet left to protect." She shrugged her shoulders as she turned away from everyone, gazing out of the window. "If we can't beat Dark Sephiroth… It's as good as death for us. We'll just go a few days sooner than the rest who'll die from Meteor."

Barret scowled as his rough voice rumbled. "Don't be thinkin' you're gonna lose before ya even fight!"

Cloud snapped as she turned around. "No!" She heaved a long sigh, gazing up into Barret's dark eyes. "What I meant was…" She turned facing every one. "What are we all fighting for? I want us all to understand that. Save the Planet… for the future of the Planet… sure, that's all fine. But really, is that really how it is?" She stepped forward. "For me, this is a personal feud as you all know that. I want to beat Dark Sephiroth and get Sephiroth back; go back to what it was once before. Barret, you want to beat him for Marlene's future. Tifa, for Nibelhiem and for the children. Vincent, for Lucrecia and Sephiroth. And Nanaki for Cosmo Canyon and Seto. Yuffie, for Wutai. We all have different reasons, but can't we go back at least one or two days, just maybe…" She sighed and turned away again. "Maybe it could be our last time."

Barret looked away as a tear fell from his eye. "You're right. It sounds cool sayin' its to save the planet." He grumbled slightly. "But I was the one who blew up that Mako Reactor… Lookin' back on it now, I can see that wasn't the right way to do things. I made a lot of friends and innocent bystanders suffer…" He shook slightly as his hand balled up into tight fist. "At first, it was for revenge against ShinRa, for attackin' my town. But now…" He shook his head, he was crying openly and freely. "Yeah, I'm fightin' for Marlene. For Marlene… for her future… Yeah, I want to see her one more time before I go ahead in this last battle, or whatever it will be." He broke down, tears streaming his face.

Tifa embraced her arms around Barret. "Shh, it's all right."

Cloud turned back to him. "Go and see her. Make sure you're right, and come back." Turning to the others, she smiled. "All of you. Get off the ship and see whomever you're fighting for one more time. Then, come back."

Cid lit another cigarette. "Maybe ain't none of us'll come back. Meteor's just gonna kill us anyway. Let's just forget any useless struggling!"

Cloud gave him a withering glare. "I won't hold it against you if you don't come back. But I am going and hell I'm not giving up. I know my future. It's down in that damned Northern Crater." She pointed behind her out of the bay window where the Northern Crater was ahead of them.

Cid rubbed the back of his neck and turned to the pilot, whispering some commands and turned back to Yuffie. "Hey, let's get you to Wutai."

The teenage girl nodded. "Yeah, let's."

One by one, Cloud watched each member head down to the quarters below to pack for the next few days and leave the Highwind to head out to their hometowns. Finally, it was just Tifa and her left behind with the airship out in the grassy field not far from Nibelheim and Rocket Town, they had no where to go and no one to see and they decided to camp and wait for the others to return in few days.

After the Highwind left them, Cloud was found lying on the grass, watching the clouds passes by, changing shapes. Tifa made her way from the camp and sat on the grass beside her.

Silence passed between the two for a while until Cloud opened her mouth. "What are you going to do, Tifa?"

The brunette turned to her. "Did you forget? I'm… all alone. I don't have anywhere to go."

Cloud pushed herself off the grass and leaned on her elbows, turning her head to Tifa. "No, that's not true. Zack told me that your brother and cousins are still alive. They're all at Junon Harbor."

Tifa's cinnamon red eyes went wide. "Really? I forgot about them… oh…" She looked away as she remembered something. "That's right… they think I'm dead."

Cloud shook her head. "That's in the past. Go, go see them. They're your family and you deserve to see them again. They would be happy to learn that you're alive."

Tifa smiled and stood up. "You're right. But, what about you?"

Cloud looked away, watching the clouds again, smiling. "Don't worry about me. I have everyone here with me, in my heart. It doesn't matter to me if nobody comes back; I'm still going down there and find Sephiroth."

Tifa nodded, bowing her head. "He's waiting for you. I was afraid Yuffie had found out your secret but I'm glad she hadn't, it would had made a whole lot more mess. I believe in you, I can see how much you love him and he loves you. I just wish I have that. I thought I would have it with you," She laughed, "that were before I found out. How funny it turned out."

Cloud turned her head and looked up to Tifa from the ground, smiling, "You'll get that kind of love someday. It takes a right person to give you that."

Tifa smiled back, "I'll come back. I promise. As your friend, no matter what, I'm going to be by your side to face Dark Sephiroth."

Cloud smirked at her, "Thanks, go on. Go and find your brother and cousins."

Tifa nodded and returned to camp and in short time, she had loaded her bag and hopped onto the chocobo that they were left with. She sped off toward the horizon toward the Junon Harbor. Cloud watched until she disappeared over the horizon and turned back to the darkening sky, watching as the stars appear.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cid grumbled as he trudged though the town of Wutai, dragging Yuffie behind him. She was very unwilling to face her father but Cid had suggested it would be the best for the two to reconcile and settle their problems.

Bury the axes… hopefully not into each other's backs. He though as he finally stopped and turned around and lifted the teenager girl over his shoulder, ignoring her screams and kicks as he passed the villagers to Good's house.

"Put me down! I can walk myself!" Yuffie spat as she kicked, trying to get off Cid's shoulder.

"No can do. You tried to get away the last time. I'm takin' you there."

Yuffie huffed and settled down, fuming.

Cid chuckled as he got to the gate of Godo's land and saw him standing in the garden, apparently expecting them.

"Come in." The lord of Wutai waved his hand at them and Cid entered the gate, putting Yuffie down.

The young teenager looked down, trudging her foot in the dirt, not daring to meet her father's eyes.

"I hear that you have been trying to save the Planet." Godo walked up to them. "I am proud of you. You have proved me there was a better way. After that trial, you still proved me wrong farther."

Yuffie peeked up at her father though her unruly bangs. "You're serious?"

Godo smiled at her. "That's right." He then looked at Cid. "Thank you, for taking care of her. You have been better father than I was in short time."

Cid felt pang of guilt. "Nah, I'm no father. Yuffie just need someone watchin' after her. She's a big girl and can take care of herself. Just need some encouragin'."

Godo bowed his head. "Yes. I haven't been encouraging her. She had run away, fortunately for me, she ends up in your company and I am grateful for that. I had been expecting you, daughter, since the Meteor had appeared in the sky."

Yuffie puffed her bangs out of her eyes. "Oh. Sorry, I've been busy, you know, doing rescue mission and fighting for the Planet and all that." She waved her hand.

Godo laughed at her and gave her a noogie. "It's good to see you again. Come and have dinner with me before you go back?"

Yuffie nodded and turned to Cid. "Can he come?"

"Yes, he can." Godo smiled at the pilot. "He is welcome any time."

The two Avalanchers followed Godo into his house.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Vincent Valentine stood at the entrance of Nibelheim. The town looked about as normal as it could be, with people busying around, except for one difference, everyone was expecting death to befall them soon with the Meteor hanging in the sky.

He entered the town and walked among the people, heading toward the ShinRa mansion. He never thought he would want to return to the damned place but he was here.

"Lucrecia. If things had gone our way, without Jenova and Hojo's interfering… we would've been a normal family, happily raising our son." He whispered as he entered the long forgotten overgrown garden. "I thought it was a burden of guilt of a sin. But with Cloud and the rest, I've learned, there was no sin, just a cruel twist of fate that befallen us. Oh, Lucrecia, my love, I do pray that Sephiroth would have a normal life, if we ever succeed."

He sighed and sat down on the bench where he had found Lucrecia sitting at one time when he proposed to her. He rubbed the cool stone, remembering the past.

"For you, for Sephiroth." He stood up and walked out of the gate, not looking back as he left the town. It was all he needed; a moment of reflecting and that was all.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Barret found his way to Kalm and was shocked to find the town overflowing with casualties from the slums. He trudged though the crowd, looking for familiar face until he bumped into a tall ebony haired man with violet steel eyes. He grumbled and stepped backward, noticing the man had the uniform of the General of ShinRa's Army.

"Oh shit!"

The man turned around and stared at him. "Do I know you?" he frowned as he thought he recognized the black man.

Barret's eyes widened slightly as he mumbled. "Oh shit… damn, of all the place I'd to bump into a general of ShinRa… Hey, it's me Barret!"

The man laughed. "Ah, I thought I recognized your voice."

Barret cocked his head in confusion. "How the hell?" He gestured to the town.

"Junon was full, we had to redirect some of the refgree into other towns and Corel was willing to take some in."

"Good." Barret gruffed as he glanced around.

"So, what are you doing here, and alone?" Zack asked curiously.

Barret shrugged, "I came to find Elmyra and Marlene. I was told they came here. Cloud sent all of us out to see our families, friends, whatever before we go and face da damn Sephiroth."

Zack frowned and looked around in the crowd. "Check that inn, I think I met her. Cute little girl with short brown hair and brown eyes?"

Barret nodded. "That's her."

"She's in that inn. She is in good hands with Elmyra. I am heading out to Junon right now. Good luck."

Barret grunted a thank you and got lost in the crowd while Zack left in the opposite direction, heading out of the town with some people.

Upon entering the inn, he was relieved to find it less crowded and spied a little girl. The girl turned around and saw him. She let out a squeal and ran to him. "Daddy!"

"Marlene!" He scooped her up and gave her a bear hug and sloppy kiss. "I miss you. Are you okay?"

Marlene nodded as she kissed Barret on the nose. "I miss you too. Auntie Em says we're goin' to stay here until you come back. You're back! Are you finished?"

Barret shook his head sadly. "No, honey baby. I came back to see you. I have one more job left to do."

Auntie Em, or Elmyra showed up and smiled at Barret. "Oh, you're here. It's rather a mess now. What is happening?"

Barret shrugged. "Midgar got hit. We're on our way to finish the whole thing."

"Oh dear!"

"Anyway, I'm here to spend some time with my little girl before I go. Let's say we go over to the restaurant and get some good dinner?" He asked his daughter and was received a joyful squeal. "Dinner is it, then." He smiled as he led Elmyra out of the inn with Marlene in his arms.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Tifa leaned on the railing, overlooking the calm ocean with the Meteor hanging in the sky above at Junon Harbor. It had taken her a while to get there but she was here and now she had been searching for her cousins and brother.

But due to the Midgar being attacked, Junon Harbor became busy, taking in more soldiers and casualties and she wasn't able to find him or anybody else.

"Hey, were you looking for Timothy Lockheart?" A young cadet in naval uniform appeared by her side with a slip of paper in his hands.

Tifa turned to him. "Yes. Is he here?"

The cadet waved his hand, motioning for her to follow him. Tifa complied and followed the young cadet though the base until she was placed before a door in one of the soldier's apartment complexes.

"This is his room. I think he is in. Good day." The cadet left, leaving Tifa at the door.

"Here go." She turned to the door and knocked.

The door opened and a tall dark brown haired man with cinnamon red eyes looked down, frowning. "What is it?"

Tifa gulped, recognizing her brother, older and rugged. "Timmy?"

The man frowned. "What, no one called me by that name for years…Oh gods! Tifa, is that you?"

Tifa nodded, a tear rolled down her cheek. "Yes, it is I."

"I thought you were dead. The ShinRa told me you were killed in the mountain during your tour guiding years ago. How did that happen?" He grabbed Tifa in a fierce bear hug and welcomed her into his apartment.

After sitting down at the table and given a cup of tea. "I got a long story to tell you… Oh, it's great to see you again…" Tifa smiled at her brother who was almost crying. "I didn't die. The ShinRa lied, lied about everything…"

And the two talked though the night, sharing memories and some sibling squabbles between the two.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Nanaki returned to Cosmo Canyon, making his way up to where Seto watched over the town and sat next to his stone figure. "Father, you have given me a large burden. I hope you are proud of me."

"Ho ho ho. He is indeed proud of you, son."

The red wolf turned to find Burgenhagen sitting next to him. "Grandfather." He nuzzled his Grandfather's hand as the old man rubbed his head.

"Just one more battle, isn't it?"

"Yes."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud stood on the grassy hill in the front of her camp. She had been camping out there for the last three day, enjoying the peace. The sky was still dark but with a hint of morning twilight peeking beyond the horizon to her side. Today was the day and she knew it in her heart.

Standing up, she stretched and tugged the gloves back on her hands and brushing her shirt of the dust. Then, she sat down on the grass, resting back on her elbows, set to watch the dawn coming.

The grass rustled and she turned her head to see dark silhouette coming over the horizon of the hill. The person came closer and she saw it was Tifa, smiling at her.

"Tifa, you're here."

"I promised." The brunette woman hugged Cloud. "I told you I'd be here."

"Yeah." Cloud turned and saw few more figures coming. "Look…"

Cid appeared with Vincent and Yuffie at his sides. Barret then appeared with Nanki following behind.

"We're here." Barret grunted, half smiling at the blonde fighter. "We're all here, we all started this and we all see to the end of this."

"That's right. We're goin' to get that bastard down." Cid grabbed the blonde and gave her a rough noogie on the head.

"Hey, watch the spikes!" Cloud protested playfully and wiggled out of the pilot's grip, giving him a punch in return.

"Hey, look…" Tifa pointed to the east. Everyone turned and watched the sun rise, giving a beautiful pinkish dawn. After they watched the dawn, they all returned to the airship, going to their normal station, Cid at the pilot control while Yuffie sat on the other control board with Vincent half hiding in the shadow. Nanaki was sitting nearby Cid while Barret and Cloud positioned themselves at the bay window and Tifa on the side.

"Hey, hey…" The cat hopped onto the mog and made a bow.

Cloud smiled at the cat. "Reeve, you're back."

"Yeah, I got the station again. It's going be tough managing to get the people out of Midgar and rebuild the Headquarter in a different place. But I'm here, and so is Zack. We're going to see this though with you all."

Cloud grabbed the cat off the mog and gave it a squeeze. "Great, glad to have you guys back."

Barret gave a curt nod. "I guess that's everyone."

"Thanks everyone." Cloud said as she placed the cat back on the mog.

Barret grunted a snort. "We didn't come back for your spikey headed ass! We came back for Marlene. Guess it's jes' my… watcha call, feeling or somethin'." The man shook his head. "I, uh, I ain't got no words now…"

The wolf gave him a withering look and a lopsided smile. "Although she's not here, she left us a window of opportunity."

"We can't let it go like this."

Cloud nodded at Cid. "Aeris… Let's all go together. She should've returned to the planet by now, something stopped her and now she's stuck… We've got to let go of Aeris's memory."

Tifa clasped her hands together under her chin. "That's right. She needs to rest in peace."

Cid slapped his palm on the control deck. "Has anyone here changed their mind?"

Cloud smirked at him. "I'm counting on you, Cid, you better not change your mind."

The pilot gave him a look. "Hell not, not likely in a million year!" He turned to the control. The airship took off to the sky. "Hey… there are two levers here that've been buggin' me for a while now…" He reached to one of them. "Let's try them out."

Cloud peered over the control, curious. "What is it?"

Cid shrugged. "All right, so what should I do? You decide, Cloud."

Cloud pursed her lips. "This is our last battle. Our target is the North Cave. Our enemy is… Dark Sephiroth! So let's move out!"

"Right on!" The pilot crowed as he flipped the levers. The Airship rumbled and the side panel on the outside strips away from the exterior, several of extension appeared. Extra rudders, and jet-propulsion engines appeared. The Highwind then roared its engine as the jet blasted, speeding the airship across the sky like a comet streak.

"Oh damn! My baby's full of surprise!" Cid grinned with glee.

"We're almost to the North Cave." Cloud whispered as she stood at the bay window, watching the land and ocean blur below them.

The Highwind flew closer and close to the Northern Crater and landed near the mouth of the crater. Cloud smirked and stuck a tongue at Cid. "Let's mosey!" And the pilot grumbled.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Upon the edge of the cliff down to the Crater, the group gathered together, their weapons ready.

"Uggh… How would you even know? You don't know how tough it is… getting sick on boats and rides… So, please… just leave me alone." The young teenager groaned as she turned into different shades of green.

"I really do understand, kid. When I get sick on a flight, it's a real killer. When I was in Soldier, I completely forgot about my motion sickness."

The youth glared at Cloud. "Oh… do you have that white tablet?"

Cloud laughed at her. "Nope, got no more, you used the last of my pack. But try this. If you're nervous a lot, you won't get sick. But you can't always be nervous. Right?"

Yuffie nodded balefully.

"So, it's better for you to move around while you're riding. It's also might be a good idea to stretch sometimes, too."

The youth nodded and tried to do some stretches while Cloud turned to the rest of the team. But, she was stopped again when Yuffie tugged on her shirt. "Hey, sign this for me?"

Cloud frowned as she took the paper. "What is this?"

The girl smiled weakly. "An agreement, if you die, I get your Materias." Everyone groaned at her.

"Forget it girl." Cloud tossed the paper to the wind and Yuffie whined. "You guys ready?" She turned to everyone.

Everyone gave their affirmation and started to follow her down the steep trail to a cave in the Crater's wall where it would lead them to Jenova and Dark Sephiroth.

"Shh… the radar is detecting some life forms around here." Vincent whispered as he held out small radar that he had picked up in Midgar recently. It picked up life form, helping them to see where the monsters were hiding. There were so many in every crook and nanny of the cave.

Cloud gave him an affirmative nod. "Thanks. Weapons ready?"

Each drew out their weapons, some guns cocked, announcing they were ready and armed.

"Ooh, lemme at some of them…" Yuffie whispered and was slapped over the mouth by Vincent.

Cid harshly whispered back at her, "Shut up… we've gotta save some of our energy for Darkie."

Yuffie nodded and pried the hand off her face. "Eeee… Vinny, your hand's wet and cold!"

Vincent looked back at her. "I didn't touch you."

The teenage girl's eyes went wide and she turned around. "Ooooy…" She then let out a blood-curdling scream as a zombie like monster boggled at her.

Cloud spun around and they were soon surrounded by few more of those zombie monsters. "Oh here we go…"

They all lashed out in battle against the monsters that kept coming down at them, attacking them with strongest power attack that froze, killed or put them into coma.

Finally, when the last one fell. Cid and Cloud went and helped the rest to cure and heal, even wake up everyone else.

"Oy…" Cloud hauled the teenager up. "You promise to shut up? I'd hate to go back to Highwind and get a duct tape for your mouth."

The girl nodded and strikes a salute. "Yuffie pwomise."

The blonde leader laughed at her and slapped her head. "Come on. Let's get going. Vincent?"

The raven-haired sniper held the monster detector and shook his head. "None ahead for a bit."

Avalanche followed their leader into the next part of the cave and was encountered with a steep hole in the ground and the green light glowing at the very bottom. There was narrow ledge along the wall spiraling all the way to the bottom.

"Oy, anybody got fear of height?" Barret mumbled as he looked over the edge. When no one replied, "Guess not. Let's get this over with… ugh…"

One by one, each shimmered along the wall, careful to not fall over the edge until they reached the bottom with luck of no monster encountering them.

"Vincent. Can that thing map out the area?" Cloud asked as she moved to the tall sniper.

"Yes. But not precisely. But it would show us the path…" He worked the device in his hand and it made a soft beeping as it mapped out the whole cavern ahead. "There are two paths that end up together. Should we split?"

Cloud rubbed her chin as she thought about it. "I think so. We'd cover more ground and if we pick up some more things, it could help. We're running low on elixir, we sure need to refill them up. There oughta to be natural springs around here."

The sniper turned the device off and pocketed it. "Alpha and Beta team again?"

Cloud laughed and shook her head. "No, split four and four. Barret, Tifa, and Nanaki with me. You take the rest."

Vincent turned to Cid, Yuffie and Cait Sith. "Come on." Then they took the right path and Cloud took the left path.

They didn't know that the right path was very direct and easy while the left path was shorter but harder, filled with monsters ready to pounce and attack from every corner and shadows.

Yuffie pulled on Vincent's cloak as they entered another part of the cave. It was huge and the ceiling was unseen. "Look…" She pointed to the strange structure of the wall that was broken off on the top. Compared to the other walls, it was smooth and curved.

Cid grumbled as he ran his hand across it. "The walls are strange here, some of them are smooth, rough, and slimy, what's next?"

Yuffie shook her head and ran back up the path. "No, come here! Look! You can see it here."

Cait Sith hopped over to her and took a look. "She's right. Good gods…" Reeve whispered. "Looks like a breeding ground of something…"

Vincent moved to Yuffie's side and took a look around. The chamber of the cavern was vast and huge as hundreds of broken topped walls turned out to be huge eggs, creating labyrinth across the chamber. "Weapons. The Planet created Weapons here… It seemed like it."

"Let's get out of here…" The teenage ran ahead and found the exit across the chamber, which led them into a spiraling bone structure that bridged over glowing Mako pool.

In the left path where Cloud's party went though, they were having hard time to fend off the monster but made it though several chambers, but fortunately for them, each chamber were smaller and nothing compared to the right path's caverns. They've crossed underground forest full of strange kinds of plants growing everywhere, snarling the path and the walls.

"I hope this is the last passage." Barret wiped his brow after shooting some oversized bats down.

"I think so." Cloud went ahead and entered the last cavern with stepping stone leading to another exit. The stepping-stone was slippery and ebony black with glorious bluish waterfall cascading down one side of the cave, glowing with hint of green.

"Oh my, if it weren't so dark and dangerous, this would be a paradise." Tifa whispered as she stepped down the stones after Cloud.

"Yea… Wouldn't live here anyway. This is a hell hole with pretty faces." Barret grumbled as he followed behind with Nanaki straining to climb the stones on four.

"Whatever, can somebody help me here?" Nanaki yowled as he slipped off one of the stone and was caught in time by Barret.

"Two legs are better for this kind of path."

"Shut up." Nanki snapped at the big man and stalked ahead to catch up with Cloud.

"Come on, there is it!" Cloud pointed to the exit, they all could already see glowing green light coming from it and some talking. "Hey, it's the other party!" She ran ahead and was greeted by the other party.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Dark Sephiroth sat on his stony red throne in the mist of the darkness, smirking as he rolled the red stone in his hands. "Hmm… They're here…"

The angelic Sephiroth appeared. "What is it?" He asked curtly to his counterpart.

"Oh, they're here… it's time…" The darker side stood up and reached out to touch Sephiroth who cringed as the hand connected with his chest.

"What, what are you doing?"

"Making us a god. Just what we always had wanted… you have the power and I have the mind, together, we'd rule the world… first thing first, we're going to let them get rid of mommy dearest."

Sephiroth winced as the pain coursed though his body. "What the hell?" He looked down and saw that his dark brother's hand merged into his body as their bodies came closer. He nearly bowled over in pain.

"Ahh, delicious. Mommy had done her part. It's our turn. We're stronger and we can do better than she did… Now, we're going to be one…"

Sephiroth bit his lips, trying to not cry out, but his mind screamed as their bodies became one.

"Oh, the power… this is good… Well, I don't need this any more." The Dark Sephiroth tossed the dull red stone away.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Oh no… He's not coming back." Shiva looked around, worried as Sephiroth had disappeared.

"Look…" Phoenix pointed to the portal window. The Summoned Ones gathered and watched the scene of Dark Sephiroth merging with the One Winged Angel. "He's taken to the darkness…"

"Damn! That bastard… He was the strongest of all of us… never got a chance…" Ifrit growled as he burst ablaze.

"We have one hope left…" Ramuh waved his staff and crack of lighting shot to the portal window and the image changed to Cloud and Avalanche at the bottom of the crater. "They're strong and our hopes lie in their hands."

"Bunches of mortals… how foolish." A dark voice that no one had noticed boomed.

"Ah, Odin." Ramuh turned to greet a massive god of the Nibel brooding behind him. "What is the other option do you suggest?"

Odin glowered at the thunder god, his yellowish eyes blazing underneath the helmet.

"Nothing. At least all of us are in their hands and we surely will be ready to assist them."

"I'm ready to kick ass if they use me." A large red dragon chortled.

"Bahamut dear, we all know that." The dark black dragon, Neo Bahamut shook his long head and trudged away to lie next to Leviathan in her massive form of the sea dragon.

"Let's watch and hope for the best." Leviathan raised her head and nodded once at Ramuh.

Ramuh turned and with crack of thunder from his staff, the portal window widened large enough for everyone to watch.

Every one of the Summoned Ones had gathered, to watch Avalanche head into war against Jenova and Dark Sephiroth.

Three dragons, Bahamut, Neo and Zero moved together and huddled with Leviathan, the water dragon. Phoenix sat with Shiva, Ifrit and Alexander, the holy judgment knight.

Thirteen Knights of the Round sat at their round table, their sword lay out, pointing to the center all around, in honor for Avalanche.

"Am I late?" A yellow plump Chocobo appeared and nearly everyone groaned.

"Oh, come on over here. I saved you a seat." Typhoon waved at him and Choco-Mog joined him with Titan and Kjata.

Hades and Odin sat separately, far away from everyone, brooding in their darkness as they watched among the rest.

"Judgment Day begins…" Ramuh whispered.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Hey! Where the hell you've been?" Cid stood up from sitting on the ledge of the path that surrounded the glowing green light of the depth as he saw Cloud exit the second cave mouth.

"Long way, too many monsters." Barret came out and slumped onto the ground, grabbing Tifa's pack and searched though for a water bottle.

"Well, we're here at last." Vincent pointed to the greenness down below. The entire cavern they all stood in was circular and the pathway surrounded the wall, with stepping-stones that lead to the center of the Planet floating suspended.

Cloud peeked down and her eyes went wide as she gaped. "Jenova's there… Sephiroth… he…" She clutched her head as another scream ripped though. "Ahh… it hurts…"

Tifa gasped and knelt beside her. "What's happening?"

Cloud rocked back and forth. "Uhg… I can't find Sephiroth but Jenova and Dark Sephiroth are waiting for us…" She groaned and let go of her head as the pain subdued.

Vincent helped her up and handed her a water bottle that she gladly accepted. "It's all over now. With this…"

The girl looked slightly green as she kneeled over to the ledge, looking down. "Oh man… 'Materia Hunter Yuffie' sounds like the last chapter of 'Materia Forever.'"

Nanaki snorted at her. "All life on this planet, indeed the very life of this planet is in our hands…"

Reeve's voice came though the cat. "Gods… I'm glad I decided to join your side. You guys are the best fighter out there…"

Zack's voice was heard following Reeve's. "Oh shut up. You're just kissing them up because they might die."

Cloud bopped the cat on the head. "You shut up, Zack! You haven't been here with us!"

"Ok, okay, sorry, your majesty!" The blonde rolled her eyes and turned away from the cat.

Barret stood up after finishing a bottle. "Well… looks like this is our last big job and we ain't getting any pay…"

The cat bobbed its head. "Maybe you'll get hero honors and some good pays… if you guys make it out alive."

Barret growled at the cat. "Right, you've been real helpful." He scowled sarcastically.

Cloud crossed her arms. "This will be the end of it. Judgment Day is here."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	39. S3:13: Judgment Day

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . T H R E E : T H E . J O U R N E Y . I I . **

Chapter Thirteen: Judgment Day

_And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great Day._

Jude 1:6, The Holy Bible

"This will be the end of it. Judgment Day is here." Cloud announced.

She and Avalanche stood on the bottom of the crater, looking down at the spiral of suspended stone stairways into the green misty oblivion. "The center of the Planet?" She whispered as she stared into the void of bright greenness.

Cid leaned to look over her shoulder. "Well, this is it. Let's just get this over with." She stood back with Cid and nodded, turning to look at each member.

Tifa looked nervous but managed to smile. "This is it…" She punched her fist into her hand.

Barret heaved a long sigh and gave her a curt nod. The red wolf slithered around few members, also waiting to get on with the final mission. His fiery tail twitched back and forth stiffly in slight hint of nervousness.

Vincent was holding onto the teenager's back shirt to keep her from falling into the greenness as she looked down on her knees over the edge. "Oooy…" She muttered, looking rather green not from the glow of the crater.

Cait Sith bounced slightly nervously in the back of the crowd. The cat seemed to have worried look on his robotic cat face.

Cid turned to the girl and gave her a bear hug. "It's great knowing you." He smiled at her and ruffled her hair while she giggled. Cloud watched on the two and shook her head with a smile. Cid and Yuffie had become close and created a family among themselves ever since they came around the Forgotten City. Vincent seemed to linger more often with the two, becoming close to them. The three looked like they needed family and found each other.

She turned and saw Barret's eyes lingering onto Tifa and sighed. She knew within her heart that the big guy did have feeling for Tifa and didn't complain that the buxom brunette was ignorant to hi.

She turned and saw Barret's eyes lingering onto Tifa and noticed the brunette was also shyly glancing back at him. She could tell that they had not confessed their feelings for one another yet and hoped they would soon. She could see the potential between the two of them.

Barret blinked and glanced at Cloud who was watching him. "Awright, this' the last dance!" He cocked his gun-arm and the barrel spun eagerly.

Nanaki's head bobbed once. "We finally made it here; it's time to finish this."

Cait Sith bounced in agreement, Reeve's voice booming though. "Well, shall we get goin'?"

The blonde laughed and watched the cat's eyes and she could almost feel that Zack was also there physically with her and knew he was there for her.

The red-clad sniper swished his cloak, his hand on the sniper. "Hmm… Being with all of you was not so bad."

Cid snorted and smacked the back of Vincent's head lightly. "You think it's not so bad? Come on! We're all in this together, no matter what!"

Cloud gave a short laugh and turned to start down the suspended stone platforms that led farther to the very center of the Planet. "All right, everyone, let's mosey."

Cid stomped his Javelin on the ground, glaring at the blonde fighter. "Damn! Again, stop sayin' it like a wimp! Can't you say 'Move out!" or something'?" He muttered.

Cloud gave him a pointed look that there is no time to argue about it. "Move out!" She barked and leaped onto the second platform as the rest followed behind, all of their weapons ready and armed. She could hear Cid giving a short barking laugh behind her and she couldn't help but smile.

Soon as they moved further down into odd spiral, zigzag path of the suspended stone platforms, the team started to break up so they wouldn't be stranded alone on the platform.

Cloud looked up as rumbling roar started to swell above them. Everyone else did the same and saw numbers of monsters coming down.

"What?" Barret gaped, his gun-arm pointing above. Red snarled by his side.

Off on another stone, Cid cursed. "Shit! They're comin' out in force!"

Barret and Cloud locked their eyes together. "Cloud! You go first!"

The blonde shook her head. "No, I'm staying here too."

Barret growled. "Shu'up! It won't do us any good wit' everyone back here!"

Cid turned his head, looking down over to the stone where Barret and Cloud argued. "Barret's right. You take two of us with you and go first. The rest'll catch up with ya later."

"Is this like a practice run before the real thing?" Tifa asked.

Cait Sith bobbed its black head. "Yeah, a major practice runs…"

The teenage girl clamped her arms around the sniper, irritating him as she danced in her spot. "Ooh, I'm fine with this. I'll stay rather go down there to Sephiroth…" She looked down and moaned sickly.

Vincent's eyes seemed to gleam with a smirk. "Hmm, this might be fun to pass time…" The girl shot him a look.

Barret looked up again as the roar became louder as several of monsters started to descend closer to them, circling. "Cloud, hurry up and make up your mind!"

The blonde sighed, knowing Cid and Barret was right. "All right…" She quickly scanned her team to decide which one she should take with her ahead. "Vincent, Nanaki."

Yuffie whined as she tugged onto Vincent's cloak but then let go as Cid moved to her side and gave her a comforting smile. The red clad sniper leapt gracefully onto the next stone platform with Cloud. Red was already there, his tail flickering.

The blonde looked up at the rest of the team. "All of you, later!" With final look back and she hurdled down to the remaining steps while the rest of the team started battling the monsters. She trusted that they would all come out alive and trusted their abilities up against the crude looking monsters of Jenova.

Few obstacles crossed their path, stopping them from going on ahead. The three fought them off and continued until they reached the bottom to a strange crystalline platform made up of cubes and triangles. The green mist of the Planet's lifestream howled around the edge.

Red looked around as he stood by the leader. "Where are we?"

Cloud's golden brows furrowed into concretion. "We're at Jenova's base."

True to her words, an inhuman wail that could rival the banshee's cry shattered around them.

The trio winced as the howl died down.

Jenova appeared, her serpentine form with odd billowing orange skirt like mist flowing from the waist down. Her skin was pale purple while her hair flew about her head in wild wind. Her eyes were sunken and deep black, as if there were no soul within. She sneered at the three, floating above them.

Cloud gaped at the woman. "Jenova…?"

_So, you came at last._

The woman lashed out, attacking them first with her snakelike lash. Cloud bounded back and slashed the lash away with her sword. "Give all you can." She told the other and looked back up at the monstrous woman. "It's time for you to leave the Planet."

_Never! She hissed back. I belong here, always had; this Planet has power I want._

Cloud growled. "Too long, it had been. You've weakened, retorting to use others to fight your battle!"

Vincent needn't to be told what to do. He drew out his sniper and started to shoot at Jenova, hitting her with magical force. Jenova screamed as the magic filled bullet hit her in several places and lashed out her attack toward him.

The wolf used his magical abilities and started to summons several god and goddess of the Summon Materias they had found during their quest.

The ground shook and several lights appeared. Shiva appeared and waved her arms, casting her spell of Ice Diamond up on her. '_You had imprisoned us to the Planet when you abused our power.'_ Her shimmering voice bellowed.

The red light of ball turned into demonic form of Ifrit. He conjured up a large spell of fireball and blasted it to the serpentine woman. '_Now it's our turn to bestow our revenge!_ '

Cloud smiled at the two forms of Fire and Ice. "Thanks guys!" She called as they turned and gave her regards.

Shiva looked sorrowful, _'I regret to tell you that One Winged Angel is not among us anymore. Dark Sephiroth has him.'_

She nodded since she had suspected something of like had happened. She took out a red stone and murmured the spell. The ground shook more violently than before and the trio disappeared as the whirlwind of dark colorful wall swirled up around Jenova. Thirteen massive ghostly men in knight armors appeared, several of weapons slashed, barring blows upon her. She screamed and tried to defend herself but couldn't as several of weapons hit powerful blows. Then, she found herself pitched into the blackness as the final silver knight loomed over her with deep crimson red liquid cape billowed behind him.

Her black eyes widened as she screamed. The knight drew his sword up to cast the final blow of the Knight of Round. _Curses! Not again-n-n! _Her howl faded away in the wind.

As the trio appeared again, Jenova was gone, her remain littered around them and disappeared. It seemed as if everything were over.

"That's it?" Vincent asked as he drew back his sniper.

Cloud shook her head as she winced at the throbbing headache after summoning a powerful summon. "No, it's not over. She's still alive within Dark Sephiroth. We have to erase every last trace of her." Then the trio gripped on one another as the cube-like area started to shake and break apart rocketing up skyward. She gasped as everyone started to fall down toward the green glow, absorbed to the very heart of the Planet.

"Yahhh!" Yuffie's scream echoed as she tumbled downward and then she gasped as she jolted to stop suspended in midair, looking into the darkness. She could feel her adoptive father by her left and few others around her. It was pitch black in the darkness around her. "Ooh, what's going on?" She dared to ask as the ominous music grew around them.

Avalanche turned to the glowing white sphere ahead them and found they're arranged in circle to face the sphere. Questions swam though their head.

Cloud stared ahead. _A light… is this… is this light… Holy?_

_::No, my love.::_ A soothing voice full of sorrow replied.

Then the light seemed to wash over them all and they found themselves facing the red stone structure that looked very much like a throne upon a stage, white light seemed to pulsate from the center.

The dark-skinned gunman groaned. "Oww! Damn, man!"

Cloud winced and tried to twist toward Barret. "Don't fight it." As everyone heard her, they stopped to struggle against the unseen pain pulling at their bodies. She groaned as she struggled to not scream out loud as the unseen force seemed to rip her apart from inside.

The other watched on, waiting and wincing as they heard Cloud groaning, stifling a scream. They all knew Cloud was the one who were suffering the most and the target of malice from Dark Sephiroth.

"Sephiroth!" Cloud spat as her blue eyes opened to find the man with an evil smile, standing before her; she saw the familiar glint of her Sephiroth within the darker one.

Tifa gasped from the side of Cloud as Sephiroth appeared suddenly out of thin air. Barret growled from another side. "Ugh! Is this… the true power of Sephiroth?"

Cid groaned. "My… my body!" He struggled to speak. "I can't control my body… Uhggh!"

The evil drew back from Cloud, facing everyone. He was mentally manipulating everyone, pulling at every limb. Mirth of evil was plastered on his face as he enjoyed this but focused more pain upon the leader, the blonde. Everyone groaned and screamed as the torture continued.

Cloud glared at the green-eyed evil. "Stop this!"

Then, everyone gasped as the torture stopped. But the pain still lingered.

Dark Sephiroth turned to the blonde again. "You may kill mommy dearest…" He looked down to his hands, pretending to study his fingernails. "But, thanks to you as I had planned, now I have the full reign of power!" He threw his head back and let out a menacing evil laugh.

Cloud kept on glaring at the man but whispered to the others. "Holy… holy is there… The Holy is shining…" She could see beyond the darkness and down in the deepest fathom of the Planet, a small white pearly light shone. She smiled as she felt the prayer of her lost friend. "Aeris is praying…. It's shining…"

Tifa smiled weakly, feeling hope filling her up. "Aeris…"

The Dark Sephiroth stopped his laughing and glared at Cloud. "It's not over yet."

Cloud nodded as the man disappeared again. "That's right. It's not over yet." And everyone started to descend upon the large red rock platform unceremonially. Cloud turned and pointed to Cid, Yuffie and Vincent. "You three, take up that side." And she turned to, "Barret, Tifa and Nanaki, take the other side. I'll have Cait with me in the center."

The tall woman stepped forward to lay her hand onto Cloud's shoulder. "We are not gonna lose." She smiled and joined with Barret and the wolf on the right.

Cid smirked as he took his place at the left. "I can't be foolin' around in the bottom of this hell hole. I still have lots of stuff to do with my life!" He drew out his weapon and stood ready.

Cloud gave everyone a last glance and looked ahead as Sephiroth appeared again. "Aeris's memories… our memories… We came to tell you our memories. Come Gaia!" She screamed, but not at Dark Sephiroth but to the Planet that surrounded them. "Show us your answer!" She then looked back down from the darkness above to the green eyes. "And Sephiroth, to settling of everything!"

The entire place shook as the lightening cracked behind Dark Sephiroth, blinding everyone for a moment. He raised his arms above him and started to transform into something bizarre. He grew and loomed above them, his body shifting into something vaguely of Jenova, yet with crude wings spread behind him. Cloud gaped as she faced before a large bizarre Sephiroth and noticed another figure attached to the back of the larger form, the real Sephiroth, his face etched in sorrow. His body was merged with the larger one and he wasn't free to do anything but watch.

Cloud shifted the ragged Buster Sword in her hand and it glowed, transformed with the borrowed power from Gaia into magnificent weapon, the Ultimate Weapon, shining with all colors that swam in the metal surface, its edge razor sharp and humming with life in her hands.

She closed her eyes, looking deep into her own soul and found her rhythm, her song and started to sway. She moved back and forth, dancing slowly to the unheard song that swelled from the depth of her soul. As she did this, the two groups on her sides unleashed their flurries of attack upon the Bizzaro Sephiroth.

Tifa leaped into the air, giving all she had with her punches and kicks, her energies bursting though with each blows. Barret let out a wild volley of bullets upon the creature of Sephiroth. Nanaki raised his head to howl to the moon for his blood lust and attacked with his powerful jaws and claws.

On the other side, Cid had commanded volley of Highwind's torpedoes upon Sephiroth. Vincent transformed into Chaos, his inner powerful beast and bestowed the magic of death. Yuffie threw with all her might, attacking her Conformer upon Sephiroth repeatedly and casting several Materias magic upon him during in between the throws.

Cait Sith gambled his magic skills and attacked with his best.

With colors of the nature swirling around her, Cloud opened her eyes and her eyes shone brilliant blue, glowing as she moved her arms, swinging the massive blade into deadly pattern, conjuring up the most powerful attack she ever delivered. She leapt in the air and unleashed the Omnislash, the blade sending blows of thousands upon Bizzaro Sephiroth.

Bizzaro Sephiroth didn't have chances to defend himself as many attacks rained all around him. He staggered and tilted sideway, unable to hold himself up and then he fell, falling beyond the platform, disappearing in the air.

The entire place grew pitch black once again. Yuffie screamed again and there was a distinctive cursing from Cid, yelling at the teenager to stop screaming all the time. Short brief laugh from Vincent and Barret growling softly on the other side, Cloud also heard Tifa whimpering as well.

She turned away from the sounds and suddenly they were hit with blinding light. She felt her feet land on solid ground and the light swirled, shifting, allowing them to see one another again. She found herself standing in the front of Avalanche. She stood up straight, gripping the sword in her hand and turned around. The pastel color started to swirl all around them, creating barrier before them. Cloud understood and met the Avalanche's eyes.

"This is my fight alone. You all can help when I say so." Cloud said.

Barret started to protest but was held back by Tifa. "No, Barret. He's right, this is his fight now. We all had done our job."

He grumbled and stepped back with the others, "don't get yourself killed." And she smiled at him.

The ominous music filled the air, changing tempo. From around them, they could hear strange choir singing, their pace fast and confusing.

_Estuans interius ira vehemnti – estuans interius ira vehemnti -_

_Sephiroth! _

_Sephiroth! _

_Burning inside with violent anger, _A female voice solo sang, translating the song into their language.

_Sephiroth!_

_Sephiroth!_

Cloud adapted her stance, holding the crystallized sword ready as she watched a handsome angelic man descend toward her. From the waist down, he had six beautiful white and purple wings weaving about ever so gracefully, keeping him afloat.

Cloud gaped at him, he had done it, and he had turned himself into a god.

Two large golden halos shimmered behind him, glowing beautifully. His right arm was entirely a black and greenish wing, protruding from the shoulder. His hair was silver, billowing ethereally behind him, tied back from his face, showing his handsome face, the face of Sephiroth.

She knew, it was a twisted and morbid face and song of Sephiroth, twisted so evilly, masked with beauty of a god. It made her heart wrench in sorrow. She started to sway, her body moving to the beat of his song.

_Sors immanis Et inanis – Sors immanis Et inanis_

_Fate, monstrous and empty… _The female voice filled the air, her voice had deep sorrow and Cloud wondered who it belonged to.

Even if the god-like Sephiroth looked beautiful, his eyes were still evil and cold, without the sign of life within.

"Oh, this is real creepy…" Yuffie murmured as she watched between Cid and Vincent, grasping onto his crimson cloak.

Vincent tilted his head to the teenage girl and looked back up to the One Winged Sephiroth. He had understood the strange tongue of the song that filled the air around them. It was morbid, yet fascinating as he wondered why it was sang like this.

How he could know for such fate to befall a man once long ago? Would he have been able to change the future if he had the chance in the past? He closed his crimson eyes as he thought of the man's true mother, Lucrecia. _I'm sorry, love._

Cait stood still, not bouncing around as he usually did. The black eyes of the cat watched for the two men behind the control, Zack and Reeve. They watched on as Cloud started to weave a long hypnotizing spell they never knew about.

"What is Cloud doing?" Reeve whispering, daring to break the ominous singing of the choir.

Zack shook his head slowly, his eyes never leaving the screen as he watched Cloud go into a trance-like movement. "I do not know. I think she's trying to bring up the ultimate limit break."

Reeve frowned as he looked away from the screen to Zack. "I thought Omnislash was the ultimate limit break for her?"

Zack looked away finally. "No. Even if anyone has reached Ultimate Limit Break, they can access to their most powerful limit break similar to the ultimate one, borrowing the power from the Planet. It is only mentioned as a legend. I think we're going to witness the very first Ultimate Limit Break of the Planet being done." The two returned and watched on.

_Veni, veni, venias, Ne me mori facias _

_Veni,veni, venias, Ne me mori facias_

_Come, come, O come, do not let me die_

_Come, come, O come, do not let me die!_

The One Winged Angel, the god-like Sephiroth kept a tight-lipped unwavering smile as he lashed out attacks upon Cloud.

Cloud didn't flinch as the attack bounced off the barrier she had conjured up earlier. Focusing sorely upon calling the Planet's power to help her, she wavered and moved in trance-like, swaying the massive crystalline sword slightly in circular movement as she felt the energy swarming up though from her feet to her torso and then though her arms to the tip of the crystal sword, feeding the sword.

Her blue eyes opened to look up at the One Winged Angel again.

_Veni, veni, venias, _

_Gloriosa_

_Come, come, O come,_

_Glorious_

_Ne me mori facias_

_Generosa_

_Do not let me di-e-e…_

_Noble_

_Veni, veni, venias, _

_Gloriosa_

_Come, come, O come,_

_Glorious_

_Ne me mori facias_

_Generosa_

_Do not let me di-e-e…_

_Noble_

The crimson-eyed brunette chewed onto the knuckle of her fighting gloves as she watched. She gasped and squealed quietly every time the god-like Sephiroth lashed out against Cloud. Barret, somewhere during the time, he held Tifa's shoulder to keep her calm.

_Sephiroth!_

_Sephiroth!_

Cloud raised the crystal sword up to her face level and lowered her body, feeling the energy building up in her calves and leapt with burst of power, bringing down her sword for the first of the thousand blows of her Omnislash upon the beautiful angelic Sephiroth with no soul behind the green eyes.

Everyone watched on, gaping as Cloud set out flurries, bursting blows upon the One Winged Angel. Her sword looked like a thousands of sword, barring attacks everywhere all over him.

_Estuans interius ira vehementi_

_Estuans interius ira vehementi  
Sephiroth!_

_Sephiroth!_

_Sors immanis Et inanis _

_Sors immanis Et inanis_

_Veni, veni, venias, Ne me mori facias _

_Veni, veni, venias, Ne me mori facias_

_Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa  
Ne me mori facias, Generosa  
Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa  
Ne me mori facias, Generosa_

_Sephiroth!_

_Sephiroth!_

Cloud finally stopped mid-air, holding the sword down with energies sparkling and swirling around the crystalline blade. She glanced down into the green eyes of the one who stole her love.

_"Sephiroth, come back to me!_" Her mind cried as the energy building up to the maximum.

_::Do it, love. You have to kill me in order to kill him.:: _A reply came.

She closed her eyes and pushed the sword down in one final blow. The loaned energy of Gaia blasted and hit true.

The One Winged Angel drew back, battered as his angelic white feathers charred floating down around Cloud. She looked up as she settled back down on the ground, watching Sephiroth stagger and the background color started to flicker to the darker color. The god-like Sephiroth stumbled, struggling to stay afloat, losing its beautiful appearance and then, in burst of light coming from his body, he disintegrated into nothingness.

Darkness fell upon them again and everyone's eyes adjusted to the darkness to find themselves back on the stone path on the bottom of the crater where they had started. The green glow of light from the center glowed, giving light in the cave once again.

Cloud stood on the first step of the stone stairway, looking down. "This was all we could do." She was straining to suppress the tears that were fighting to break though. She felt so drained and tired with heavy sorrow blanketing her heart. The sword reverted back into its battered state of Buster Sword, hanging limp in her hand.

Barret frowned as he leaned forward from the top ledge of the cavern. "Wait! What about Holy? What's gonna happen to the Planet?"

The blond spikes turned as the blue eyes looked up to the massive man. "That… I don't know. Isn't the rest up to the Planet?" She asked. She had been searching inside to find something since they all found themselves back where they started. She had found emptiness.

Tifa leaned forward from the ledge on her knees. "You're right. " She looked down into the greenness. "We've done all that we could do."

The leader looked at each member of Avalanche. "All right, everyone. It's no use thinking about it. We'll leave all our worries here. Let's go home proud."

Cid nodded as he tugged Yuffie away from the ledge, following Vincent and Nanaki toward the cavern exit to go back up to the top. Barret gave one last look into the Planet's heart and followed the rest.

Tifa waited for Cloud to get back on the ledge and they both started to follow.

"Uhghh!" The blonde stopped, groaning as she clutched her head as something screamed inside, nearly ripping her apart in two.

Tifa turned quickly to find Cloud stumbling in her steps. "What happened?" She asked, worried.

Cloud lowered her head. "I feel it…" Her eyes rolled back as she fell back toward the greenness.

"What…" Tifa yelped as she tried to grab the blonde but she slipped though her grasp into the greenness. "No!"

Cloud stumbled and quickly used her cat-like reflex and twisted to land on the stone platform. She looked up, wincing at the thunderous pain in her head. "He's still… here…" She told the other woman.

Tifa watched as Cloud clenched her head, swaying back and forth. Her ghostlike twin parted from her solid body, swaying as well.

"Cloud!" She called to her, reaching out.

"He's… laughing…" The blond fighter whispered as laugh echoing though her head. She stood up and stumbled toward the edge dangerously of the stone platform suspended in mid air.

Tifa's crimson eyes widened as she watched Cloud spin around and stumble backward once again, now going headfirst into the green. "Cloud!"

Cloud blinked and found her self twirling headfirst down into the darkness of the Planet. She stared ahead, as she kept falling forward downward to somewhere below, perhaps to another dimension. Memories of her past life started to pass by her in images. She could hear soft sounds of the past as well. The emotions were so overwhelming that she couldn't figure what to feel, there were sorrow, joy, chaos, peace and all others she couldn't identify. All she could let them wash over her as she goes deeper.

Elementals passed by her as well, the earth, the water, the air and then finally, nothingness as her body shifted and she floated down to taps her feet firmly on the ground. Her eyes opened to find someone she had expected standing before her.

The Dark Sephiroth.

She had not killed him yet, but separated him and Sephiroth. Behind the Dark Sephiroth was the ghost of the real Sephiroth, mocking the stance and the move of the darker one. He had more genuine smile rather than the former. They both had Masamune as well in their hands, drawn and ready.

Cloud had the crystal Ulitma Weapon gripped tightly in her hands. She soon adopted her usual stance, her sword shimmering with energy that flowed from her. She could feel the Omnislash coming on rather quickly. The energy didn't come from the Planet, but from her heart, the depth of her soul.

Dark Sephiroth's lips curled up in a smirk, holding the Masamune at eye-level, catlike.

Cloud felt nothing for the man before her. He was nothing but son of Jenova, the clone of_ her _Sephiroth. The ghostly Sephiroth adopted the same stance as his solid twin. However, his eyes showed different, he had deep sorrow within. He nodded once, giving her what she needs to know.

_Free the dream within_

Cloud closed her eyes as she let the energy wrap around her again. She could barely feel herself lifting off from the ground as she leapt gracefully into the air. Everything seemed numb to her.

_The stars are crying a tear_

The energy swirled around her and directed though the Ulitma Weapon, her arms moved in synchronized dance as she gripped the sword, slashing thousands of blows upon Dark Sephiroth.

_A sigh escapes from heaven_

He didn't cry out or anything, but took it as he stood there. The energy burned at every slash.

_And the world's end_

The energy dimmed and she paused in mid air, holding the sword down above the Dark Sephiroth. Her eyes had remained closed the entire time. Focusing on the energy and it came back in full blast as she thrust the sword down, releasing the mass of energy toward the evil, letting it explode in million of lights and stars.

_Breathe the dream within_

As the energy drew out of her, she fell back, feeling drained and exhausted. Her blue eyes opened to watch Dark Sephiroth stagger back with numerous of bleeding cuts. He clutched his chest with free hand and fell down to his knee, his eyes never breaking contact from her blue ones.

_The mystifying_

The ghostly figure didn't follow, but remained as he looked down upon his counterpart, standing behind him. Dark Sephiroth struggled and stood up again. His face was twisted into anger then horror.

_We tremble and spin_

Cloud watched him stagger for a while longer then all the sudden he was lifted off the ground, his mouth open in silence scream. He was drawn backward until the light steeped out of every wound he had on his body. The light grew brighter and brighter, blinding Cloud.

_Suspended within_

The light enveloped Dark Sephiroth and darkness pitched again, yet only shower of glowing red ember fell around where the evil once was.

Her head fell down to her chest. She heaved a long sigh, running her hand over the Ultimate Weapon's slots where several Materias was stored.

_Look beyond where hearts can see_

Her head lifted slowly to meet with intense emerald orbs staring down at her with swirl of emotions. Her lips turned into a small tiring smile.

_Dream in peace_

The man with emotional emerald eyes smiled in return and disappeared within the darkness. Cloud stood up straight, dropping the sword to the ground with soundless clatter. The light emitted from where she stood and green glowing tendrils and droplet of lively energy snaked around her upward.

_Trust,_

The feelings were cool and warm all the same, overwhelming of emotions of all kinds of serendipity surrounded her.

_Love,_

She reached out to touch one droplet as it dissipated though her fingers. The tendrils kept on twirling around her tighter until it became a sphere with her inside.

_Believe_

"Lifestream?" She wondered as the light enveloped her with such warmness.

She then felt herself floating within the sphere of light and the light evened out as she stood back on the ground. She watched the green glowing droplet play bouncing upward and dissipating toward heaven. Her hand reached up to meet them; she could sense the spirit of Aeris around her, with such peace and love.

_We tremble and spin_

A hand reached down from the light above, reaching toward Cloud's outstretched hand. She felt light bubble of laugher rising inside her. Finally, she could at last be reunited with the one she loved dearly at last.

_Suspended within_

But then, the glowing light disappeared, revealing where she had been the whole time. The center of the Northern Crater, hanging perilously on the ledge.

_Free the dream within_

Tifa reached down with her hand, she was leaning forward while her other hand gripped onto the narrow ledge of the wall. Massive boulders and debris crumbles all around them as the Northern Crater collapsing.

_The voices calling, a song_

Tifa was still too far away to reach to the blond fighter.

_A prayer from deep inside you_

Cloud still felt overwhelmed with the spirits of the Planet. They were calling to her, asking her to come to them and rest.

_To guide you_

The blond fighter turned away from the offered hand as she felt another presence behind her. Her heart swelled as she gazed into the emerald eyes full of love again.

Sephiroth had his hand outstretched, reaching for her.

_Be the dream within_

She reached to have her hand clasped within his large but warm gentle strong hand. He pulled her slowly back to him.

_The light is shining_

Her head turned to give the tall girl a final look._ "Good-bye, maybe we will meet again."_

She watched Tifa scream at her, but her scream fell upon deaf ears. All she could hear was the Lifestream and their calling.

_A flame on the wind_

Cloud felt herself floating toward the one she loved and his warm arms embraced as she met him, their bodies colliding.

_Salvation begins_

The darkness fell around her again as she held onto him.

"_Where are we going?" _She asked, not wanting to break the eye contact. _Look beyond where hearts can see_

He smiled and held her tighter. _"To rest for now. We need to heal with the Planet. It is over. Let the Holy do her work." _His voice sent warm shiver down her spine as she buried her head into his chest.

_Dream in peace_

Feeling tired, she closed her eyes to lie beside Sephiroth, not even letting go of his hand. They both fell within a long and peaceful dream while the world around them moved on.

_Trust, love, believe_

Tifa gasped as she fell back on the narrow ledge after watching Cloud disappear within the glowing lifestream of the Planet. She had lost her to the Planet once again and there is no way for her to retrieve her at all.

_We tremble and spin_

_Suspended within_

_Free the dream within_

_The stars are crying a tear_

_A sigh escapes from heaven_

_And world's end_

She dropped her head into her knees as her body wracked with sobs. She then looked up to the greenness as the warmness rose from the Lifestream, projecting warm and peaceful feeling over her.

_Breathe the dream within_

She looked up with her crimson eyes to see the whitish glowing green pool in the crater. "I understand." She whispered back as she felt Aeris' peaceful presence soothing her.

_The mystifyyiing_

She smiled as she looked up at the darkness above her. Somehow everything will work out, no matter how.

_We tremble and spin_

_Suspended within_

_Up above the crater upon the barren land, a ghostly woman in white appeared. Her arms spread open wide as the gown swirled about her,_

_Look beyond where hearts can see_

_Dream in peace_

_Trust, love, believe_

_Her face was immenseness in serene with peaceful smile as her pale, pale blue eyes sparkled._

_We tremble and spin_

_Suspended within_

_She looked up to the sky where the large fireball hurling toward the planet. "Come, my love… Come… I am waiting for you." She called out to him._

_Free the dream within_

_The voices calling, a song_

_A prayer from deep inside you_

_To guide you_

_The ethereal spiral of light grew at the hem of her gown as she glowed and disappeared, leaving a spark of light._

_Be the dream within_

_The light is shining_

_Meteor came as he was beckoned._

_A flame on the wind_

_Salvation begins_

_Look beyond where hearts can see_

_Dream in peace_

_Trust, love, believe_

_We tremble and spin_

_Suspended within_

_Free the dream within_

_The stars are crying a tear_

_A sigh escapes from heaven_

_And the world's end_

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please?_


	40. S4:1: Children of Fate

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter One: Children of Fate

_I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last._

Revelation 22:13, The Holy Bible

_This chapter is dedicated to all of the heroes who had to go and save the unfortunates in all of the time though history._

_Fithos..._

Sephiroth, in the depth of the darkness, songs of the Planet filled him, his every pore, bones and skin as he replenishes in the joy and the sorrow of the soul of Gaia and thousands, millions of others. His green eyes opened to the greenness of the Lifestream, memories washed as he turned, not by his own will but facing thousands of faces that were from his own memories until it all became one.

_Lusec..._

Aeris Gainsborough.

The angel he had killed, no. It was Dark Sephiroth, his counterpart, his alter ego, his twin brother, his clone, who had killed her. Yet, he harbored the guilt of her death.

_Wecos..._

"Aeris Gainsborough." He greeted her solemnly, recognizing her, as he had never really met her before in his own life, his own consciousness.

_**Vinosec! **_

The woman, ethereal and angelic as she always was smiled as her hands clasped together in her trademark prayer as her soft, yet unlike his, green eyes shone with trusting and compassion. "Sephiroth Crescent Valentine, son of Vincent Valentine and Lucrecia Crescent, and the love and soul mate of one and only Cloud Strife." She regarded him, the true self-being of him self.

_Fithos lusec wecos vionsec…_

He bowed to her in his, what could have been his father's heritage of Wutaianese's formal greeting, "Yes that is who I am." Then as he stood back up, he saw faces appearing behind Aeris, ancient and wise, the faces of the Cetra of the Planet.

The girl turned around, facing them. "The Cetra, the Planet had summoned you to Council to determine your future."

_**FITHOS LUSEC WESCO VINOSEC! **_

Sephiroth frowned in confusion. "Am I being put on trial? What crime have I done?"

Aeris turned back to him, her face showed sadness and pity, "crime against the Planet."

Sephiroth sighed as he closed his eyes. "Very well, who will speak for my behalf?"

She gave him a half of a heartwarming smile. "I will."

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi mei… - Arise from your sleep, my children…_

The silver haired man nodded and frowned as he looked around. "Then, where is Cloud?" He asked, as he had not seen sight of her yet and he could feel her nearby.

Shaking her head, Aeris looked at him. "She will not be here. The Planet has nothing against her but wishes for her to rest in peace for a while. Stress and burden had tolled her heavily."

_Surgite! – Arise!_

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi mei… - Arise from your sleep, my children…_

Meanwhile, Tifa sat on the ledge looking across to the other member sadly. "Is everyone okay?" She asked.

Cid and Barret lounged on the other ledge with Red and Cait Sith.

_Arise from your sleep, my children… - Excitate vos e somno, liberi mei…_

"Yeah, we're all right. You?" Barret gruffly asked as he leaned back against the stony wall.

"I'm glad you're all safe…" Her red eyes turned downcast as she stares into the abyss of the Planet. "Cloud… oh Cloud!"

_Cunae non sunt – Your cradles shall no longer exist_

"Hey, he's gone… Did his part… don't worry about him." Cid called across the cavern.

She looked up and gave a half smile. "You're right. But… now what're we going to do?" She shook her head as she glanced away, resting her head on her knees, they had no idea who Cloud really was. Hope was tiny in her heart, yet each moment passes by, it grew, slowly as she recalled the prophecy of the Valkyries.

Nanaki stood up and paced back and forth on the short ledge. "Holy should be moving soon, that means this place will…"

Cid stood up as he stared up at the top. "Oh, Lady Luck, don't fail me now…" He trusted his fist upward. The entire cave started to shake violently and something fell among the boulders and dirt above them.

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi fatali – Arise from your sleep, children of fate _

Cid's never seemingly ending cigarette fell from his lips as he gaped. The rest of the party followed suit and cursed softly under their breath as their eyes widened in surprise or shock.

The airship came crashing down, it's nose down at them and the picture exposed on the side of the Highwind of a lady in red bikini, still winking and smiling vacuously.

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi fatali – Arise from your sleep, children of fate_

"Whoo! Come on!" Yuffie yelled from the deck as she threw down the ladder.

"Oh damn! So that's where Vinny and Yuf disappeared to!" Barret crowed and grabbed the ladder, helping Nanaki and Cid up. He then got on and swung over to Tifa's side, grabbing her before the Highwind started to climb back out of the crater and away high and above safely. Yuffiie and Vincent had given them the slip after they had recovered from their battle with Bizzaro Sephiroth and they had no idea where they had gone, but apparently, to retrieve the airship to make their escape.

_Liberti fatali… - Children of fate…_

The entire part stood outside on the deck, leaning over the railing as they watched in the darkness of the night. The crater was spewing Mako, glowing and growing until it blast skyward, forcing the Highwind away forcefully.

_Arise from your sleep, children of Fate!_

"Whoa…" Barret murmured as he grabbed Tifa before she was thrown across the deck.

Cid cursed as he grabbed the other mysterious lever that labeled for emergency and pulled it down as the Highwind was thrown off balance and dived down to the ocean below. The entire ship shook and roared as more strips of panels exploded from the shell of the exterior, exposing a sleek craft resembling more than a blimp. The ship rolled sideway and the jet engine roared as it regained the balance and control as Cid piloted the airship away from the giant Mako fountain.

_Children of Fate…- Liberti fatali…_

"Oh man…" Yuffie moaned as she held onto the railing and frowned as she noticed something in the darkness. "Hey! What's that?" She pointed to the pinpoint glowing light below.

_Arise, arise, Children of Fate! Arise! Arise!_

Vincent and Barret moved to her side with Nanaki peering over the edge.

"Holy…" Nanaki replied as the pinpoint light grew brighter and brighter as the tendril of green and white sparkling light grew, blanketing the land and ocean.

Tifa gasped. "Oh, look… it's so beautiful!"

"Holy's covering the Planet."

As the green white tendrils and lights spread, growing massively across the surface of Gaia, the Meteor came hurling down to Midgar.

_Liberti Fatali!_

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

_Sotto me wo tojitara – If I softly close my eyes  
Mieru sekai ga aru – A world appears to me  
Mugen ni hirogaru sora – A sky, extending to infinity  
Kokoro no uchigawa ni – In the inner part of my soul_

In Kalm, everything was quiet and calm as the day marked the doomsday. Every shutters and doors were bolted locked while the families stayed inside, waiting for the final moment of their life.

Yet, up in the tower of the Kalm Inn, Marlene moved away from the table, curious as she sensed something and went to the window, pushing open the shutters.

Her brown eyes gleamed with curiosity as the green white light glowed across the horizon like strange dawn.

_Inochi wa kagayaite – Life shines  
Katari tsuzuketeiru – A story continuing  
Subete wa hitotsu da to – If everything is one  
Omoidashite – Remember now_

"The flower girl?" She asked.

Then, the entire village, one by one, the windows and doors opened, children came out first, braving the phenomenon, feeling the call. The parents and adults followed, amazed as they all watched the strange dawn, despising the red fire ball of Meteor coming so dangerously close to Midgar across the land.

The Meteor came closer and closer, touching down on Midgar's tallest tower, burning and scorching the city with its fire. Suddenly, flashes of several red tornadoes of flames appeared out from the Meteor and whipped the sections of Midgar, tearing whatever it touched. The city became vulnerable as the Meteor ripped the city up violently, smashing everything to unrecognizable.

_Kodou ga kikoeru – The heartbeat can be heard  
Utsukushii kono hoshi – Of this beautiful planet  
Kagayaki yo towa ni – Eternally radiant  
Gaia oh Gaia...Waahay – Gaia, oh Gaia… Waahay_

Then, Holy came, embracing the city and embracing Meteor, silencing his rage and everything became dark as the Meteor's flame smothered and became smaller and smaller, falling slowly down to the earth, upon the ruin of Midgar. The glowing Holy shrunk as well, becoming smaller and fell along with Meteor.

_Michiteyuku ao – Blue, continuing to rise…_

"_My love… it's time to rest…"_ The ethereal feminine voice whispered as the woman in the white shimmering gown flowed as her pale hand caressed the rough face of the man beside her.

_Mizu ga nagareru you ni – In the way water flows  
Kokoro wo tokihanatte – Release your heart  
Hikari to kaze no naka ni – Inside the light and the wind  
Toketeyuku utagoe – A signing voice continues to melt_

The man, dressed in ancient dark robes, matching his dark black eyes sighed as he moved closer to the caressing hand. _"Yes… I am so tired. The anger wore me out…"_

_Ubau koto wo yamete _

_Osore wo tebanashite –Cease snatching and relinquish fears_

"_Rest, rest with me in peace, leave mother alone. You're mine forever and ever." _

The man smiled and took the pale ethereal woman into his arms and kissed her lips.

_Ikiru koto no shinjitsu  
Kitto tadoritsukeru - And we will surely arrive at the truth of living_

"_Forever and ever…"_

_Anata no egao wo - When your smile  
Kokoro ni negau toki - Made a wish in my heart  
Yorokobi no hadou - A surge of joy filled me))  
Gaia oh Gaia... Waahay - Gaia, oh Gaia... Waahay_

With burst of light, the two disappeared, leaving behind a black and white stones, no longer glowing but plain round perfect stones.

_Michiteyuku ai - Love, continuing to rise..._

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

On the Highwind's deck where the airship had circled and witnessed the fall of Midgar, Avalanche slumped to the floor or leaned on the railing, exhausted and shocked.

"Damn…Everything's over…" Barret growled.

Cait Sith hopped onto the deck, looking down cast. "Everyone… we couldn't get everyone out of the city in time… thousands, maybe more…" Tifa stifled a sob.

Cid trudged onto the deck from the cockpit. "Damn… that was a hell of a show…"

Yuffie whimpered as she hugged the floor of the deck, looking rather very green. "What're we gonna do now?"

Tifa stood up. "The Planet's saved… we have to move on…" Another sob escaped her throat and she finally gave up, breaking down, crying. "I can't believe it. He's gone…"

Barrett and Nanaki stood behind her watching her cry silently. Vincent was leaning against the doorway from the distance; he then swept his long ebony hair over his shoulder and went back into the Highwind to the cabins below.

"Hey, I'll stay close to the crater, watch in case if anybody come out of the crater." Cid suggested as he took Tifa's shoulders and drew her into a comforting hug.

Cait Sith looked up and jumped off the Mog into Tifa's arms. "No, we'll need your help, all of you. Midgar is a mess."

Tifa nodded as she wiped her face. "You're right. Don't worry about the crater… Let's go to Midgar."

Cid stepped back and saluted. "Yes, Ma'am. Midgar is it then."

The large dark-skinned man helped to peel Yuffie off the floor and dragged her to the quarters below.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The airship touched down on the grassy knoll of the outskirt of Midgar, what's left of it. Avalanche were already on the deck, watching and to their surprise, thousands of torches were lit in the darkness, illuminating orange glow and the people and the survivors came out of Kalm, waiting and welcoming the heroes of the Planet.

Reeve was in the front in his blue and black suit that was messed up and he looked worse to wear.

One by one, Avalanche members climbed down the ladders and greeted Reeve for the first time in person.

"Hell, great to meet ya at last." Barret shook the ebony haired man's hand solemnly.

Tifa gave him a sad smile and tearful eyes as she hugged him. "Reeve, we're here. It's over."

"Yes. But we have a new mission." Reeve turned to the crowd behind him. "We're going to search for survivors and the casualties in Midgar. Many more are on its way from Junon."

Vincent bowed his head. "We will help."

Yuffie didn't bounce or shout for joy but her head fell down cast as she sighed sadly. "Yeah, we should after all. We're no heroes. Cloud did it all…"

Reeve turned to the young woman and ruffled her head softly. "You're right. Don't worry. I had planned to send some team up to the Crater to clean up and look for him."

Tifa turned around abruptly as she suppressed anger inside. "Don't bother!" She snapped. "Leave him be."

Reeve stood back up and shook his head. "Well, let's get on to Midgar."

The pilot looked up at his ship and shook his head. "What the hell did ShinRa do to my baby?"

"Like it?"

"Oh hell, yes. That's one thing they did right." Cid laughed and clapped Reeve on the shoulder. "Now, what should we do?"

The smaller man raised his arm toward to Midgar. "Be my guest, lead us all."

The small group of Avalanche took the lead, walking across the barren ground of Midgar, leading thousands of other volunteers into the shamble of the city.

Dawn twilight, as ever quietly came, illuminating the planet with its soft violet pink glow, promising a new day.

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi mei – Arise from your sleep, my children…_

Zack, ever solemnly stood on the deck of Junon Harbor, out looking the ocean where ten and tens of boats docked, ready to leave on his signal.

_Arise from your sleep, my children…_

He watched as the soft wind billowed though his raven mane and dark royal blue coat. The dawn's light shimmered off the crystal lone tear rolled down his cheek, a symbol of his sorrow for his two loved friends whom he lost to the Planet. He felt truly alone.

_Cunae non sunt – Your cradle shall no longer exist_

Leaning forward, he raised his hand and waved once to the boat below waiting for his signal. The first boat let blast of low lonesome horn, signaling the others to leave the dock to spread out to the different part of the world to gather recruits and volunteers for Junon Harbor and Midgar. It was time to rebuild the world anew.

_Excitate vos e somno, liberti fatali – Arise from your sleep, children of fate_

It was a new day, new promises with scarred memory of the night before.  
Bowing his head and a hand over the heart, the last boat disappeared over the ocean horizon, the tear fell down to the ocean, mingling with the crashing wave.

_Somnus non eat – Abandon your cradles_

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Before the council of the judges, Sephiroth stood silently beside the pink-clad Aeris, listening to the shouting and debating of the Cetra ancients.

_Surgite - Arise_

"Let him go to the beyond!"

_Surgite – Arise_

"No, return him to the Planet!"

_Surgite - Arise_

"Keep him in the Middle Land!"

_Surgite! – Arise!_

"He killed one of us!"

_Inventite hortum veritatis - Discover the garden of truth_

"No he didn't! It was the clone!"

"Then, where is the clone? If it were him, he should be on trail, not him!"

The shouting kept on going until someone illuminated before them and the entire council became quiet as the woman appeared.

_Ardente veritate – Brilliant truth _

She had long golden blond hair that fell to her waist, pale fair skin and shining sapphire blue eyes. She met Sephiroth's gaze and smiled softly, then she turned and several more women appeared behind her, in numbers of thousands, they all had blond hair and blue eyes.

He gasped softly as he recognized them, the Valkyries. And among them were one different, a brown haired and brown eyed, yet her eyes held love. Then another woman appeared before them, she had the longest soft brown hair that fell down to her knees in cascading waves. Flowers and grasses spotted along the golden brown waves with strips of flowing blue of sparkling water. Her gown was of the earth, like the land, grassy and forest here and there. Her curved body was much like the form of the planet, but formed of a woman.

_Brilliant truth – Ardente veritate_

Her face was like human, aged and beautiful, lines of winkles here and there and her eyes was deep ebony black like the midnight skies with stars within.

"Mother Gaia." Aeris bowed as she knelt down on one knee. Her head swished to the first blond woman, "Jenova." The brown haired woman joined the first, "Lucrecia."

_Urite mala mundi – Burn the heavens of evil_

"The evil one has been defeated." The true Jenova held her hand up, "His soul, along with the Calamity of the Sky has been destroyed, never to return ever again." She turned to Sephiroth and smiled, "My dear grand-son, you've proven yourself the true Son," She bowed her head, "My lord, my King."

Lucrecia stepped forward and caressed his cheek, wiping the tears away. "Fear not, you still have more trials to come. Rest and prepare."

Gaia turned and lifted Aeris' face with one pale hand. "Sweet child, you defend this man with good heart." She turned to the council. "I will judge him. There is another, the dark being of this one who did crime against me. He had been judged and exiled to oblivion. Let this one return with his loved one."

The council member's heads, each one of them bowed down.

Aeris stepped up to Gaia. "Thank you."

_Ardente vertate – Brilliant truth_

Gaia smiled at her and turned to Sephiroth, raising her hand to caress the smooth skin of Sephiroth's cheek. "One Winged Angel, you never had a fate to be my Summoned Ones. Your fate was always with your little angel. Go, and live to the end of your life with her, even if it is eternity. Go with her, rest until she is ready to wake. I need you out there, my children roam the world and they need their King, with their Queen by his side."

_Brilliant truth – Ardente vertate_

Sephiroth bowed to the earthen goddess. "Thank you, Mother Gaia." He kissed her hand and looked up before his body materialized to nothingness in space. Then, he knew, he was beside his love and took her hand into his hand. His eyes finally closed as peaceful feeling washed over him.

_Incendite tenerbras mundi – Set ablaze the heavens of darkness_

Aeris gasped softly. "Oh, I hope everything will work out all right now."

Gaia gave her a last look. "It will. Everything eventually goes right sometime but we all have bumpy road as we travel though life."

The last of the Cetra laughed softly as Gaia disappeared.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

On top of a makeshift platform, Reeve held out colorful plastic strips in his hand to the field of volunteers while his other hand held the bullhorn, explaining which colors stands for. Red was for critical care medic, yellow for clearing the debris and search for survivors, which many would wear, green was for those to clear the survivors to safe location and black was for those to clear the unluckily ones, the dead.

_Valete, liberi – Prevail children_

He stepped down and tied a yellow one around his own arm and passed few among the many to pass on to the rest and turned to Avalanche. He solemnly held out the strips to the group while each took the colors, deciding which they would prefer.

Barret was the first to pick. He had chosen yellow himself. Tifa then chose yellow as well. Cid and Vincent stepped up together with Yuffie in tow, each taking yellow too. Finally, the wolf picked the yellow with his mouth and turned to Tifa to help him to tie it around his front leg.

_Diebus fatalibus – Fated day_

Barret waved his arm to Avalanche, leading them into the chaos of Midgar. One by one, each split, taking different path, mixing among the many volunteers, becoming one of them, not a hero, not a victim but volunteers. A title they'll humbly hold to their hearts.

_Fated day_

Yet, Tifa and Reeve stood back alone, watching hundreds of people spread about, bringing out the first of the wounded out of the debris, the first of the dead to the clearings. The wounded would go to the Academy that sat on the outskirt of Midgar, by some sheer luck had not been touched by Meteor.

_Ardente veritate – Brilliant truth_

The Academy had changed into a hospital in mere hours after Meteor's attack. As time rolled by slowly, the piles of the dead grew and the wounded were led to the Academy.

_Brilliant truth_

The two watched, whispering solemn words to each other and to the passersby. Then, their heads hung low together and then they parted as they entered the city.

The young Avalanche trudged though the debris, pulling what she could lift and pry away, searching and calling. Finally, she stopped with a hand up to single that she had heard something.

_Urite mala mundi – Burn the heavens of evil_

Then, she ran ahead, pulling away what it once was a door to a house and crawled on her knees to pull out a small chirping creature. Cid and Vincent came to her side to see that she had found a bird, a small blue bird chirping loudly. She smiled at them and raised her hands to the sky to let the survived creature free. The pilot laughed softly as he ruffled the youth's hair as they watched the bird circle above them once, twice, then thrice before it was gone.

_Ardente vertate – Burning truth_

The tall sniper drew away his mask and tossed it to the wind, exposing a small tugging smile upon his lips. He held his hand out to the girl and the girl grasped it gladly, being tugged away to look for more, pulling more debris away and calling again.

_Incendite tenerbras mundi – Set ablaze the heavens of darkness_

The massive man and the red wolf searched together in another part, pulling away heavy concrete that the others couldn't lift. The wolf sniffed under and around for any who could be alive. He stood above on a wooden beam and howled loud, calling other that he had found somebody.

_Surgite - Arise_

Barret rushed over to his side and pulled away fallen wall and roofs to find a small family of three children huddled together in corner of a shamble.

_Surgite - Arise_

He reached out with gentle face and hand the children and drew them all away from the danger. One child pointed in another direction, crying and whispering.

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi mei – Arise from your sleep, my children_

Nanaki took off and sniffed around where the child had mentioned someone else was trapped. He looked up after finding the source and howled a long mournful cry. Whoever the child had mentioned was trapped had not made it.

_Cunae non sunt – Your cradles shall no longer exist_

Barret turned away, whispering assuring words to the crying child and placed the children in another care and returned to search more as his heart wrenched in terrible pain. He then paused and pulled out his phone. Nanaki came to his side and asked something quietly, getting a nod from the man. The man waited for an answer and a relieved smile broke out on his face as he closed the phone and lowered his head to his chest, holding the phone to his heart. His Marlene was safe, not one of those children who were unluckly. Nanaki gave him an assuring nudge on the hand and trotted away as he followed.

_Surgite - Arise_

The tall brunette of Avalanche gasped as a body of a man was handed to her. She at first though the man was dead until she heard ragged breathing. The man was barely alive, but being alive did mattered.

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi fatali – Arise from your sleep, children of Fate_

Perhaps, there was hope for this one among the many. She called out to the volunteers that had red tie and handed him, instructing a careful but haste care for this one. She stood and watched the man being carried off and turned away, to search for more hopes.

She stood up and moved along; helping to pull away whatever was in her path until she heard a mew. She ducked under a wooden doorframe into an almost intact apartment.

_Surgite, Liberi Fatali! – Arise, Children of Fate!_

There in a corner, she found a spotted tabby cat and looked about. The cat seemed to belong to somebody and certainty it did, to a woman that didn't survive. She picked up the cat and walked out of the apartment, calling to someone else with a black tie for the woman behind her.

_Somnus non eat – Abandon your cradles_

The cat mewed again. Her heart tore and she looked around, searching for something, somebody.

A young boy, about Marlene's age came into her view with someone who had red tie. He looked up and his blue eyes met with Tifa's red ones.

_Surgite - Arise_

She smiled and handed him the cat. The boy gladly accepted with a small smile, holding the cat to his chest, rubbing his face into its fur while the cat purred in response. She felt her heart lift seeing that the cat had another home, another hope.

_Inventite hortum veritatis – Discover the garden of truth _

Reeve helped to lift a man about his age from under fallen building and helped him into the stretcher.

_Ardente veritate - Brilliant truth_

However, the man was livid and shouting about missing his Lenora.  
Assuming it was his wife he was shouting about; Reeve looked about and tried to calm the man down. It seemed to be no avail until someone came forth carrying a seven years old child in his arms.

_Urite mala mundi - Burn the heavens of evil _

The man shouted in joy and reached out to the child. It was his niece, his only relative and Reeve felt relieved that somebody had not lost anybody.  
He turned as the man was carried away in the stretcher with his niece in his arms to keep on searching but was stopped by a sight.

_Ardente vertate - Burning truth_

He watched the woman kneeling on the ground, crying. Upon a closer look, his soul tore apart. A man was laid under a fallen wall and he had no luck. He had died upon impact and didn't suffer, yet the woman was suffering for him and herself.

_Incendite tenerbras mundi - Set ablaze the heavens of darkness_

Reeve lifted the woman up and hugged her for a moment until he was able to turn the woman over to someone else to take her away.

_Valete, liberi - Prevail children_

He sat down where the woman had once kneeled and with few shakes of shoulder, he cried silently to himself.

_Diebus fatalibus - Fated day_

Yuffie pulled Cid forward as she pointed over the hill of fallen building to where Vincent was struggling to pull away a large beam.

_Liberti fatali… - Children of Fate… _

Sudden cries brought them forward faster and the pilot joined Vincent and others to lift the beam. The teenager inched her way around Cid and saw it was a woman pinned under the beam and she had a child, not even two years old in her arms.

_Surgite – Arise_

Somebody unknown to her took the child from his mother and placed him into her arms to hold for a moment until the mother was freed. Wide eyed, she watched the child, wondering why he wasn't fussing or crying at all. The boy's eyes were shut close and his face was dirty. Blood trickled slightly out of his nostrils.

_Surgite, surgite – Arise, arise_

She held the child awkwardly as she watched the mouth open and close, releasing ragged breath. Then, it stopped.

_Inventite hortum veritatis – Discover the garden of truth_

For a moment, as if the world stopped with the breathing, she stared in stunned shock. Her mind went blank as she stared at the mouth that didn't open again.

_Excitate vos e somno, liberi fatali - Arise from your sleep, children of Fate_

Suddenly as if the time picked up again, she reached out and tugged onto Cid's shirt. Thoughts slowly registered in her mind and became a torrent of confusion whirling around. He curtly responded it wasn't the time as he heaved the beam off the woman. She looked up at the blonde man, holding the child to her chest with pale face.

He leaned in closer and then, closed his blue eyes as he pried the boy out of Yuffie's arms while Vincent pulled her away to draw her into his arms. The woman was led away with couple of volunteers, she called back for her child but a volunteer pulled her away whispering something to her. She then stared wide eyed as she watched her son being turned over to a man with black tie around his arms.

_Somnus non eat – Abandon your cradles_

Cid turned the boy over to the man with black tie. Yuffie's wide eyes shut close and tears streamed down her dirty face as she buried deeper into the sniper's crimson cloak, murmuring "It's not fair… it's not fair…"

He replied, "Nothing is ever fair. Only we can help those who have hope."

_Valete, liberi – Prevail children_

Barret met up with Tifa, helping couple of women over to the clearing to be taken away to the Academy. The brunette took the two women and helped them into a makeshift truck that they had found among the debris.

_Diebus fatalibus - Fated day_

As the women were set in the back of the truck with the others, he turned to her and for a long moment, they stood facing each other. Understanding each other, they reached out and hugged for another moment longer, needing support and giving it.

_Fithos lusec wescos vinosec_

The sun inched closer to the western horizon, quietly announcing the end of the first day.

_Children of Fate…_

Torches were given out everyone kept on going, not minding the darkness.

_Arise, arise, Children of Fate! Arise! Arise!_

Barret led Tifa away from the city for the night to join with the other Avalanche.

_Liberti Fatali!_  
_  
_**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please?_


	41. S4:2: Geosigma

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Two : Geosigma

_Therefore shall her plagues come in one day, death, and mourning, and famine; and she shall be utterly burned with fire: for strong is the Lord God who judgeth her._

Revelation 18:8, The Holy Bible

"Look at this!" Elena said as she pointed down to the cloud below them. The ShinRa helicopter hovered over the large crater in the early dawn's light. The world was silent and calm before them as they whirred around the crater.

Over the radio, the voice asked, "Hmm?" Elena smiled, happy to be able to hear him again. She had thought Tseng had died but in fact, he had slipped away from the Temple of the Ancient and went to recover at Gongaga for a while and returned to Midgar just few days before the Meteor's incident.

She shook her head, her blond hair swaying around her face, "Not a pretty sight, is it?" The helicopter shifted, going downward under the cloud to reveal the large crater before them. The center was no long spewing Mako; rather it had crusted over, like a wound that had stopped bleeding and finally healing beneath the dried scab.

Reno scoffed. "Who cares? Just get the damn thing." He said.

"Reno, the chopper!" Tseng's voice came over the radio with warning.

Reno laughed, "You got it," and he navigated the helicopter deeper into the center of the crater and landed on the solid ground before the very center.

The Turks got out of the helicopter and treaded toward the large dried up gunk of green rocks that rested in the very center. Reno made a face as he stared at the pile of rock, "Yeesh, I wouldn't want to be one to peel this open."

Elena frowned and glanced around, "How do we get in?"

"There's an entrance up near the ledge of the crater, it will take you to the center below. We don't know if it is also sealed up like the surface." Tseng's voice crackled over the radio.

Rude, the eve silent one nodded and said, "Yes, sir. We've spotted the entrance, we're going in."

"Why are we sent to do this?" Elena asked as she followed the two others into the entrance.

Reno shrugged as he twirled his Electrorod around like a baton as they trekked through the labyrinth of the crater. "We got to see if the Avalanche did their job."

"They killed Jenova and Sephiroth, what else could be there in the bottom?" She asked.

Rude held his hand up as they reached the bottom, the rocks from above had crashed down and littered around the place. The green glowing center was once a void but now covered like smooth glass, sealing the center within. "It's sealed up. Look." He gestured to the glass-like green surface.

Reno whistled and knelt on his knees, he reached out and knocked on the surface, it reverberated and echoed in the cavern. "Yep, solid." He stood back up and glanced around. "Well… I think our job is done."

Elena gave a short scream as she backed away; she had tried to exit the cave but stumbled backward into Rude's arms. Several figures in black cloaks came through, droning as they surrounded them. They were speaking in monotone, "Where is mother? Where is mother?"

"Shit! I'd thought they'd died off when Jenova was gone." Reno muttered and twirled his Electrorod around and started to zap some. They showed some resilient. He cursed under his breath and pulled out his gun and started to shoot them. Rude and Elena followed suit, taking out their guns and shooting. More started to fill in the room and they kept reloading their guns until the last one fell dead. Their bodies dissipated once they hit the ground.

"What the hell!" Reno cursed as he stood, watching the others melting away in the air. One remained, and he went to the last one and crouched beside it. With his Electrorod, he nudged it over and it rolled onto its back. His eyes went wide, "Shit, no wonder." He muttered. It was clutching something in its hand, and its breath was ragged, calling out for its mother.

"Eww, is that a heart?" Elena asked as she peered over Reno's shoulder.

"Look like it." The red-head said and pulled out a glove, "There's no way I'm touching it." He muttered as he snapped the rubber glove on and reached out to pluck the green dripping mass of muscle and plucked it out of the black cloaked man's hand. As the heart came free, the man dissipated away.

Rude frowned as he pulled out a plastic bag from his pocket. "Here." He held it up as Reno dropped it. "Could this be Jenova's heart?"

Elena grossed out and asked, "Why is it not beating?"  
Reno rolled his eyes, "its dead! At least for two thousands years… Let's get to the helicopter and bring this back."

They all made a short trip back to the surface and headed to the helicopter. Before they could reach the helicopter, they were being fired upon at. Rude ducked his head and grabbed Elena to his side while Reno cursed and twirled around wildly, yelling, "What the hell!"

Their eyes went wide as they saw three young men descending toward them from the slope of the crater wall. They all wore black and gray outfit, and they looked too familiar, their stances, their clothes and their eyes as well.

"Holy mother fricking hell!" Reno muttered as he saw one, apparently the leader of the three approaching him with a katana that were two bladed, holding up toward his face. His eyes traveled up the steel edge of the blade to the arm and the face of the wielder. "Who the hell are you?" He couldn't help but feel shiver that ran down his spine as he stared into the cat-green eyes that was shadowed by silver fringe of hair.

"Where is mother?" The silver-haired man asked his voice cold and demanding.

"What the heck are you talking about?" Reno asked, staring at the man.

The other man tilted his head, his hair swaying to reveal his face and Reno gasped, recognizing the feature. "Where is mother?" He asked again.

Behind Reno, Rude and Elena had scrambled into the helicopter and started up. The other two men ran from their place on the crater's wall and Reno scrambled backward and stumbled to grab hold of something and the helicopter rose in the air. Elena was shouting at him to grab on but Reno couldn't take his eyes off the leader. He finally locked his arm on the helicopter's landing skid and his body jerked upward along with the copper into the sky.

"Reno!" Elena shouted, her hand reaching out to grab hold of Reno's hand. Gunshots filled the air as Reno and one other silver-haired man with a gunblade exchanged fire.

Through the radio, Tseng was shouting, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, what the hell is going on?"

Rude answered, "We've encountered three new enemies…" His head snapped as he heard Elena groan.

"Get… get out!" Elena shouted as she held her left arm with her right, her left hand was gripping hold on Reno's hand, trying to pull him in however, her shoulder was bleeding badly.

"We're hit." Rude said as he maneuvered the helicopter dangerously into the cloud, losing sight of the enemies below.

Tseng's voice came back with crackle, "Dammnit!"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

"Oh, I'm so tired." Tifa stood up and wiped her sweaty brow, her white shirt stained and dirty from going though the remains of the sectors she had volunteered to search though. Section Seven had been demolished nearly a year ago by the fall of the plate and now it matched along with the rest of the city. A month had passed since Meteor's attack upon the city. The city didn't look any better but had fewer victims.

"It's almost lunch time." Cid climbed over the debris and tossed her a water pack. "We've been going on this for a while, haven't we?" He asked as he sat down on a fallen beam.

The brunette climbed down from where she stood and sat next to him, gulping down the water pack. "Nearly four weeks. We did find a lot of survivors. I'm glad."

Cid grunted as he threw away the empty water pack and sighed as he leaned forward to rest his elbows on his knees. "Yuffie's been moved to the Hospital to help there. She cracked when she saw some unfortunate souls…"

Tifa made a sound with her throat. "Poor girl. She shouldn't be facing this… she's so young."

Cid shrugged as he stood up and stretched. "Stubborn kid, she's strong. Let's pick her, Marlene and Denzel on the way." Denzel was the young boy who Tifa had given the cat to the month before and she had taken liking to him and took him in.

The brunette stood up and followed Cid down the cleared path to the Academy that sat outside Midgar. The entire Academy had been evacuated and cleaned out to create a temporary hospital and shelter for the people of Midgar.  
They entered the Hospital Wing and a nurse directed them where Yuffie was. She was in the Children's Section of the Hospital on the second floor of the building.

"And then, he blasted that monster away to nothing! It was so cool!" Yuffie whirled her hands in motions as she told the story to the audience of children around her.

"Oh! Is it true that Vincent has biggest gun than Barret?" A child asked.

The youngest of Avalanche laughed. "No, Barret's gun is big! But Vinny's gun's longer and packed more magic than power." She rammed her fist into her hand as she grinned at the boy who was lying in his bed, bandaged up.

"I wanna join Avalanche…" A girl looked down and sighed. "I don't have legs anymore…"

Yuffie turned to the young girl in her bed and trotted over to her side and sat on the bed. "Hey, hey, you can do anything… look at me…" She leaned over while the other kids looked on curiously.

Tifa smiled at the doorway with Cid. "She's good with the kids…"

"Yea..." The pilot replied as he watched Yuffie work at her leg to remove the prosthetic one to show to the kid.

"See! I'm missing a leg and I did all right. That means you can do anything if you got these stuff, works great but not like real thing." Yuffie winked at the girl while the other kids 'ooh-ed' on as the girl took the leg to take a closer look.

Tifa blanched in surprise. "What? Cid?" She turned to the pilot and gasped. "You knew! Why didn't you tell us?"

Cid shrugged. "She didn't want to. Vinny, Nanaki and I found out by accident. We swore to her to not tell because she didn't want to be kicked out of the team. That was about when we went to Bone Village before Aeris died."

Tifa looked a bit like a fish for a while. "Wh, oh, ai… I'm rather surprised…" She turned back to the room and watched Yuffie put her leg back on and hops off the bed and bounced with energy that she couldn't fathom where the youth had gotten from. "Yuffie, we're here. Come on."

The teenager turned around and nodded before turning back to the kids. "Well, I'll be back later. You guys be good?" Chorus of 'Yes, Ma'am!' came from the kids and Yuffie gave them her infamous goofy grin that never reached her eyes before leaving the room.

They entered another room down the hall to find Marlene with Denzel among the children that were playing around. They found Marlene by the window with Denzel, talking quietly with him. Her short brown hair had grown and she looked slightly older, as if she had grew several years overnight since Meteor. She now had taken to wear her hair in fashion like Aeris, pulled back in pony-tail with pink bow and braided. The Avalanche couldn't help but see the older woman in the young girl.

She looked up and smiled at the three of them at the doorway. "Denzel… They're here, we can go now."

Denzel looked up, his face somber and serious as his eyes, blue with tiredness shone with small smile. He had soft russet hair that was flyaway, framing his face. Tifa couldn't help but be reminded of Cloud in the boy, his somberness and pain that he held in his eyes. He stood up and swayed, covering his head where the bandage covered over his brows. He turned to Marlene who had peered under his bandage. "What, how does it look?"

Marlene took hold of him, shaking her head and smiling and helped him to the three Avalanchers. She glanced to Tifa and smiled, handing the boy over to the older woman who picked him up. Denzel, even though he was tall, still rested on Tifa's shoulder like a young child, glad to be free from burden of carrying his own weight.

"He's all right?" Cid asked gruffly as he rubbed the boy's back.

Tifa held Denzel to her body, shifting her weight to hold him better. "I don't know. Denzel?"

"I'm okay… just let me rest." Denzel replied as he rested his face into the crook of Tifa's neck.

"All right."

Marlene frowned as she watched them turn away and step out of the room. She followed, praying silently; _Please... please don't take Denzel away. _Many children had gotten ill after Midgar was destroyed and it started to pop up all over the place. She had heard on the radio that children all over the world were showing signs of the new illness. She was afraid it was something from Gaia, afraid that the planet was angry. She had grown close to Denzel, almost treating him like her own brother. She didn't want to lose another one because she had missed Aeris pretty badly, as well Cloud even she only known them for short time.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

After they left the hospital, they went over to the temporally apartments and entered the building. Tifa and the Avalanchers had taken one building for themselves, also housing orphan children of Marlene's age, including Denzel.

Cid and Yuffie detoured toward the den where they met with the other Avalanche; lunch was already delivered from the cafeteria. Tifa went upstairs and placed Denzel in his bed and covered him up with the blanket. Marlene stayed behind in the room with Denzel while Tifa went back downstairs after checking on other children.

As she entered the den, Barret waved her over, "Yo, over here." He said softly, making room for her to sit next to him at the table.

"What's the grub?" Cid asked as he took a roll of bread from the basket at the table.

"The usual." Vincent replied. He had removed his usual outfit and replaced with simple black jean and gray t-shirt and combat boots. Everyone else was the same, changing to simple clothes such as jeans and t-shirt so they could easily work though the debris, cleaning and searching for any possible survivors.

Reeve came though the door and made his way toward them. "Hey, got new report in." Everyone turned to him, "seven thousands survivors in total so far. That's almost everyone. That means there should be about two hundred left out of the entire city."

"And the casualties?" Nanaki asked from the couch nearby where he was napping.

"Three thousands so far." Reeve sat down and rubbed his forehead. "We're building a new Midgar, Neo-Midgar near Junon Harbor. I'm pulling out every Soldiers and Cadets here to go over there."

"You can't! What if there are more children out there alive?" Yuffie banged the table. Everyone turned to her and shook their heads silently. The teenage girl had aged over the last course of two years, looking older beyond her youth; her skin was yellowed slightly while her hair was limp. She was forced to help at the Hospital with the children after a while upon the Avalanche's request and concern for her emotional and mental health out on the field.

Cid placed a hand on her shoulder and roughly forced her down in her seat. "Shut up girl. You've seen enough here to know that we did what we could do. We have to move on."

Yuffie sniffled and looked down at her plate. "Move on…" She whispered to herself.

"I would like for you to come with me to Junon Harbor. You all need a break. I'm ordering the end of the search and evacuate everyone out of Midgar and have the barrier build around the city in few days. No one should ever enter here. We can't clean everything up, so, it's going to be left as it is. You will be assigned to your personal quarters in the Underwater Headquarter." He turned to Tifa, "If you wish, I'll set up enough for the children here to come too."

Tifa smiled, "Thank you, I'm only taking Marlene and Denzel with me. The rest are going to the other orphans in Neo-Midgar. I'll see to their safety there then I will join the rest of you in Junon."

Barret stood up. "I'll go with you to Junon Harbor. But I am going back to Corel after that. The town needs to be rebuilt after what ShinRa did to them."

Reeve nodded at him as he stood up too. "That's fine. Good luck with Corel. Ask me anything you need, I'll send them your way." The two men gripped hands and shook in mutual agreement.

"When are we leaving?" The brunette woman asked as she stood up and walked past Barret and Reeve and turned before leaving the room.

"Today." Reeve replied.

Tifa nodded, "Very well. I will prepare the kids. Why are you building another Midgar there?"

The ebony haired man scratched his head. "Those people can't stay in Kalm; it's overcrowded as it is. They all suffered under ShinRa's law. They deserved a better home, away from this Midgar. The underwater Reactor is now in rebuilding process, becoming into a new Headquarter for the Government of Neo-Midgar. It's the first rebuilding on the agenda for the world."

Barret narrowed his eyes. "You're not going to start another ShinRa, aren't you?"

Reeve chuckled and shook his head. "The laws, I had hired lot of people to change it. The government will be different, based on the people. I believe it's called Democracy."

"Good. I like the sound of that."

"It's going to be tough, but we're doing it." Reeve paused as his phone rang and he patted his pants and pulled it out, "Reeve here…" His demeanor changed and he looked away, "Oh, all right. I'll meet you at Junon Harbor. Yes, yes… Thank you, good bye."

Everyone watched Reeve, having seen his reaction change so suddenly and wondered what was up. Reeve turned back to them and gave them a weak smile. "That was Tseng…" He winced and waited for the explosion from the Avalanchers but got nothing, they were staring at him blankly. "Well, I've recruited the Turks to help as well. He needed to meet me. I better be going soon."

"See you all later on Highwind." Cid left the table, leaving a comforting pat on Yuffie's back to follow him. Soon, Reeve was left with Vincent and Nanaki at the table alone.

"Tell me, I heard something about the Turks going up to the Northern Crater. What were they doing up there?" Vincent asked as he leaned back in his chair, rocking it on two rear legs.

Reeve looked up across the table. "Huh? Oh, the Turks. I didn't send them. Tseng did under Zack's order." He frowned. "How did you know?"

The sniper's chair slammed back on all four as Vincent leaned forward, "I was a Turk." He said as if it were so obvious. "What authority does Zack have?"

Reeve shook his head and waved his hand to dismiss any anger that was directed toward him. "Right. Zack has been given the authority since Sephiroth and Heidegger are gone. The Soldiers are used to being under their orders and Zack is the next authorized figure to take over. The Turks once was under the President's order is now being under Zack's command for the time being. I can't do everything myself."

Vincent pushed himself away from the table and moved to Reeve's side and sat down on the bench, leaning on one elbow. "Is that wise? I mean, we don't know Zack very much, it's a bit difficult for us to trust him despite how much Cloud and Sephiroth trust him."

The other man chuckled. "You all didn't know me well and accepted me being in the power. You should do the same for Zack, I trust him. He hated the ShinRa; he's every way like me, the insiders, and the traitor of the ShinRa."

"I would like to meet him, this Zack in person. I have heard a bit about him from Cloud… Back to my original question, what are they doing up there?"

The small man despite carry the burden of the government shrugged his shoulders. "Zack send them to check the place out. It will all be revealed in the meeting soon. After the Turks, Zack had sent a group, they're cleaning up there. There's whole lot of messes, remain of Jenova's bases and lots of dead monsters. There's practically nothing alive down there. We need samples of everything… Something to do with the new illness going on around."

The wolf stalked over to Reeve's other sides and hopped onto the bench. "I understand with the new illness. But why Zack ordered this, not you?"

Reeve gave the red wolf a half smile. "Zack believe Cloud is still alive. He hopes that the group he sends would find something, a clue to Cloud's survival."

Vincent's red slanted eyes widened. "Alive, how?"

"That's up to Zack to answer you. See you later at the Highwind." Reeve stood up and left.

"Cloud being alive, that's something else." Red hopped off the bench and stalked away with Vincent following behind.

"Yes. It's hard to wish it is good news… its hope for us all after all."

"I agree."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

The Underwater Reactor below the sea off the shore of the Junon Harbor had gone under reconstruction, converted from reactor into the new Headquarter for Neo-Midgar. It took the Soldiers two months to rebuild the whole thing with limited budget. The center where the reactor core was had became into an elegant dazzling grand hall for large assembly or a ball room. The ceilings were domed and entirely glass, revealing the ocean around it.

As the Underwater Reactor had been converted, the building of the Neo-Midgar went underway and the long term plan was to complete the city within a year. Nearly everyone from old Midgar, including the Soldiers signed up to help rebuilding, to start their lives again with new hopes. Reeve had taken the layout and blue-prints of the old Midgar and modified the entire city into a new one. There wouldn't be any slums but rather urban for everyone to live, instead of eight sectors Midgar had, the Neo-Midgar will have seven.

Neo-Midgar wasn't the only place that was starting new, rather all over the world, everyone was starting new. Barret had departed from Junon Harbor shortly to Corel, leaving Marlene with Denzel under Elmyra's care in Neo-Midgar to help Corel to pick up their pieces after many long years. Tifa had been given a building in the newly built Sector One for the children and left the orphanage in Elmyra's hands. Elmyra was happy to take care of the children. Tifa had called the orphanage 'Cloud's Heaven', which was an ironic to her old bar and in honor of Cloud.

Tifa had shortly gone to Nibelheim with her brothers and cousins to regain their past back, but their trip was fruitless because Nibelheim wasn't no longer as it was in the old days. The townspeople had changed and renamed the town 'Nibelburg' and they had planned to burn the ShinRa Mansion to ground to remove the last remaining piece of Nibelheim however Zack and Vincent put to stop, requesting to leave the building alone until they were able to clear the mansion out of the documents and files that were in the basement.  
The memories and history of Nibelheim became distant forgotten past, left to be unsaid, never to be recalled ever again, for only a small handful of people in the entire world remembered.

Gold Saucer had temporarily shut down, contributing their money to help Neo-Midgar and many other places in their rebuilding process. Many employees left the dazzling suspended entertainment center to help. Nanaki returned to Cosmo Canyon to step in his father's place to protect the town. He returned shortly after seeing that Cosmo Canyon was all right without him. Even Wutai contributed, Lord Godo sent his warriors to help with peace offering, promising no conflicts or war between Wutai and Neo-Midgar, yet he still harbored doubts toward the Neo-Midgar and his intention was to spy upon them while helping. Mideel, once a small tourist town that met its demise, lying at the bottom of a large Mako Lake were left to the memories while the survivors migrated to Neo-Midgar.

With all of those things going on around the world, little did anybody noticed that the sunken land of the Temple of the Ancient started to rise ever so slowly, stones coming up from the ground almost unnoticeable. Itself the spirits of the Temple were also in the same spirit with the rest of the world in rebuilding new hope.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Zack and Reeve were found walking along the corridor leading from the Grand Hall to the resident quarter's level discussing the alternate power plan below sea, a week later after they had left Midgar after the final closing, it had been nearly two and half month since Meteor.

"We're temporarily using one of the Huge Materia that the Avalanche had loaned us for the current power." Reeve held the folder out, reading as he walked.

Zack turned his head to the shorter man. "Huge Materia? There's life span on it, am I right?"

The other man nodded as he kept on reading. "Yes. From the point we had been using few weeks ago, the life span is not very long. We have less than a year on it. We will need to find alternate source. Everyone out there has no power; they're using crude method, candles, lamps, things like that. It's like we've gone back a hundred years."

Zack stopped by the glass wall, staring out in the abyss of the ocean, watching the fishes swim about. "What about coal and water power?"

"Huh?" He looked up and frowned at his taller friend. "Coal… We'd have to hire miners again."

Zack's lips curled into half a smile. "Yes, Corel's the place. Isn't Barret rebuilding the town?"

"Yes, he had reported that he's nearly done and would be returning soon."

"Hire the town, the place is excellent source of coal. We'd need to convert Junon Harbor into some sort of water power plant, we got plenty water here."

"Yes, that's the idea. But, what about the reactors all over the world, many of them are still running."

Zack turned around to face Reeve. "Shut them all off. Soon as possible, we have to stop using Mako. Junon Harbor once was water power plant… look." He took the folder from Reeve's hands and flipped though it. The folder was very thick and few pages flittered out onto the floor. "Here." He handed a sheet of paper and picked up what had fell to the floor.

Reeve took the paper and read it; his eyes went wide at it with excitement shining. "Wonderful, that'd save us whole lot of time… Hm, we got a problem…"  
Zack stood up again and handed the papers back to Reeve. "Yes, how do we pay everyone we hired?"

"So far, we have military handled, housing, food, clothes and education are provided. As for civil workers, we're paying them in Gils and providing them housing in Neo-Midgar when the city is complete as a payment."

"Yes, but we need to hire whole lot more people. Right now we don't need military."

"Give them civilian jobs." Both men looked up and saw Vincent coming toward them.

"That's the idea." Reeve smiled at the sniper and jotted down some notes on the paper and closed his folder. "I think almost everything is handled. Thank you Vincent."

"It is no problem. I came to tell you that Barret and Tifa returned from Corel and Nibelburg just now."

"Good, I've been expecting them today." Reeve bowed his head to Vincent and turned to Zack. "See you later."

"You're going to meet the rest of us?" The sniper asked as they watched Reeve disappear down the corridor. They had shortly met after Vincent arrived in Junon two weeks earlier and the sniper found he liked Zack almost immediately and understood why Cloud and Sephiroth trusted him so much, and he found that he felt as if knowing Zack; he knew Cloud and Sephiroth all over again, as they are one whole being.

"I suppose so. I've been real busy, the title of General is demanding. I can never understand how Sephiroth handled it for a long time before."

The sniper chuckled as he followed Zack down the corridor. "Yes, I can see that. You're leaving tomorrow to the Northern Crater, aren't you?"

Zack stopped at the door and turned to Vincent. "How did you know?"

The other man shrugged. "I have my sources. You're looking for Cloud and Sephiroth…"

Zack's violet eyes closed as he turned his head away. "Yes. I…"

Vincent's hand landed softly on Zack's shoulder. "They're alive, aren't they?" He almost could understand that Zack felt incomplete without them.

"I don't know. I can feel them, and then I don't. It's hard to tell."

"If they are alive, bring them back. I mean both of them. The world need them." Zack looked up confused at Vincent.

The sniper noticed this look and nodded in sympathy, "Sephiroth is my son. I know Cloud loves him and they deserved better than what they had gone through."

"You're right…"

"Yes. I don't think Sephiroth could have a better woman other than Cloud… I feel that this whole thing is not over yet." Vincent shook his head and brushed his hair out of his face.

Zack laughed quietly. "That is true. We'll see soon if they're alive or not… I Hope Gaia allow that, she's rather very resentful." The two smiled at each other and he led the sniper into the next corridor, "We're having meeting soon."

"Yes, I shall see you then." Vincent bowed his head and parted away.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

In Reeve's large office, Reeve and Zack stood before the group of Turks. The Turks once was a large number but was narrowed down to four left. Many had left, some had died and few others disappeared. Tseng stepped forward with a folder in his hand, the report while Reno, Rude and Elena stood back; standing next to the man in the wheelchair, in white robe and his face was covered.

"This is the Turks report. This is all of us left and we have no where to go." Tseng said as he stepped back after giving Reeve the folder. "We understand that you two," He inclined his head toward Zack and returned to Reeve, meeting the shorter man's gaze, "had taken the burden of leadership and we respect that."

The man in the wheel chair spoke up, "I've come, expecting to speak to Cloud Strife. After all, he was the leader of the Avalanche, it would made sense he would take over."

Zack frowned at the mysterious man, "Cloud's gone. Dead."

"I can see that." The man's hand slipped under the robe to grip the wheelchair armrest, "I've discovered something and I need his help."

Reeve noticed Zack's building hostility. "All right," He turned to Zack and frowned, "Zack, be still." The raven-haired General bowed his head and turned away slightly.

"What is it?" Reeve asked.

"Several things, in fact. It's all in the papers." The man coughed and heaved a raspy breath. "Ah, it still hurts." He murmured.

Elena fell to her knees beside the man and pulled out the bottle of pills. "Sir, do you need another one?" She handed a painkiller pill to the man who took it without word. She turned to Rude who handed her a glass of water. "You need to tell them." She whispered.

"Yes, Elena… I am getting to that." He raised his hand to push back the hood that covered his face. Reeve and Zack's eyes widened at him, recognizing him. "I've survived the unfortunate attack of Diamond Weapon. They," He gestured to the three Turks beside him, "Found me and took me out of Midgar before the Meteor destroyed it."

"Rufus!" Zack growled. "You're not going to mess this up for the world."

Rufus laughed, his blond hair fell limply over his good eye and he moved slowly to brush it away. His other eyes were bandaged up like most of his body, his hands as well. He still wore his pristine white suits, yet with his wounded appearance, he didn't look imitating as he used to be. His feet were covered with simple white slippers while his legs hung limply as he sat in the wheelchair, obvious that he wasn't able to stand or walk. "I do not plan to. I've realized my father's mistakes and my mistakes the moment Diamond blasted me away." He sighed.

He waved his hand limply and rested it back down on his lap. "It has been couple of months since then and I've not been able to heal fully. The doctors had discovered something new. I'm infected with a new illness and it's starting to show up all over, especially with the children."

Reeve took a start, "Yes. They've called it Geosigma. They believed it was released once Holy was set free from the Lifestream. It is similar to Mako Poisoning, but rather instead of eating the body inside, it is also eating the skin as well as if it were contacted upon the skin. There have been few adults that received this. I've not announced this yet."

Rufus nodded his head, "Yes. The doctors are nearly correct in their assumptions. It is related to the Lifestream, however, my personal doctor had discovered it wasn't the Lifestream or Holy that are responsible for this Geosigma." He turned and held his hand out. Reno stepped forward and placed a small metal box, obviously a lead metal; it was sealed tight and was the size of Rufus' arm. "My Turks discovered this in the Crater a month ago after the Avalanche was up there. This is remaining of Jenova." He held his hand over the box as it sat on his lap.

Zack gasped and stepped back, he had been having strange feeling the entire time in the room and now knew the source was from the box. "Destroy it!" He snarled his eyes wide as he stared at the box.

Reeve frowned, "Jenova? We thought she was destroyed completely."

Rufus shook his head, "Apparently not. Jenova had a last tactic for her revenge. She had removed her heart before entering battle with the Avalanche, however, as she was destroyed, her body merged with the Lifestream and her cells, her virus was released in the air along with Holy, thus, infecting the entire world with Geosigma, a deadly diseases to kill off every one of us, starting with the children."

Tseng nodded, "We can't just destroy the box yet. It may hold the cure for the Geosigma."

Zack shot a look to Tseng, "Then, why it isn't in the doctors' hands to research and find the cure, but in your, the Turks', hands?"

Reno rolled his eyes, "We're getting to that too."

Rufus nodded and gestured to Rude to hand another folder to Reeve, who took it. "In there is pictures you should look at." He waited as Reeve opened it and took out a single photograph. Zack glanced at it and he frowned, taking it from Reeve's hand.

"New problems. These three encountered my Turks and demanded for their mother at the crater. We believe they're also after the box as well. That's why it's in the Turks hands." Rufus explained. "We don't know who they are or where they come from."

Zack paled. "I do."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

The Turks stood on one side of the room, eyeing the other group that stood on the other side. Reeve and Zack entered the room and they both rolled their eyes. The shorter man cleared his throat and got the desired attention from everyone, "Get over it. We're all on same side. Please, sit." He gestured to the conference table and everyone moved to sit down. Vincent sat between the Turks and the Avalanche, dividing them up. The Turks stared at Vincent in awe, knowing he was once the legendary Turk before their time.

Tseng entered the room, pushing Rufus' wheelchair. Rufus had his face covered once again, unable to reveal his scarring face. Tseng parked Rufus at the head of the table and Reeve moved to sit next to him while Tseng took the other side with Zack on his side as well.

"All right, we're here to meet because you both are the group that changed the world, especially the Avalanche. The Turks are working for Neo-Midgar now like you all are." Reeve started and stared at everyone, promising them trouble if they dared to object. No one replied. "Good. It's been nearly three months since the Meteor incident and things are going good with Neo-Midgar, the Headquarter and all. I'm sorry I had to shut the old Midgar down because we can't focus on the city anymore, its shamble to ruins." He flipped the paper open, "You all know the causalities status. Let's move on to the next agenda." He rested his elbows on the table and laced his fingers under his chin.

"Who's da man?" Barret grumbled as he gestured with his good hand to Rufus.

Reeve smirked. "A survivor from Midgar. He has a good reason to be here…" He turned to Rufus. "Sir?" The Avalanchers frowned at Reeve's respect for the man in the white.

"It's all right… I am sure they are mature enough to not explode or anything. Tseng…" Rufus said and Tseng moved to help remove the hood from his face and let it sit on his shoulder, careful to not agitate the wounds on his head. The Avalanchers gasped loudly in the room.

"The hell! Rufus ShinRa!" Barret exploded and stood up. "What is he doing here?"

Zack stood up in threatening way, making Barret feel small in his place. "Mr. Wallace, I trust you'd sit down and be quiet and let Rufus explain his reasoning here." Barret scowled and sat down, shooting look at Rufus and Zack.

"Thank you, Zack." Rufus said quietly and sighed, moving slightly to find his comfortable spot. "You can see I've survived the Weapon Attacks, the Turks found me and took me out of Midgar before the Meteor came. I was left in my personal doctor's care and my wound did not heal as it was supposed to, it took far too long, as you can see. My doctor had come across a new discovery along with many other doctors all over the world. The new illness." He sighed and dropped his head, "I can't speak too much."

Reeve nodded, "I'll take over for you." He stood up and paced behind his chair, continuing for Rufus. "As he said, the illness, many of you may notice that the children are starting to show signs of them all over. The doctors had come to agreement to call it Geosigma. They weren't sure where it came, but believed it came from the Lifestream that spread that night during the Meteor, they believed it was the Mako that was released in the air and came contact with everyone's skin.

The children was the first to show signs, the signs of the illness was similar to the Soldiers that suffered during the old ShinRa Government, the Mako is known to eat away inside the body. However, this Geosigma begins on the skin and steeps into the body slowly at slower rate. The doctors had found a new discovery recently, a pure Mako will not have accelerated rate as you are seeing on the children now. Some adults are starting to show signs, like Rufus here because their body immune system wasn't able to fight against it. If anyone were to be wounded, they won't be able to recover, rather the illness will accelerate." Reeve turned to face everyone. "The new discovery to the reason why the illness progress faster than a normal Mako would do, it is the virus from Jenova."

"What?" Tifa gasped her eyes wide.

"You're saying Jenova did this?" Cid asked.

"How?" Yuffie quipped, concerned.

Reeve held his hand up, "I'm getting to that. When you defeated Jenova, she was disintegrated to the Lifestream, releasing her virus in the Lifestream. When Holy came out, the Lifestream was sent in the air, to purify the planet, however, it also made the virus airborne. It was Jenova's last defense in her revenge against the planet."

"So, you're saying it's our fault?" Cid asked, his face showed confusion, anger and guilt.

"No, no. It cannot be helped." Rufus spoke up. "You must have heard about the Turks being sent up to the Crater some time ago." He gave a pointed stare to Vincent, knowing he had found out somehow and told the others. He saw the Avalanche nod their heads. "They've found a piece of Jenova and brought it back, in hope to cure this Geosigma. However, they've encountered a new problem." He turned to Zack who stood up.

Reeve sat down and allowed Zack to take the floor. Zack turned to the wall behind him and clicked a small remote, the image came up on the wall, showing photographs of three men at the crater, all wearing black and gray, their hair silver and each sported different weapons.

Tifa's eyes went wide, "They look like…"

Zack nodded, "Yes, they look like Sephiroth."

Yuffie's hand shot up and everyone turned to her, amused by her school-girl antic, "are they clones?" She asked.

Zack shook his head, "No. Rather, they were created by Dr.Hojo and Dr. Gates." The Avalanchers gasped, recalling the story Zack had told them nearly half year ago.

"You mean they're the babies from Sorano?" Cid asked and his cigarette fell out of his mouth onto the table, making slight burnt on the surface.

Zack sighed, "Yes. I suspect Dr. Gates took them away and accelerated their growth and now they're full grown men. Accoring to the time line, they should have been no more than four years old children." He clicked the remote and the new image showed up, showing the close up of the shoulder length haired man, the apparent leader one. "They're children of Sorano and Sephiroth, created for Jenova in intention of creating a new race, the super race. However, they are the only three and they are asking for their mother."

"They want Sorano?" Nanaki asked, "Why?"

Rufus spoke up. "We don't know yet. They were attacking the Turks. We believe they're also after piece of Jenova too."

"So, what are we going to do?" Vincent asked, once again, everyone shot their head toward to him, surprised he spoke up and Cid slapped the sniper on the shoulder next to him.

"Geez, at least somehow make your presence known! You're a frickin' vampire!" Cid scowled.

Vincent smirked at him and turned his gaze to Reeve and Rufus. "Well?"

Zack spoke. "The doctors think they could find the cure from piece of Jenova. But I do not believe so." He clicked the remote, turning the projector off and sat down. "Cloud's the only one who might have the answer to cure the Geosigma and to handle the three brothers."

"What? How?" Reno asked, finally breaking the Turks' silence.

"Cloud was a Valkyrie." Several people save for those who knew gasped. "He was able to defeat Jenova and Dark Sephiroth. He has the connection with Gaia and I think if we find him, he will be able to help us find the cure. The cure is not with Jenova but somewhere else." Zack said with finality.

Reeve spoke up next, "Zack is planning to go to the Northern Crater with the evacuation party to check and see what could be done tomorrow."

Tifa frowned, "But I saw Cloud disappear within the Lifestream, just gone with Sephiroth."

"That's why I think it's the best place to start as anywhere." Zack said.

"Yes. Well, any more question before I move onto the next agenda?" Reeve asked and no one spoke. "All right. The next agenda… the position of presidency is the next agenda. I can't be burden for everything; it's already tolling me in the last two months with everything going on. I am putting up the position to the best suited person for this." He turned to Rufus, "Rufus ShinRa."

Barret exploded again. "No way! I ain't letting him become the Prez again!"

Vincent stood up and with his golden claw, he gripped on Barret's shoulder rather hard, forcing the dark-skinned man to sit down, with menacing low tone, "You'd be wise to shut up and put aside the difference in the past."

Barret glared up into Vincent's eyes to meet the challenge but withdrew as he saw the red orbs glow slightly. "Yeesh." He grumbled and averted his gaze.

"Why? Rufus' sick, won't it be a burden for him?" Tifa asked.

"No. As a president, I mostly sit back and run the company while the other brings the idea to me and I approve or disapprove of them, they also do what I say. This I can do while Reeve runs the full control under me as my Vice-President. I am also setting up mayors and committees to help as well to run the program. This I can do and I know the best people to do this. My father was a fool; he hired all wrong sorts of people in the past. The world needs to see that the ShinRa has a change of heart. I do promise you all, my heart has changed as my view changed the moment the Meteor destroyed Midgar."

Cid leaned forward, "Tell me, what your mission statement is?" And everyone else murmured in agreement that it was a good question to test Rufus.

Rufus gave a weak smile, "I haven't really thought of it. My mission statement as for now is to help the people out there, to rebuild their lives a new, for the better future."

"That's good enough for me." Cid sat back, satisfied that he saw the honesty in Rufus' grey eye.

"Fine with me." Barret grumbled, "As long you don't toe the line."

"I won't." Rufus replied, giving a weak smile.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_


	42. S4:3: Picking Up the Pieces

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Three: Picking Up the Pieces

_And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. _

Daniel 2:44, The Holy Bible

In the new conference room of the Underwater Headquarter, which was renamed for the new headquarter of Neo-Midgar, nearly all of Avalanche showed up, even the Turks. Many more new faces showed up as well with few reporters.

Reeve entered the room and looked about the room, greeting everyone with a smile. "Hey, everyone's here?" He asked as he made his way to his chair and sat down. He had the room and the theme color changed from the ShinRa usual red and gold to blue and silver, the color of new future. "I see the President is not here either… We shall wait."

Barret thumped his fist down on the table lightly, still making the glasses rattle all around. "Nanaki's not here."

"Yeah, he just returned to Cosmo Canyon for some family emergency. I'm sending him updates on everything and he had called that he appreciated the progress so far." Reeve replied as he crossed his arms and leaned against the table.

Zack walked into the room and took his seat next to Reeve, smiling his usual jovial grin. "Hey everybody." He was received some commotions in the room. Reno gave greeting in same fashion in return. Many reporters chatted among themselves, confused as they had come to believe he was an emotionless General, like the previous one.

Tifa rolled her eyes at him. "You're leaving tomorrow morning, right?" The brunette asked, frowning at Zack. She believed Cloud should be left alone, deserving rest and peace with her love, Sephiroth in the Lifestream.

"That's right." He handed his hand out for a friendly shake but was received a slight snort from the girl. He shrugged at her and leaned back in his chair. "Suit yourself, girl." He knew Tifa was kind of against for him to go to the Northern Crater but he figured she would thank him later.

Tifa turned to Reeve, "Where is Rufus?"

Reeve shrugged, "He's coming." He stood up and glanced around the room. "I see everyone's here; I'll go ahead and start with the introduction. I'm Reeve Tuesti, acting Vice-President and the leader of World Regenesis Organization. As some of you don't know what that is, the WRO is an organization that overlooks the process of the rebuilding throughout the world and protecting the Planet from any farther damage from the people." He tilted his head to Zack, who were sitting next to him.

Zack stood up and straightened his navy blue General uniform and bowed his head, his face composting into serious expression. "General Zachary Donovan of the Neo-Midgar Military and also the member of the WRO." He then sat down and Reeve turned and gestured to Barret.

"Mayor Barret Wallace of Corel, member of Avalanche and the WRO as well." He bowed his head slightly and leaned back in his chair. He had replaced his infamous gun arm for a prosthetics metal silver hand.

Cid stood up, "Mayor Cid Highwind of Rocket Town, member of Avalanche, former Pilot of Junon Harbor." Almost immediately upon his return to Rocket Town recently, he had learned the former Mayor had died of heart attack and the town nominated him to be the next mayor. He had reluctantly accepted.

Yuffie stood up and bowed at the waist, her hands folded in front of her in demure manner. The young teenage had opted to wear her traditional kimono, in beautiful tan with green leaves patterned all over with dark green obi wrapped around her tiny waist. Her hair was pulled into a French twist with a simple gold band encircling her forehead; she had come to stand in for her father, Lord Godo of Wutai. "Princess Yufi Kisaragi of Wutai, member of Avalanche and the WRO."

Several reporters and other guests murmured among each other as they watched from the wall. Yuffie had received quiet few flashes from the photographer. Tifa stood up, silencing everyone. "Tifa Lockhart, representing for Nanaki of Cosmo Canyon, member of Avalanche." She then sat down.

Vincent stood up, "Lord Vincent Valentine, representing Nibelburg, former Turks of ShinRa and member of Avalanche." The small town had asked him to represent for them and he had agreed. Also, no one knew why his title as a Lord came from except for one; Yuffie knew but did not reveal so.

A mousy haired man, not older than twenty five years old stood up, "Luke Khols, for Gongaga." He had been in Soldiers for many years and after the Meteor incident, he decided to quit and go back home, reunited with his parents and the town offered him to represent knowing he had experience with the ShinRa.

A red-haired woman, Christina Constant represented Kalm, a man in his early fifties, a mayor of Bone Village named Jonathan Hiram and commissioner from Icicle inn, Philip Rodson, and finally, the Battle Arena owner, Dio Pound from Gold Saucer introduced themselves. The rest also quietly introduced themselves as reporters, photographers.

Then, at last, Rufus who had been wheeled in by Tseng during the introduction spoke, "Welcome, thank you all for coming. I am Rufus ShinRa, the President of the new order, the Neo-Midgar. You all know the dark-suited agents." He gestured to Tseng and the rest. "Tseng, Reno, Rude and Elena."

He turned his chair toward Reeve who smiled at him and turned to everyone. "We're all here to make history today, marking the two month anniversary since the Meteor, for the peace of the Planet." Round of applaud filled the room and he held a hand up to silence everyone. "Here, I have send out papers to each town and cities regarding the new law of Neo-Midgar, no longer under ShinRa Co." He held up a thirty-page thick document that held list of the new laws that would keep the new city in order. "I am sure everyone here had read it, or who they represented for had read it as well." There were whispers and murmurs of agreement around the table and the room. "The discussion is open to debate what is here," He finally sat down and set the document on the table.

Barret stood up almost immediately, clearing his throat in a guff way. "Well, uhm, as I got this document." He placed a hand on his copy of the document on the table. "I read it, showed it to many elders in Corel; they all agree to it and liked it."

"Hear, hear." Cid stood up after Barret sat down. "Same thing happened in Rocket Town. I have no objection to the new laws."

"Cosmo Canyon agrees." Tifa spoke next, not even standing up.

"How about everyone else?" Reeve asked.

"Yeah, Kalm agrees."

"Gold Saucer agrees."

"Gongaga agrees."

"Costa Del Sol thinks it rocked!" A few groans from others uttered.

"Nibelburg agrees." And nearly half of the people gasped in surprise, noticing Vincent's presence once again, thinking he had disappeared, causing several Turks and Avalanche to snickers knowingly.

"Bone Village and Icicle Inn agrees."

"What about Fort Condor?" Zack's questioning brought attention to himself. "There is no one here from Fort Condor."

"Fort Condor sends their regards. Forgive me, I have forgotten about that town." Reeve replied and pulled out a sheet of paper and passed it to Zack who read it. "Pass that around, I will speak for Fort Condor if everyone agrees."

Once the letter of regard from Fort Condor had been passed around, everyone nodded their agreement and the meeting went on.

"Fort Condor agrees."

Then, everyone turned their head to Yuffie who kept her head bowed.  
"Yuf…" Reeve caught himself and backtracked to regard her formally. "Princess Yufi, what does Wutai says?"

Yuffie's head rose to meet his eyes. "Wutai disagree."

"What?" Tifa leaned forward. "Yuffie, what are you saying? I thought with a new peace and better law, Wutai would agree to Neo-Midgar's term?"

The young princess shook her head. "No. Wutai wish to remain separate as an individual country. Allies between Neo-Midgar and Wutai may be, but Wutai will never join."

Reeve pursed his bottom lip as he stroked his goatee. "What do Wutai wishes of Neo-Midgar?"

"Wutai wishes to be left alone to their governing, peace as well as it always had been."

"Granted." Reeve turned and inclined a woman who were typing the whole conversation and whispered. "A new paragraph will be included. Wutai will stand as it own country and run its own government with support from Neo-Midgar. Is that satisfactory for you, Princess Yufi?"

The girl smiled, not a full usual jovial smile. "Wutai agrees."

Cid watched Yuffie the entire time and cursed quietly to himself. He knew her quite bit and was disturbed to see that her usual smile had not reached her eyes since the fated day of Meteor. He quietly made a mental note to speak to Lord Godo about her mental stability and health. She may sit there like a true princess but it wasn't her, she didn't seem healthy under the traditional make up and she lost weight considerably.

Barret who sat next to him leaned over to whisper. "Yuffie's not doing so well, isn't she?"

The former pilot scowled. "Damn it! I thought I was the only one who noticed."

"No, everyone else knew. She needs help."

"You're right. I'm going to talk to Lord Godo about it."

"You do that; bring our Yuffie back to us."

"Yea."

The woman came back with a new document and handed it to Reeve.  
"Thank you my dear." He took the paper and stood up. "Now, I would like everyone to sign this and Neo-Midgar is official." He leaned down, signing his name with elegant swish of pen and handed it over to Zack who signed as well and handed it back to Rufus, who slowly signed his name despite the pain he was in. The paper passed around the table to every representative and all names were signed.

"Thank you everybody, refreshments if you please, is in our Grand Hall."

As everyone filtered from the conference room to the Grand Hall, Vincent and Cid slipped away, taking Yuffie with them. Yuffie didn't protest but silently followed as Vincent held his arm over her shoulder, taking her to another private smaller conference room.

Cid pulled the chair out and Vincent directed the girl to sit down. "Jeez." He muttered as he sat in the next chair and watched Yuffie who stared at the table in front of her. "Hey, kiddo."

Yuffie looked with her somber eyes to Cid, "Yeah?"

"What's going on?" Cid asked as Vincent moved to the side of the room and spoke quietly on the phone.

Yuffie shook her head. "Nothing much." She sighed and sat back. They could see the shadows under her eyes. She reached up and pulled the pin and her hair came free, framing her face, falling to her shoulder limply.

"You're not doing good. I can tell. Have you been eating?" Cid asked as he leaned forward.

Yuffie shook her head. "Not really."

"Why? We're here for you, him and me. We care about you… what happen to my little girl?" Cid asked quietly as he reached out to rub Yuffie's shoulder.

The young woman shivered and her lips quivered. "I… I can't take it anymore." She broke down and cried as Cid pulled her into his embrace, rocking her back and forth. "Everything… I thought after Megamiki and Madoshi are reunited, everything would be all right in the world. But no, thousands had to die… it's not fair. This is what father wanted… But it's not right. Where is Cloud? What about the King and the Queen?" She asked, crying. "I want Cloud back… he will make everything right. He can fix this, can he?"

Cid looked like he was at loss, "Uh, yeah, if he was here, he'd fix it."

Vincent turned to them, closing his phone as he pocketed it. "Zack is getting Lord Godo from his private quarter." He frowned at Yuffie. "Everything will come in its own course of time."

Yuffie shook her head, "No. Nothing is all right." She murmured. "Father doesn't want this… he doesn't want the whole world to unite…"

Vincent sat next to Yuffie, reaching out with his hand to stroke her hair. She moved and turned to him. "What do you mean?"

"She's right." The voice brought their attention to the door where Lord Godo stood with Zack behind him. He stepped in the room. "I honestly do not agree with the peace treaty. There's no good promises behind it but more troubles." He said as he moved to sit at the table across from his daughter. "Yuffie, you're the princess of Wutai, it is your place to stand by my side and help to rule Wutai."

Yuffie stood up and glared at her father, "How can I? After all I've seen, after all I've done for the planet, you want me to turn my back to them, for Wutai and keep the country isolated from the rest of the world."

Lord Godo glared back with coolness, "Daughter, I regret letting you rejoin the Avalanche. I regret allowing your mother fill your head with the fanatical stories. They're not going to help Wutai or the future of Wutai. Yes, the meteor destroyed Midgar, but nothing good came out of it, Rufus ShinRa is still in his place, and now he had gained power from the rest of the world. I must keep my country strong; assemble enough warriors to protect Wutai from likes of that man."

Yuffie turned her back to her father, "No. That's not what they wanted."

Zack frowned as he leaned forward on the table from where he sat on the side, "Lord Godo, why are you doing this? One way or another, the world is going to be under one monarchy. We all have to work together and agree, in order to have a fulfilling peaceful future."

Lord Godo turned his steel eyes to the raven-haired General. "Never. Wutai will never lose its heritage and be mixed with the rest of the sullied world. We are pure, that who we are."

Zack growled and stood up, "Do you realize, in the prophecy of your own legend about the King and Queen? That day is near. And as much you despite him, Sephiroth will return and take crown, whatever you like it or not."

Cid, Yuffie and Lord Godo gasped. Yuffie turned to Zack, "Sephiroth? Are you really sure Sephiroth will come back with his love, Sorano?"

Zack sighed and turned to Yuffie and gave her a sad smile, "Yes. I believe with all my heart and soul, Sephiroth and Sorano will return and they will take crown, uniting everyone in peace." He saw hope glimmer in Yuffie's eyes and smiled, he knew the girl was strong and had the right sense of what is right and wrong. He turned to Lord Godo, "If you dare to defy against your own people's hope and dream, you're tearing the world apart."

Lord Godo glowered, "If that man ever breathes, he will deal with me." He turned to Yuffie, "Yuffie, you have a year to decide where you stand. Until your eighteen birthday, either return to Wutai and take your rightful place or be disowned, the name of Kisaragi removed." With swish of his robe, he left the conference room.

Yuffie gasped and sat down in shock. "But…" She turned over to Vincent, tears started to stream down her face as she gave a weak laugh, "He's an idiot. He had been telling me that I am to marry when I turn eighteen…" Her laugh grew louder as the men stared at her. "He has no one for me to marry and I've already chosen where I stand… damn the name of Kisaragi. I stand with Sephiroth and Sorano. I know Wutai will stand with me."

Vincent nodded as he embraced her once again, allowing her to cry on his shoulder. Cid exhaled as he slumped down in his seat, "Whew… what a mess. Too much for a little girl to deal with…" He winced as Yuffie kicked him. "All right, all right, young woman to deal with. You're staying with us, you're going to recover, start eating and be happy again. Damn your father, I don't care anymore."

Zack smiled and stood up. "We'll cross the bridge when we come to that." He turned and left the room.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

On the next morning outside Junon Harbor on the grassy field, the breeze was perfect and cool, winter had came and went and nobody noticed. The Meteor had been the biggest thing upon the people's mind rather than the simplest thing such as the changing of weather or a cricket hopping by. But now, with the Meteor gone, everyone's minds are occupied upon Neo-Midgar, anticipating what the future's promises hold for them.

The sleek craft of Sierra sat on the lolling grass, humming among the wind softly, waiting to fly the precious cargo all over the world, ever so lovingly by the pilot Cid Highwind. He grinned at the new model that Reeve had dug up from the Junon Harbor, the Sierra, the aircraft had more features to it than the old one and Cid was happy to have a new one, placing his old one away for other uses.

"Just a minute!" Shrill voice shouted across the field from Junon Harbor to the Highwind. Everyone turned to look and find a bedraggled woman running toward them. "Zachary Donovan, you bastard!"

The said man chuckled as he waved Vincent, Cid and Yuffie away. "Go on, don't worry about me, and let me handle the prodigal bitch." He turned and waited on a cocked hip and a tilt of a head until Tifa finished running up to him. She looked like she had jumped out of the bed and dressed very hastily only minding her usual black skirt with a longer tee which must had been the shirt she slept in. Her hair was wild and flaying about her, not to mention she had a really long hair. Her boots were slipped on but not strapped in, minus the stockings.

"What the hell are you thinking about?" She stopped and huffed, catching some breaths.

"What the hell was I thinking about? Care to fill me in; I have no idea what I am thinking about." Zack flatly replied back. Ever since he had met Tifa in person, he had been constantly annoyed by her. He knew Tifa was upset about what had happened to Cloud.

"You send the damn Evacuation party up north!"

He rolled his eyes. "Come on Teef. I told you last night that I feel Cloud and I can tell he's alive."

Tifa glared at him, "With me, use the correct term. Cloud chose to go to the Lifestream! I saw her! She just turned her back on me and took Sephiroth's hand. Don't you think she might want to be left alone?"

Zack threw his hands up and groaned. "Gods, you can be so infuriating. Let me spell this out to you. Cloud and Sephiroth's links are bonded to me; I hear everything and feel everything they do. I had dreams about Sephiroth's trails with the Ancients and Gaia herself."

Tifa's mouth formed into a gaping hole. "G-Gaia?"

He groaned exasperatedly at her once again. "I don't know if it was just a dream or it had happened. Gaia told him that she needed him and Cloud out there to put her children down. This means, the Weapons are still around! Three of them in fact!" He held out three fingers and ticked each off. "Diamond, still alive but badly hurt. Emerald's swimming about undersea and Ruby buried in the sand under Gold Saucer. Now I just told you the classified information from the government. So, will you kindly not spread this about and cause havoc and panic among the people?"

Tifa snapped her jaw shut and glared at him. "Do what you must. I believe that Cloud should be left alone. She went though enough in her life." She twirled around and tossed her messy hair over her shoulder and held her chin high as she walked dignifiedly back to Junon Harbor, or she tried after toppling over her untied boots.

"As if you really knew… she deserved whole lot better now, bein' married to Sephiroth." He whispered to himself and shook his head as he watched Tifa nearly trip over her boot laces.

Cid snorted as he watched from the Sierra's deck. "Tifa's being grouchy lately."

"Leave her be. She's having hard time to accept the fact that Cloud has unfulfilled destiny." Vincent's voice floated to them.

"Huh? What do you mean by that?" He asked as he turned his head to the sniper standing beside him.

"It's a rather long story."

"Oh… geez, I thought we've gone through enough to make up half of the story… care to let me in for ending?"

Vincent smirked. "Old memories, old sins, old desires still weights Tifa, and she struggles with it because she knew Cloud's intention."

"I sure do hell do not know what you're talking about. But know this, I'm gonna find out soon, one way or another." Cid grumbled and turned and stalked off to the Control room of the Sierra.

"I believe so. One way or another, we all will know the truth." Vincent murmured.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

The Sierra took Zack to the field near Bone Village and detoured to Rocket town where Cid, Yuffie and Vincent would take a short vacation, staying with Shera. The vacation was for Yuffie, to nurse her back to health and give her a break, allowing her to recaptures her old personality and think about her future after what had happened with Lord Godo. The raven-haired man watched the aircraft disappear southward and he turned to start hiking through the forest to the small village of Bone Village. He knew Vincent was up to something but it would be a while before anyone find what the sniper had up his sleeve.

Clutching his chest, he softly said, "What is this you're telling me?" He asked and stopped to grasp the tree nearby to keep his balance. Waves of dizziness overtook him for a moment and he looked up to the soft blue sky. He had been increasing getting the feeling each day and it became stronger of late. "Damn…" He had figured it was emotions coming from his two friends that he had lost to the Planet.

Then, the feelings disappeared, leaving him cold and empty, alone, "Where are you?" He called out louder and looked around the peaceful forest, only the noises of the forest replied.

The Bone Village was welcoming, letting him stay over night and fed him before he went on his way to the Glacier. Summer was just around the corner and the Glacier wasn't dangerous with whirling blizzard storm with slightly warming sun's help. After couple of days traveling and reaching the Hozloff's Cliff, he met up with the Evacuation party.

"Hey," Zack greeted a familiar face he knew. "John, how are things going down here?"

The russet haired man shrugged as he took Zack's hand to shake in mutual greeting. "Not much difference since you sent us here. Been quiet and no troubles at all. Lots of monsters who dwelled down here are dead. Seemed they're all connected to this Jenova. Like once she died, everything else died. I'm sorry for those Class Two Soldiers, the last of them are here, nothing but their black cloaks."

Zack nodded as he saw a man walk out with a box full of black cloth. "The samples had been sent back to the Station?" He asked as he walked around the narrow rocky edge that led to the very center of the Planet. The glowing green pool where Avalanche had treaded down below before wasn't there any more, in place was hard solid smooth green glass which John mentioned was encased Mako, and solidified, much like a large Materia.

"Yep. Send it back about couple days ago. Now we're just here at the point, no where else to go. This place is every Archeologist dream… did you go down the right path?"

"Yeah, the easiest way."

"The structure in the third and fourth cavern is amazing… breeding ground for something huge."

Zack looked up at the man from studying the green encased stone. "Yes, breeding ground for Weapons. Those structures in the third cavern are the eggs. The fourth, I think the mother of all dragons…"

John nodded vigorously. "Yes, yes, the legendary Bahamut. I never thought they'd be real, only myths until I came here… I am still amazed, even after two months down here. It's odd, we counted three other eggs for dragons, if Bahamut bred dragons and they all became Summons, there's Neo and Zero. Where is the third one?"

Zack nodded, "It's rare, hidden in a lock back at the Headquarter. Sephiroth found it ages ago and locked it away for ages." He recalled his friend finding a rare Summon, the only one in existence and it had been locked away ever since the silver-haired summoned it once. "Bahamut Sin. Nasty fellow, nothing you want to deal with. Sephiroth locked it away, so no one would use it ever. It's with the other Materias now, safe."

He chuckled and walked onto the encased stone and stomped on it. "This… it wasn't here before."

"Well, it's solid, harder than diamond. What do you think we should do about it?"

Zack knelt and peered into the jaded glass-like stone. "Got bright light?"

John turned and called, shouting for the brightest light and soon after five minutes, couple of young men came scurrying over with brightest light they had gotten, the halogen search lights.

Zack stepped back with awe at the massiveness of the light. "That's the brightest?"

John grinned cat-like. "Oh yeah, expensive baby, they are. Brighter than the sun, pure light. Why do you need it for?"

"Hey kids, put the light down to the stone on the points here." Zack pointed at three points around the edge. "Yeah, face down." Once the light were placed in its place, Zack stepped off the stone and looked about the cave, he could tell that most of the debris, boulders had been cleared off. "I'm goin' climb up there; when I tell you to, turn on the light." One of the younger men nodded, holding two plugs in his hands.

Zack climbed up the wall and settled on the higher rim with a better view of the entire cavern below. "All right." He shouted and shielded his eyes as the lights came on, illuminating though the stone, casting ethereal green glows in the cave.

"Whoa…" John murmured as he stepped away from one of the light he had been standing too close.

Zack's jaw dropped as he stared at the green stone. "Damn… I can see everything down there… its abyss… wait…" He hopped from the ledge to the ground and hopped over to the center and kneeled as he peered closely to the stone. "There's something down here…"

John came to his side and knelt to take a peek. "You're right… its objects… I can tell that's rocks here and there…"

"No, look, in the center…" Zack pointed and surely enough, in the near darkness of the center of the stone where the light didn't quiet reach were two shadows of something long.

"Hey kid, move that light this way." Zack pointed at one light to the general direction to the center. The kid quickly obediently moved the light to where Zack pointed.

"Whoa… looks like weapons of sort." John whispered as the shadows became a bit more detailed. One was glistening slightly silvery and was the longest compared to the second wider and almost transparent one.

Zack stood back up, "Yes. The Masamune and Ulitma Weapon."

"You mean… Cloud and Sephiroth's weapons?"

"Yes."

John rubbed his forehead with a handkerchief as he stood before the crater, overseeing several men bringing in some tools he nervously eyed.  
They were jackhammers.

"Are you sure we should do this, it's like trying to peel a scab open." He turned to the taller man who stood beside him quietly, a dark expression washed over his face.

Zack blinked few time and turned to John. "Gaia will forgive me. I need those things."

"Why?"

The General shrugged his massive shoulders. "I have a feeling, I don't know why yet, but you know… when you see something, you get that feelings that you got to have it, for no reasons?"

John turned back to watch the younger men bring in long orange extension cords and hooked them up to four jackhammers that laid across the green stone. "Yeah, I guess… It's rather far down there; it'll take time, if the stone are not too hard."

Zack's darkened expression lightened as he grabbed one machine as if it were light like a feather and positioned it in the center, grinning like a mad man. "Lemme give it a try!" He grabbed safety glasses from another man and slipped them on.

John's eyes went wide and he stepped backward. "Good luck, man!" He winced as he waited for the inevitability. Zack held the jackhammer and switched it on; it hummed and then vibrated, shaking the whole ground as it hammered violently on the green solid stone of the Mako. The green stones started to chip and few flew away, hitting the wall and finally under the violent loud hammering of the machine pounding upon it, a large crack slowly crept upon the surface, cracking and creaking louder than the machine, causing everyone else watching eyes go wider as the jagged lines showed up on the surface and hit the end to the wall where.

Zack felt the glass surface shift under him and he stopped, looking down. A large grin grew on his face. "Well! Since nothing happened, we can have a go!" He placed the hammer down and hopped off the stone to the side line, joining John's side.

John raised his arm and gave a single wave. The four men who stood to the side quickly made their way to the hammers and started up, the whole cave vibrating loudly as they hammered away on the stone.

Zack tugged onto John's arm and led him out of the cave where they could talk to each other. He slammed his head slightly to get rid of the ringing.  
"Oh man! Well…"

John was slightly dazed, not hearing anything but the loud echo of hammers in his mind. "What?"

Zack rolled his eyes and shouted. "Well, what now?"

John finally caught on and thought for a bit longer. "Well, from the distance, it'll take a while. Why don't you go back to Neo-Midgar and I'll contact you when we get there. I think it's now our only goal to get the swords."

Zack slapped the man on the back in a friendly gesture. "Great! Thanks. Yep, I should go back. Let me know anything as soon as possible." But then, something went wrong as John saw flash across Zack's face.

The taller man swayed and his eyes went blank, not too soon, he fainted, falling into a collapse onto the ground, leaving John in a desperate situation, he grabbed his cell phone and called Neo-Midgar upon the moment.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

"Ohh! That was a hell of a headache!" Zack groaned as he rubbed his head and woke up. His eyes went wider and he jolted up, noticing he was in an unfamiliar place with vast green surrounding. "Ooi… not again, the Lifestream?" He dared to whisper this time, scanning around him.

An ethereal earthen woman materializes from the greenness. "Zack." Her voice was sweet but with harsh edge of age.

Zack stopped and stared at the woman, finding her eyes very black, so deep that you'd drown in them, like the abyss of space with millions of stars within and beyond. "Uh…" He knew who this woman was but could not bring himself to say it with great uncertainty.

The woman's fine aged face crinkled into a smile as she swayed herself forward to meet him. "You know who I am and you're right. You're causing me a headache, a thorn in the side where I am wounded." She frowned then.

Zack's eyes fell down, feeling shame. "I'm sorry, Mother Gaia. I wanted to get those swords."

The woman swept her long earthen hair away as she moved to his side. "All is forgiven, I needed those thorns out to heal fully. You have received them and your friend up there has it now. But that's not what I brought you here for."

Zack looked up at Gaia with confusion on his face, making him look younger in many years. "Then, why?"

"Cloud and Sephiroth are alive and in my care." She turned and swept her arm in a wide arch, her dress flowing along with great mythical ripples along and two figures appeared, lying in the mid suspension, in sort of stasis. "They both have been wounded to their souls, Hojo did what I never intended to happen. I am cleaning up his messes and putting in what I can to make them survive."

Zack moved toward the two figures of his best friends and stared down at them. He knew what Hojo had turned his two best friends into, once those were removed, they would die, but Gaia had a higher power and was thankful that they fell into her hands. He wondered, if same could be done to him, after all, he also had been Hojo's experiment in acting as a deranged god.

Gaia laughed softly as she had read his mind. "Don't worry, my child. You will be healed soon as well. They're difficult, their blood had been turned, sharing mine, making it more difficult. However, I'm not quiet sure if I will be able to heal Cloud fully… Jenova made sure she left part of herself behind."

"What happened?" He dared to ask.

"Illness, something I can cure, but not now because I have to heal first. Do not worry, all in the right time, everything will be all right. It's still a long way ahead."

Zack gave a quick look over his shoulder to the woman and felt great relief and comfort, knowing things should be all right from now on, as she had promised. He understood there were chances that his friends weren't going to be fully healed, but what matter the most that they are both alive. He glanced back to his friends, Sephiroth's face was smooth and devoid of anything but innocence as his eyes were closed with long sooty lashes resting on his cheek in delicate fashion, making him look less of a god but greater than mortal. His eyes traveled down to their hands, clasped and holding together. He noticed that Cloud's gloves were gone and her hands were delicately held in his massive hand, a perfect fit. They both were dressed in simple gown, Cloud in a full robe while Sephiroth was in tunic and pants.

Cloud's face was soft, with polar opposite from the glory of Sephiroth. She had alluring beauty that draws anyone to her, not the enticing kind but the innocent one, yet with the depth of wisdom and love. He could see that once she wakes, one would see her soul upon her face instead of mask that everyone usually wore. He couldn't help but think of one another, a woman with similar kind of beauty but far more innocent.

Aeris.

He couldn't help but desire to see her once again, the last of the Cetra.

He thought no less Sephiroth and Cloud was the most perfect couple for each other. He felt envious for them, just sleeping as if the years had gone by just like a nightmare. But then, he knew they would wake up to the reality soon. He would be there this time, to be with them from now on. But he felt like a third wheel. He wanted the kind of love they had for one another. He reached out and stroked Cloud's golden hair, noticing it was much longer, he supposed if she stood up, it would reach to the small of her back in beautiful silken spun gold.

Turning to Gaia, his eyes lost everything that he was but replaced with understanding and wisdom, he nodded then, "Mother, thank you. What are we to do next?" He had suspected that there was something else within searching the woman's face.

Gaia's face turned from a soft smile to the harsh edge of a scowl immediately, almost like a storm upon the calm sea, imprinting fears upon who would look at her. Zack suppressed a shiver within as he watched.  
"My children, I made a mistake to release them upon anger. Anger clouds your judgment as it did to me." She shrugged and swept herself around to face away from him. "Avalanche had succeeded in bringing down Ultimate, my eldest of Weapons and Sapphire. But Diamond, Emerald and Ruby are still out there, lost and on the brink of reeking havoc upon me. All their intentions are to destroy me, put me out of misery, which they were originally created to do so."

"Yes," Zack said with recognition and moved to Gaia's side to put a comforting hand on her shoulder. Her hand slid up to cover his, the storm melting away from her to leave a gray foggy morning. "You want us to stop them, don't you?"

She looked up into his violet eyes with her vast black eyes. "Yes. You three are the strongest of all; you three hold the bloodline of my daughters, the Valkyries." She smiled as she saw his puzzled look. "You don't believe me so? A little secret, they are not the only last Valkyries to walk the planet." She turned fully to him. "They are the last true ones, the direct descendant from me, but there are few handfuls in the world with mixed blood. You are the closest to the true one. If you are to trace your bloodline, you will find that you are Cloud's cousin from her mother and father's sides." She laughed as Zack stared at her in shock.

"How is that so?" Zack asked curiously.

Gaia shrugged, "Your mother and her father are Wutainese, brother and sister. Ironically, your father is the grand-son of a Valkyrie. Sadly enough, his mother wasn't born a full Valkyrie, I suppose it's the Cetra blood that won over the Valkyrie, causing her to not be a true one." She smiled at Zack, "Well, the Valkyrie blood run true in you, skipping generations." She gestured to his eyes, "Violet eyes are also rare color along with blue. Those who have blues and violet eyes are starting to appear more and more among the mixed bloodlines, they are the one who have stronger Valkyrie blood. One day, all of the children of Gaia will become the true Valkyrie race as I have intended eons ago."

She turned to gaze about her, studying the Lifestream. "Anyway, your mission right now is to stop them, the Weapons. You three have a long way to go, to change my world, change the people and heal my wound. But first things first, stop my warriors. However," She turned to Cloud and Sephiroth before them. "I cannot release them. They're in the Middle Land. Search out for their stones; only you can release them."

Zack gulped hard. "What? They… they're Summons now?"

"Yes." She said with low voice, hinting regret. "But, I trust, you will set things right for all of us."

Gaia moved away, the gray foggy morning faded into a peek of a dawn upon her face with a slight smile. She disappeared among the greenness. Then, he was alone. He smiled as he closed his eyes, feeling himself fade away from the Lifestream.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

John clicked the phone shut, having already called Reeve and asking him what to do with Zack and learned that Zack often did this in the past then there was nothing he could do but let the man sleep it off. According to Reeve, it was something Zack falls into, having a premonition moment. He sighed and motioned to few men to take Zack to a tent and saw him to a cot. He sighed and rubbed his forehead, it was already a heck of a day, what more could happen? Then he realized, with Zack, anything could happen and then wondered, if it were Cloud, it could had been worse. Rubbing the bridge of his nose to prevent the oncoming headache, "Oy vey… I'm glad I'm a simple scientist, not an Elite Solider."

"Dr. Doran! John!" A young boy, an assistant of his came in the tent, wild looking as he heaved after running the long way, he assumed from the crater.

"What is it, David?" He asked, turning to the boy.

"The center…" David breathed hard, his ebony hair in a wild mess while his bright green eyes wide. "Flooding with Mako… Swords received…" He stopped and caught a few more breaths while John moved to hold him by the shoulders. "They got the swords but, the stone cracked, the Mako steeped though and is filling the place up…"

John nodded and made haste to the center, understanding what had happened. They had peeled the scab of the wound a bit too much and it was now bleeding. Upon arrival to the center, the whole place was full of Mako liquid with stones chunks floating about. Several men who were there huddled close to the entrance, having already saved most of the equipments.

"We got the swords but it started to fill and the stone cracked more and the whole place filled up." One of the men moved, but strain was obvious on his physical because the swords seemed heavy and handed the two massive legendary swords to John. It took two strongest men to carry just one sword and they were struggling. John's eyes widened and gaped as he thought of how strong the owners of the swords were.

John took them in his hands, attempting to help, surely, it was heavy and he gasped softly as he felt the powers coursed though his veins upon holding such weapons. The Ultimate Weapon was glorious, crystalline and in a feminine perfection compared to Masamune, a dark brooding kind of power that glistened with melancholy. The two swords were the opposite and the match, such like Adam and Eve of the weapons in its own glory.

"Dr. Doran?" David asked timidly from behind his superior.

John turned and looked at the boy with half a smile. "We're done here. There's nothing else. Go tell everyone to pack up and get ready to head back to Neo-Midgar." He glanced to the filling pool of Mako and bowed his head, "My deepest apology, Mother Gaia. Heal in peace."

"Yes sir!" The youth ran with full burst of energy, shouting on top of his lung to everyone to pack up.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

"What? Say that again?" Reeve asked, his eyes wide as he leaned forward on his desk, holding the phone in his hand. Rufus was sitting next to him at the desk, listening in as well.

"The Swords are received, we're returning now." Dr. Doran's voice came though the static.

"Good, I'm expecting you soon and your reports."

The reply came back with more static, but Reeve could make it out. "Yes. What of Zack?"

"All right, I'm sending you the Mjolnir; transport them carefully to the Headquarter. Make sure those who had seen the swords do not say a word. I do not want this to get out at all. We don't want troubles to start before we can handle."

"All right, we'll be waiting for the submarine at the coral coast by Bone Village . Dr. Doran out."

Reeve sighed as he clicked the phone off and leaned back in his chair. Masamune and Ultimate Weapon had been discovered; a hope sparked in his soul that Cloud would also be found as well, perhaps, Sephiroth too. The two were like the weapons they wielded, strong, indestructible and unbeatable, nothing could go against them and together, they made up a team of indescribable force.

"The weapons of the two strongest people on the Planet… is it wise?" Rufus asked as he leaned his head on his hand, resting.

Reeve glanced over to the blond-haired President. He noticed the other man wasn't truly healing as well. No Cure Materia was able to cure the Geosigma. "I believe it is wise. After all, the fate of the Planet is not fully stable yet. I don't think Gaia could do anything and is relying sorely on Cloud and Sephiroth." He looked down on his desk and sighed at the paper scattered across, letters and documents from other countries. Many of them were angry words and threatening as well. Wutai and the southern countries were threatening Neo-Midgar and he had no understanding why. He needed somebody to protect Neo-Midgar; it had baffled him since the World Peace Treaty. "We need them. They'll protect Neo-Midgar." He said softly. Some how, since the peace treaty conference, one by one, the other countries was starting to get riled up and sending angry letters and he suspected Lord Godo had something to do with it.

Rufus frowned and rubbed his covered eye, wincing slightly as he hit the bruising spot. "Don't you think it's time to let me in on the reason why many of you believed that Cloud and Sephiroth are the only one to really change everything for the better?"

Reeve looked up to the steel-eyed man and nodded. "Once Zack gets back, we'll explain to you." He saw the young president nod his head barely.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Across the Wutai Sea where Lord Godo sat in his large office at his palace alone, he was in deep thoughts as he stared at the newspaper that was sent from Neo-Midgar, giving daily news and tid-bits.

The image of the Avalanche was emblazoned across the front page and several pages were about each individual member of the Avalanchers and some more on the few Turks that had the hands in helping to save the Planet. The paper was several months old, printed off the press a week after Meteor incident. The whole news-letter was about the heroes. And the page was open to Vincent Valentine's profile.

He couldn't help but feel there was something about the red and black cloaked man. The profile did not reveal much about his past but did mention that he was once the legendary Turk years ago, before Sephiroth's birth. He frowned as he stared at the image of Vincent and murmured, "Who are you?" He had a suspecting feeling that Vincent was a person he should be wary of more than any others.

He looked up to see his commanding officer enter his office and gave him a bowing salute. "Speak, what is it?"

"The spy had returned, my lord."

"What is the report?" Lord Godo asked as he returned his attention to the paper.

"The Evacuation Party had left the Northern Crater and they were carrying two weapons, the weapons of Cloud Strife and Sephiroth, the Ultimate and Masamaune."

Lord Godo nodded, waving his hand to dismiss the officer. "Thank you." As the officer left the office, he murmured to himself, "Rufus ShinRa, why would you want the demon sword, Masamune and the sword of the angels, Ultimate?" He rubbed over his heart, where he was once pierced with the dark sword years ago. The wound had healed, yet the pain lingered to remind him.

He turned to his desk and slumped the newspaper aside and pulled several scrolls. He opened one and scowled, it was the pact signed between his family and the family from the South Wutai, the Xin'Tine House. It was the agreement for arranged marriage between the Godo and Xin'Tine Houses. He knew by Yuffie's eighteen birthday, she would have to marry the Xin'Tine's heir; however the heir had been long missing for the last thirty five years and the only surviving member of Xin'Tine was an old man, Lord Xin'Tine, in his old age, nearing ninety.

His eyes widened and he turned his attention to the newspaper and grabbed it. "Thirty five… That was when you went missing too, Vincent Valentine." He chuckled, "How amusing, Valentine, Xin'Tine, the names sound close the same. Is that you, Kintaro, my old enemy?"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Zack glanced back to Neo-Midgar; the new city was already expanding and growing, promising to look far better than the old one. His eyes shifted to Junon Harbor, staring at the naval base in the distance. The bird shifted beneath him and he glanced down to the black downy feathered head of the dark golden chocobo. The bird turned its head and its large amber eyes blinked at him.

"Yeah, Golrond…" He slipped off the bird's back and rummaged in the pack and pulled out some energy bar. He took one and tossed it to the bird who caught it with her beak and started to eat it. He munched on the other one, gazing back to the far distant city and the harbor.

He had woken up several days after passing out at the Northern Crater, finding himself back at Junon Harbor. He explained to Reeve that he had to find the two new Summons Materias and Gaia had left the image in his mind where it would be found, at the Temple in the South Isles.

Reeve was hesitant and agreed after a long explanation and told Zack that Rufus wanted to know everything, so the two of them went and had a private meeting with Rufus, delivering every detail to the young President. Rufus at first didn't believe and as the story had progressed, he began to see the connection and in the end, he was rather very surprised to learn the whole truth. He was much more shocked to learn that Cloud was actually a female and Sephiroth's intended. Zack even told him that Sephiroth had intended to announce he was going to get married after Nibelheim once they returned from the mission trip but never did. It had given Rufus a new perspective of the silver-haired man.

Zack also explained that Gaia wanted to the three of them, Sephiroth, Cloud and Zack to destroy the Weapons as well heal the Planet. However, Zack had to find Sephiroth and Cloud first. Rufus and Reeve were surprised that Sephiroth and Cloud had became into Summonses. Rufus then agreed to allow Zack go on his hunt in order to find them.

He looked to the bird that was looking back at him expectantly and laughed. "All right, I'm ready." He stepped up and took the beak in his hands, hugging the bird's head to his chest, resting his head on the large feathery head. "Do you remember where the Temple is?" He asked softly.

The bird chirped and butted its head against Zack and he laughed, climbing onto its back. He had liked the bird very much, it was one of the few birds that Cloud had bred and raised during her time of the journey. They were off, speeding across the land and water.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

While back at Junon Harbor, in the conference room under the water, Reeve and Rufus stood before an assembly of group, several reporters stood around with their cameramen ready while the Turks stood, guarding the President and Vice-President in the front. A large wall were revealed with dozen of television, showing different locations in each screen, all of them showed the reactors all over the world.

The members of the Avalanche were deployed to different reactors and they were standing before the reactors, in each television, representing the next step in the future of the Planet. Reeve reached out to the table where the speaker phone was set, connected with each Avalancher on the televisions.

"Good Morning, Avalanche, is everything set?" He asked.

Barret's voice boomed through the speaker as he waved on the television. He was standing some distant from the Corel Reactor. "Everything's green to go. Ready to go up da smoke!"

Tifa's voice came through, yelling at Barret, "Oh, be quiet big guy! Reeve! Nibelheim Reactor's set and ready to go as well. What about those... uhg… Hojo's experiments?"

Reeve looked up and found Tifa standing a good distance from the Reactor in the mountains. The Nibelheim Reactor had caused more trouble than any other in the entire history of ShinRa Co. There were some surviving monsters around and those alcoves which contained the mutated monsters within were still alive. He knew there was no hope for them. "Leave them be. We have to wipe every trace of Hojo and Jenova's experiments."

Tifa's piped voice came though the intercom. "Sure thing! Everything's green."

"Good." He glanced to the other screens. "Cid?"

The pilot grunted a hello. He was standing in the front of Gongaga Reactor. The one that had been out of service for a long time, but it was still running on Mako and also needed to be destroyed. He reported everything was a go. Yuffie was standing next to him, looking slightly better and a smile was on her face. The smile was infectious and Reeve was glad the youth was feeling better.

"Vincent?"

"Fort Condor's ready." The sniper replied and Reeve could see dozens of men with sledge hammers and other crude looking tools in their hands. Fort Condor was the only Reactor that would not be destroyed by explosion but taken apart by hand. Vincent had volunteered to oversee it.

"Good. Nanaki reported Cosmo Canyon's all right. Good thing that town didn't have a Reactor. Junon Harbor's ready for switch on!" The Junon Harbor's Reactor had been converted and there were no trace of the old Mako Reactor left. Reeve gave a smile to the camera in front of him. "People of Gaia, today, we will mark down in the history of revolution. Many of the Reactors, upon agreement, are going to be destroyed and the Planet will finally be able to heal herself." A short speech was all he had to give and he took the handheld speaker phone to his mouth. "Ready?"

"Yeah!" Everyone replied back.

"On three… three, two, one!" When Reeve said one, a loud explosion filled the intercom and on the screens, several reactors blew up in fireballs. At Fort Condor, the men heaved and hauled, bashing the place apart. Loud cheer filled the air. Reeve couldn't help but to smile at the situation. He felt good at cleaning up ShinRa's messes and giving the people new hope for a better life.

Rufus sat, watching with grim smile on his lips. He was glad that he was able to atone for his father and grandfather's mistake and past harm to the people. He watched in silence as the televisions showed smoke filling the screens, showing that the reactors were being completely destroyed for good. He thought to himself silently, if only Cloud and Sephiroth could be here to help him though, with Zack as well. He knew somewhere in his heart, the future would begin again with the trio together.

Reeve watched the screens, he wished Zack was here to witness the event but he knew Zack had to do what he had to do. It was wrong to think of Zack without Cloud or Sephiroth, or as well, think the other two without each other. He silently prayed that Zack would not have to look far for the two.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Zack pulled the rein and the large golden bird stopped. He had reached the island of Mideel in the early afternoon, and the chocobo seemed a bit tired.  
"All right, Golrond, we'll rest for a bit." He slid off the bird's back and patted its beak while it nuzzled his hair and trotted off to the side, searching for fresh patch of grass.

Zack chuckled as he watched the majestic bird and shook his head. Cloud, over the last two years had asked him to help her in breeding this bird. It was rather difficult, trying to catch few birds and breed them. It took Cloud a couple of months in between the time during her journey. Emeril and Aquil was the first two birds she bred from the wild birds she had caught. They are blue and green chocobos and both birds were still with them, at the Junon Bases shelter under good care from few cadets who volunteered to work in the stable. The two birds had bred a black Chocobo together and Cloud had no heart to letting the bird go because the bird reminded her so much of Sephiroth and deftly named him Silver. That bird was massive and wild in temperament and no one could ride him. The bird only listened and obeyed Cloud and allowed her to ride him.

Zack rummaged though his bag and took out a ration and tore the package top to eat the content, watching the bird graze the grass. Silver had been released recently because no one could control him and Cloud wasn't around. However, he had seen the bird remain nearby, coming and going though the forest near the Junon Base as if it were waiting for Cloud. He shook his head in amusement. Maybe it was true about the black bird being immensely loyal to Cloud. He smiled as he saw the golden bird trot over to him to kneel beside to him and preen her feathers.

Golrond, daughter of Silver was a very sweet and tame bird, bred with excellent intelligent and stamina, also as massive as her sire. The bird stood almost half taller than Zack and ran at the speed of two hundred mile per hour, give or takes some. "Wark?" Golrond questioned and blinked her large dazzling golden eyes at Zack when he stood up.

"Ready, girl?" He asked, chuckling as the bird stood up, ruffled her feathers and turned to let Zack mount her. As he mounted on her back, she shifted slightly on her feet and waited. "You know the way." He said as he leaned to her head and stroked her cheek.

She gave a chirp and trotted into the silent jungle. As soon as she took in her surroundings, she broke into run, leaping and dodging every obstacle that came in their way deftly. Zack never failed to feel the terror of riding her. It was like being on a roller coaster ride of doom. "Whoa… damn…" He whipped his head to the side to avoid the blow to the head by an overhanging branch. He then realized the bird stopped and he looked up, his mouth gaping.

The wall of the Temple of Ancient loomed before her. But that wasn't only it. The Temple towered over the wall as if it had never been destroyed. Shivers crept up his spine as he slid off the bird who deftly stepped forward. He frowned at the action of Golrond, knowing from the past that she had avoided the area before and refused to come anywhere closer. The bird gave a soft nip to his head and tugged on his wild mane as if she was leading him. "Wark…chirp." She kept on tugging his mane until he moved forward.

"You want me to go in?"

The bird bobbed her head and blinked owlishly at him. "Wark!"

"You're sure?" He asked, he was slightly tense about the situation that the Temple had raised again.

"Wark!" She bobbed her head against his back to push him and trotted by his side as he entered the entrance of the walls.

"All right, I'm going!" He surrendered to the bird and crossed the bridge to the Temple . Golrond followed behind him like a faithful puppy, chirping and warking happily ever so often. Her singing put him at ease as he entered the building and found the place blazing with torch light and was surprised as a sense of dread didn't creep up his spine at all, but the feeling the place gave out was calming and peaceful, as if the place was the safest place on the entire planet. He took a torch from a bracket by his side and followed though the difficult maze. He felt something suspicious hovering on the edge of his sense as he went though the labyrinth where he had expected some booby traps goes off.

Every once in a while, he would stop and look about, expecting something to leap out of the shadow. But with Golrond pushing behind him, he went on. Finally reaching the chamber full of murals, he gazed around, expecting the resurrection of the Dark Sephiroth to appear. Golrond pushed past him and danced in the middle of the chamber, singing happily.

"What is it girl?" He asked as he placed the torch in the empty bracket and looked at the walls. Having the chance to see it up close, he took in the pictures of Meteor and the history the wall told. Golrond made a loud chirping noise, distracting him. He turned and saw her standing next to a wall that seemed to have a newer picture on it. "What…" He moved to the bird's side and stroked her wing.

The wall did indeed show a new picture. He recognized a few figures in it; one was Jenova, looking down at Cloud, who held the long sword of Ultimate weapon, pointed upward. Before Jenova was Dark Sephiroth, a dark figure with dark outline around it, giving the picture a sense that the figure had a dark aura. His eyes trailed upward to the second figure behind Dark Sephiroth. He stared, jaw agape.

It was Sephiroth, in his glorious form. He stood before the others, his arms outstretched and protruding from his back was one white wing and another black wing spread wide. He had no dark aura, but the picture of him seemed to glow with brightness. "That's the One Winged Angel." He whispered to the bird and noticed another section of the wall. He moved over and saw Sephiroth again, with dual-colored wings; he was looking down, his hands clasped in almost a prayer form. Below him was someone else, a woman with golden hair spread about her body in all direction and she was clasping her hands in prayer, her eyes closed. She was a wearing white gown and armor, looking as if she were the goddess of Warfare. On her feet were several circles in different colors and size. Around her was the water surface, he guessed, a lake.

He recognized her as Cloud with several Materias at her feet; one was Holy, the smallest white one, another, larger than the rest was Meteor. The rest were red, the Summons. He understood the image and knew what he had to do. He had to summon Sephiroth along with the other Summonses and Sephiroth would summon Cloud with his eternal love. "But, why?" He asked as he traced his fingers on the red circular pictures of the Summon Materias.

"Wark!" Golrond warbled and tugged on his hair. He turned and saw where the bird wanted him to look at. The altar stood before him and this time, there was no miniature Temple there. However, in its place sat a red stone.  
He smiled and walked over to it and took the stone in his hand. A feeling washed over him and he felt the connection. It was the One Winged Angel Summon Materia.

_**Brringgg! **_

He whipped his head to his pack where he had left forgotten across the chamber underneath the torch. "Oh, the phone." He went over to the pack and pulled out the small device and clicked it on. "Zack here."

Reeve's voice came though and relief was hinted. "Zack! I was wondering where you are."

Zack laughed and leaned against the wall. "Well, it seems that my trip has been cut short. I will be returning tomorrow. I know what to do now. I got the One Winged Angel Summon Materia."

"Really, already?"

"Yeah, the Temple of the Ancient had risen again and there's no danger here. It was here and there's a new mural on the wall that told what would happen soon. I'm going to take a picture of it. I would like you to get all of Avalanche to Junon by tomorrow and start the conference. Have them bring their entire collection of Materias."

"Okay, I have no idea what you're going on about. But get back safe, all right?"

"Will do, my friend. I'm going to stay here the night and explore more of the Temple to see what else the place has got."

"Be careful. Reeve out." The phone clicked and Zack was left in silence until the bird warked at him.

"Golrond, we're staying the night. That's all right with you?" He received a nip on the head in approval and he laughed, ruffling the bird's feathered head.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_


	43. S4:4: Seraph and Seraphim

Just because I got the most flattering review from Yuna's Aeon, I felt compelled to upload early. You all are still getting another chapter on Monday too.

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Four : Seraph and Seraphim

_For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways._

Psalm 91:11, The Holy Bible

Deep in the mountain of Midgar, hid a small building which contained a large underground Lab which ran on pure Mako power from a small reactor that supplied an abandoned Materia Mining shafts. The man who owned the Lab smiled as he stared at the green cylinders before him in the vast underground room. The room was filled with dozen upon dozens of tubes the size big enough to hold a man in each one of them, and all of them were filled to the brim with green glowing liquid of pure Mako.

The man with the lab coat peered up at one of the cylinder and jotted down some notes on the clipboard he was carrying with him and moved onto the next one. "Perfect…" He muttered, "Process is going at good rate… Jenova's going to be happy."

"You said we'd find Mother at the Northern Crater." The cool voice spoke from the door.

"Did you find her?" The man in the lab coat asked, never looking away from his inspection, his attention was focused on the clipboard as he wrote notes.

"You're a liar, Dr. Gates." The silver haired youth, a vision of former Sephiroth stepped in the room, his black outfit slithered along with his body, swishing about his legs. His shoulder length hair swayed softly, half covering his face. He held expression of a playful youth, but at the same time, annoyed.

Dr. Gates finally looked up to meet the cat green eyes. "Ah, Kadaj." He smirked. "She was last seen there; perhaps you and your brothers need to keep looking. It's important we bring her back."

"Why do you want Mother?" another voice asked, quieter and timidly. The two turned their head to find the short haired man, his appearance much like Kadaj but appearing slightly older, taller and bulkier.

"Loz, your Mother is important for these experiments. If you want more brothers, I have to have her." Dr. Gates said as he moved onto the next cylinder.

The third of the three brothers entered the room, his medium length hair swishing around his shoulder and his almost feminine feature peered through the fringes. "They're not our brothers." He tapped his gunblade, the Velvet Nightmare upon one of the glass, peering into the green mist. "They're nothing." While the taller one was the oldest, the shorter feminine one was the second and the leader was the youngest in the age chronically.

Dr. Gates frowned. "You dare to speak this way for your brothers?"

Kadaj quickly positioned his dual-bladed sword, the Souba, to the doctor's neck, nicking it slightly as it stopped him. "Yazoo's right. These are nothing." He gestured to the vast room. "We three are born of Mother, they are not. Now, where is Mother?" His eyes glowed. "We're not going to let you hurt her." He narrowed his fine silver brows, his eyes slitting into sharp points.

Dr. Gates stared at the youngest of the three brothers, yet the youngest always took lead and held more intelligent than the others. He swallowed, feeling his Adam apple press against the cold blade. "She is somewhere, in the Lifestream or walking about. She is alive."

"You've lost your use." Kadaj coolly said as he pressed the blades tighter to the doctor's neck, rivet of blood seeped down along the cold metal.

Stifling sob filled the air and they all looked to Loz who were sniffing. Despite being the oldest he had extreme sensitivity and sense of child. "Where is Mother?"

Yazoo smirked, "Don't cry, Loz. We'll find her soon." He turned and glared at the doctor.

Kadaj grunted in disgust and with quick movement, the blades glinted light in the room and the doctor's body thumped on the ground, his head had been detached. "Useless. We'll find her on our own and gather our brothers and sisters. We'll be together, like one family and with mother again." He smirked and looked to the cylinders in the room. "Pathetic." He muttered and slashed the first one, the Mako spilled from the cracked glass and from inside, a deformed body the size of a small child fell forward, snapping free from the tubes and laid on the ground next to the headless doctor, it's pale eyes wide open and it's stringy pale hair mattered to the sticky substance of the Mako and blood on the floor.

"Destroy the room, brothers." Kadaj murmured as he walked past his two brothers. Loz grinned with childish malice, raising his arm where his Dual Hound pile bunker was strapped on and Yazoo held his gunblade up. From behind Kadaj, the room filled with gunshots, crackling of electricity, broken glass and gush of liquid. "Mother… we will find you." He frowned as he clutched his chest and seethed, "No, you bastard. You won't have her."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

The Avalanche and Turks found themselves once again in the conference room at the Underwater Headquarter. They had all decided to remain at the Headquarter until everything was resolved and settled down. It always seemed one thing after another that they were called to the meeting about something. Rufus and Tseng wasn't the only one present because they were in Neo-Midgar, making sure everything was going smoothly in the new city.

Reeve had called them up and asked them to bring their entire Materia collection. Yuffie had brought in the most for the Avalanche because she had swiped Cloud's collection as well. Reeve had brought gathered up the entire ShinRa Soldiers' collection and had several crates full of boxes. He only brought in five large boxes filled to the brim with the best of them all.

Zack had called ahead before leaving the temple, asking Reeve to gather the Avalanche and the Turks together to put together the entire Materia collection they could find anywhere. He told Reeve he would be arriving in time for the meeting and had a lot to show about the temple.

Reeve glanced around the room and smirked as Yuffie boggled at the collection, going through the Soldiers boxes. He had already prepared projector to show the images that Zack had sent ahead of time, he was rather surprised at the pictures Zack had took and was curious what the General had discovered. He turned to see four Second Class Soldiers carrying two large long items wrapped in bundle and placed them on the table with heavy thunks, he knew the items were very heavy and no normal person could carry one by itself. Even the Soldiers were already sweating and complaining that their muscles would be sore the next day.

"What's going on?" Tifa asked as she watched the Soldiers arrange the two large items, still covered up on the table with careful care. She saw one of them snapped his hand away as it accidentally went under the cover as if he was shocked. He waved his hand, grumbling about demon possessed and went away with the others.

Reeve shrugged, "Zack said he would be here anytime now. He had asked me to bring you all in, the Materias and these. We'll wait for him."

"I'm here, I'm here." Zack announced and everyone turned to see bedraggled general enter the room, he looked like he had just gotten off the chocobo and went straight to the conference room without taking a shower. His hair was wind whipped, his clothes were dusty and his face had dust streaks except for around his eyes which were protected by the sunglasses.

Cid raised a graying blond eyebrow, "What's so important that you decided to skip a shower?"

Yuffie scrunched up her nose and waved in front of her face, "Pheww! What did you roll in?"

Zack gave them scathing glare. "It's important here, I have to tell you all this and I need your help. We don't have much time, with the Weapons going around, planning to wreck havoc on the planet."

"Yeah, ge' on wit' it foo!" Barret grumbled his deep voice, glaring at the bedraggled General.

"Right," Zack rolled his eyes and took the remote from Reeve and turned to the screen behind him and turned on the projector. "I went to the Temple of the Ancient." He clicked and the image of the temple came on screen.

"What? It's rebuilt?" Elena asked.

"I thought it was destroyed." Rude asked quietly.

Zack turned back to everyone, "The Temple rebuilt itself recently. When I went up north, I passed out and Gaia spoke to me. She told me to get Sephiroth and Cloud back to help her to stop the Weapons. She gave me the image of where I could find them. Well, the Temple was the first place." He moved to the table where Yuffie had reorganized the Materias in groups of colors and potentency. He went right to the pink ones and the red ones on the end of the table. "We can use the Cure Materia, Gaia had given us permission to use it, but as for the rest, we have to not use it unless it's an emergency."

"Why?" Reno asked as he cocked his head.

Zack turned to Tifa, "I am sure you remember the lesson you learned the day we went up the Nibel Mountain Reactor years ago. How was Materia made?"

Tifa frowned for a moment and recalled, "Yes. These were created by the Reactors." She picked up a blue orb that was near her and turned it over; it was a perfect sphere, not like the raw rough Materia that were found in nature. "Compressed Mako."

"That's right, now we got no more Reactors for a reason."

Barret's eyes widened as he understood, "Da Reactors were shut 'cuz it were hutin' Gaia. Them Materia would die after long use."

"Yeah." Zack picked up the powerful of the Summon Materias, rolling the red orb in his hand, the Knights of Round. "They die out eventually, running out of power. And we won't have any new one to replace them unless we find the raw pure ones, which is hard to do. Beside that, Gaia says the Summons has come to their full uses and they all have one use left." He tossed the Knights of Round to Yuffie who yelped as she caught it.

He turned and went back to the screen and clicked the remote, "The reason why I've called you here. I needed to use the Summon Materias, to summon the new one." He clicked the remote and the image came on screen of the mural.

"That's the new one." Nanaki pointed out as he noticed a part of the wall that no one had seen. It showed the last battle with Sephiroth. Cloud was holding 'his' sword upward toward the angelic Sephiroth above them with six white wings and a black one.

"The Last Battle." Yuffie quipped quietly as she moved closer to study the image. She blinked as Zack clicked to the next one. "Wow, what is that?" She pointed to a dark figure with dual-colored wings. "Look like Sephiroth…"

"Yes. This is Sephiroth." Zack turned to everyone once again. "The Temple doesn't have the Black Materia because it's gone."

"Uhm." Yuffie interrupted, "It's not gone." She dug into her pocket and pulled out the smaller version of the Black Materia, it sat in her hand as she showed it to everyone, it had dark glow in the center and next to it was a smaller white Materia. "I got Holy and Meteor Materias here. I found it while we were cleaning up Midgar; it was sitting there on the ground together."

Zack gaped, "I was wondering how we were going to process because these two are the last one I was going to look for." He picked up the black one and turned it over to look at it. "It's still got power."

"But a Valkyrie only can summon the Black Materia while the Cetra only can summon the Holy one." Tifa pointed it out.

Zack smirked, "True. Now I understand why Gaia told me something. You see, she told me that I am both a Valkyrie and Cetera." Everyone gasped in the room. "Yeah, I was surprised too. She explained my family ancestors, who they were and it turned out I am Cloud's cousin. This is why Gaia told me to do this, to summon them all up to bring out Sephiroth."

"What the hell! You ain't bringing back that bastard!" Barret pounded his fist on the table.

Zack glared while Vincent clasped his cold claw on the gun-armed man and quietly said, "Barret, do remember that it wasn't the real Sephiroth who were responsible for what had happened. It was Jenova and her estranged son, the Dark Sephiroth. Zack had meant to resurrect the real one."

Zack nodded as he saw Barret quiet down and sat down. "Yeah, Vincent's right. You guys want Cloud back?" He saw their head nods. "The only way I can get Cloud back is through this." He pulled out the new red Materia, it glowed brightly than the others and everyone could feel its aura, stronger than they've experienced from the other Summon Materia.

"What is that? It's so powerful." Reno asked, peering at the brightly glowing orb. It was red in overall color but the center glowed pure white.

Yuffie reached out and took it in her hand, handling it with extreme care, "Wow, it makes me feel wonderful… beautiful…" she whispered, smiling softly and looked up to Zack, "Is this a new Summon?"

Zack smiled back, "Yes. The only way to summon this one is to summon all the other Summonses and they will summon this one."

Reeve frowned, finding something missing. "I do not get the idea, how can Cloud return to us if this one is summoned? And what Summon is this?"

Zack grinned as he pointed to the image of the dark clothed figure with dual-colored wings. "The One Winged Angel." The Avalanche gasped while the Turks looked on with puzzlement. "That's right, Sephiroth." He held the Materia up and pointed with another hand to the white center. "Inside is another Materia, that's why it's so powerful. There are two Summonses in this Materia. The One Winged Angel is called Seraph and the one in the center is Seraphim."

"Seraphim? You mean, that is Sorano?" Tifa asked curiously.

"Yes." Zack nodded and saw Tifa smile, understanding while Cid, Yuffie and Barret along with the Turks were puzzled. "Some of you remember Sorano, Sephiroth's girlfriend. She will return and through her, Cloud will be able to return." They soon understood, even they didn't grasp the concept that Sorano and Cloud were one person. Zack was tempted to tell them right there, right now but he knew he had to respect Cloud's wish, only to allow few to know. He felt like keeping her secret was pointless now.

Tifa gestured to the table, "So what does these have to do with the Summons?"

Zack turned to the table and smirked, "Nothing for now, really. They're found at the Crater and I felt that it should be back here for Cloud and Sephiroth." He moved to the side of the table and pulled the cloth away to reveal Masamune and Ultimate Weapons. The Ultimate looked different because it had the base form of the Buster Sword but there were several smaller blades attached to it. If one were to look carefully, they'd find six blades and could be detached or attached to the sword, varying its strength.

"Whoa!" Reno gaped as he stared at the two swords on the table. Masamune looked slightly different, as if it had light that came from within. The blade looked brand new, shining with sheen of pure silver, glowing slightly blue though it was made from mythril. He reached out to pick up the Ultimate sword and he found he couldn't. "Damn, it's heavy!"

Zack smirked while Tifa quipped, "That's why it was being carried with two Soldiers each when they came in with them. How heavy is it?"

Rude reached to touch the Masamune but he was jerked back when electric shock crackled in the air, stinging his hand. "Damn, this one… you can't touch it."

Zack moved and lifted the Masamune with ease, "It only accepts the recognized owner. It also knows I'm a friend of Sephiroth." Everyone stared at him with awe that he was able to lift such heavy sword. He then placed it back on the table and lifted Ultimate, which appeared much heavier, "As for this one, it's new. I suspect Gaia modified this for Cloud. It's stronger and has the punch; it can kill a god with it. I suppose, a Weapon as well." He swirled the sword around and unlatched one blade free to become a second sword. "I am not sure how this work, I suppose only Cloud can, maybe Sephiroth. It appears it could be used as dual swords too." He reattached the blade back on the sword and placed it back on the table.

"Jeez. We're dealing with super race." Cid muttered as he stared at the swords on the table. The white centered glowing red Materia sat in between the two swords.

Reeve nodded, knowing the pilot was right, Cloud and Sephiroth indeed are the two most powerful people on the entire planet and they could be considered as god and goddess let alone they weren't immortal, then again, he wondered if they were now.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

The group had traveled back to the Ancient City and gathered in the temple where Aeris once was killed. Zack had stood where she had died, staring at the floor, recalling what he had seen through the cat and remembering her. He grieved for her and realized he still held the torch for her after all those years he had seen her last.

Then, he shook his head and turned to everyone, each had several Summon Materias, standing around the large mystical room around the edge where the center were the pool with shimmering colors and several step stones leading up to the altar in the center where Zack stood with three Materias in his hands. He had explained to everyone where the stones were to be placed around the room. The mood were somber for everyone, for most Avalanche had remembered how Aeris had died and her body laid on the bottom of the lake outside the temple, little they know that her body wasn't there anymore.

Barret bit his lip; he knew he could not, even if he tried, to swear in this place, it was holy. He'd forever feel guilty. In the temple, he felt his burden of the world melt away from him. Tifa took in the scene, feeling sense of guilt; jealousy and anger wash away from her and were replaced with love and peace. Nanaki sat on his haunches, breathing in the scared air, feeling as if his knowledge had grown as he felt older and wiser being in the presence of the room. The pilot, Cid smiled, feeling the peace fill his soul as if he never felt grief and anger. He knew in the depth of his heart, Cody was always with him and he felt as if his son's ghost were beside him, experiencing everything he experienced. Then, the sniper, Vincent closed his crimson eyes, allowing the sense of tranquility fill him, easing the heavy burden of sin, filling him with forgiveness and the knowledge that his son had put him to ease. And Yuffie, she smiled brilliantly as she knelt and skimmed her fingers across the shimmering water's surface, the giggle broke softly from her lips, washing all the sorrow and terror from her, bringing her youth and innocent back.

Reeve smiled softly, feeling years younger and he knew the people who lost their lives from the sheer stupidity of the ShinRa in the past were at peace and they had not died in vain and he felt peace and hope for the first time in a long time. The Turks, standing beside him all shared somber expression as they bowed their heads in respect for the Ancient who sacrificed her life to help to save the Planet, understanding and peace filled them as well.

However, Zack was the only one who felt nothing but pain and sorrow, regret and despair filled his heart as he stood alone in the center. The ghosts of the Cetra could not help him or heal him, knowing that the only possibility for his healing was through the ones he had come for, his best friends, his only hope, his only true family that he holds close to his heart.

"Let's lay the stones." Zack murmured, loud enough for everyone to hear. He set the three stones down where he stood and moved to the edge of the altar. He nodded to the group, who moved around the room in the places where they would lay the stones down on the outer rim of the water's edge. Gaia had given him images where the stones were to sit in his dreams, telling him what to do and what to say.

He turned and gestured to where the general north would be. "This is north. We need to lay them in their respective position of power." He stared on the north. "North, where lay the Heaven, the life that begins, Phoenix." He watched as Yuffie set down the Phoenix Materia on the North rim. He then turned south, "South laid the underworld, the lord of the death, Hades." Nanaki placed the Hade Materia down. He turned to east where Tifa held the white small Materia, "Where dawn begins, come the light, Holy." Then he turned west, "Where the sun set, come the darkness of the night, Meteor."

He turned to northwest, "Elementals are next, next to Meteor lay Ramuh and then Ifrit, the gods of lightening and fire." He nodded as Cid laid down the two stones between Meteor and Phoenix. "Between Phoenix and Holy, Shiva and Bahamut, the goddess of Ice and beasts." He waited as Vincent laid down the two stones and turned southeast, "Gods of the giants and air, Titans and Typhoon." He gave a single nod toward Elena who set down the next two and faced southwest, "god and goddess of land and water, Kjata and Leviathan." Who were laid down by Rude.

Reno hopped onto the scattered platforms rising out of the water around the altar. On the north end, he stood as Zack said, "Lay there in the north, the dragon, Bahamut Sin." He watched as Reno set the stone down and hopped over to the next one and laid the stone down and moves around until all six stones he had lay in circle on each platform around the altar and stepped back onto the rim. "From Sin to Neo Bahamut and Bahamut Zero, create the triangle of Dragons, then the south create the triangle of the Valkyries Sons, south point being the First Son, Alexander the Judge to Odin the God of Nibel and finally, the thirteen Knights of the Round." The six stones created two triangles which made a star.

He sighed, in his hand held the last stone, glowing brightly than the others, in his hand. Everyone moved back outside the circle of stones, watching in anticipations. Tifa moved to join Reeve and Barret on the other side while Yuffie, Vincent and Cid were joined with Nanaki and the Turks huddled together.

"With the Summons in their respective place, their powers balance each other out, giving flow of power from Gaia." Zack said, and held the stone up, "Through life and death, light and darkness and all the elements and beasts of Gaia, Sephiroth and Cloud shall return to us."

Yuffie clapped her hands in excitement. "Ooh, this something that my people would die to see! What about Sorano?" She asked as she noticed the name wasn't mentioned. Zack smirked at her and looked up, focusing to the light above that streamed from the top, giving shine of light into the room, reflecting the colorful surface of the water. "Well, yeah, her too."

"Here we go." Cid muttered as he held onto Yuffie's shoulder for support.

"This better be worth it; don't want to be forced into another battle." Barret grumbled as he crossed his arms.

"Shut up you guys." Zack shot them a look and returned to looking above into the light, holding the stone high and his mouth opened as he spoke the strange ancient language with clear sound, "Legnad egni wen oel Bnsuoi Rolgso ahcotre dro Foregn ir Besira!"

"What the hell was that?" Yuffie whispered to Vincent who shrugged in reply. Then, everyone was hushed in awe when the water glowed until brilliant blinding light burst and streams of light erupted from the centre, reaching up to heaven. A column of light kept shining until a ball of light rose from the lake, climbing up the column, spiraling, leaving trails of sparks and tendrils until it reached the heavens and burst, leaving an explosion that blinded everyone again.

_Estuans interius ardente veritate - Burning inside with brilliant truth._

The stones in the outer rims glowed brilliantly white and an iridescent diagram of complex patterns, each stones shooting line of brilliant light toward the other, connecting until burst of light exploded, rising upward and dimmed. From the four points; Hades, Phoenix, Holy and Meteor raised first, each in their own beauty and darkness stood ethereally as the most high gods and goddesses. The elementals were next, burst of light shooting up from the stones, illuminating until each form was set. Ramuh crackled with lighting as Bahamut roared. Shiva appeared in burst of ice, her blue form appearing while Ifrit exploded in ball of flame, his fiery appearance glowed. Kjata appeared as a giant beast, much like a wild boar then settled into a rough looking man with menacing face and Titan, in similar form appeared, the ground boomed, echoing off the wall as he settled in his place. Leviathan shot out of her stone in spiral of water, her serpentine form coiling around and settled to reveal a beautiful elder woman in robe of blue while Typhoon rose in twist of violent air and settled into a handsome wolfishly elder man.

_Seraph!_

The water glowed brilliantly white and from the north point, the water erupted into wall of triangle, three dragons appeared, roaring loudly in the room and settled above the large domed ceiling in their respective place, Sin hovering largely over Neo and Zero. The triangle of wall faded down and the second set erupted, Alexander the Judge appeared, handsome in his ancient robe and armors, he held his massive sword that looked very much like the ancient form of Buster sword high as Odin appeared next, brandishing his sword with brilliant blue lights. Then, the last stone glowed and thirteen knights appeared and shimmered, fading into one form of a man with full armors, holding a sword with ax and lancer strapped to his back while his red cloak billowed around him.

_Sors speciousissimus Et omnis – Fate, Beautiful and Whole._

_Veni, veni, venias, - Come, come, O come,_

"Meteor!" Tifa gasped in whispered horror as she watched the handsome dark brooding man stood, glancing around the room with his hooded eyes. She could see his eyes were glittering black and it sent chills down her spine. It was the first time she saw him in his true form, she couldn't deny that the man was handsome in dark way.

Barret frowned. "Look at Holy…" Across from where Meteor stood, a beautiful woman, tall and willowy with long platinum blond hair stood, her face had gentle smile and her eyes were pale liquid blue. She glowed with pureness while Meteor glowed with darkness equally, yet when the two of them looked at each other, their eyes were full of love.

_Concessi me ascendi facias! - Let me rise above!_

"My gods…" Reeve whispered.

"That's right." Vincent agreed. He couldn't help but shiver at the beautiful soprano voice that filled the air while Zack held the glowing brilliant stone in his hand as he was in trance. He couldn't help but suspect the voice belonged to Cloud.

_Veni, veni, venias, - Come, come, O come,_

Avalanche stared gape jawed as the whole brilliantly divine light show kept on blinding them. They all didn't bother to shield their eyes, daring to watch for any danger. Each Summon raised their heads heaven-bound and opened their mouths to let out the most chilling song of ancient language, joining with the clear cut soprano one.

_Gloriosa – Glorious,_

Zack still stood, standing transfixed as he held the stone upward. His eyes were glazed over as he was spellbound. Light poured from the centre toward the stone and enveloped Zack in the pillar of light until he stepped away, letting the stone go as it hovered where it was held. He moved back until he was on the bottom steps of the altar, still watching the column of light. The stone glowed brightly in the light, separating, becoming two as the smaller one rose from the center of the first, rising to hover above.

_Concessi me ascendi facias! - Let me rise above! _

A rush of wind swirling around the altar with such force that the water rose and created walls as the Summons kept on singing the ancient song. The light dimmed on the altar and everyone gasped as they saw the outline of a figure. Everything seemed increase in tempo as the ancient song became fast paced.

_Generosa – Noble,_

Yuffie swallowed hard, finding to it difficult to breathe as her heart sped at an erratic tempo. She dared to look away and found she wasn't the only one. Cid's jaw was agape while Vincent's eyes were wide and unblinking. Tifa had her hands to her chest while Barret had the same look as Cid. The Turks stood jaws slacked. She looked back and nearly gasped.

_Veni, veni, venias, - Come, come, O come,_

Above the altar, the lines became more solid and a dark form took place. The figure was kneeling with his head bowed. The light faded and the figure became more solid, form taking place and they all recognized Sephiroth now.

_Gloriosa – Glorious,_

He was still kneeling, his long silver mane pooling around him, his bangs covering his face and no one dared to make a sound or even breathe as they watched him slowly rise. His wing, black as ebony with shimmering green accents, spread out as his arm moved outward from his body.

_Concessi me ascendi facias, Generosa - Let me rise above, Noble._

He kept rising, his mane moving like molten liquid and he was dress in ancient robe of black with silver accent, he looked very celestial as he hovered above the altar, his head slowly rising up to look up. His arms rose above and with flick of his wrists, his wing shot out full span and they could see the other one, translucent, shining with light as if it were only illusion compared to the first.

His eyes snapped open and brilliant flashes of green burst and dimmed to normalcy, yet glowing. His hands met and with a loud thunderclap, light exploded around him, bursting out as a violent wave of energy, knocking everyone off their feet and backward several yards.

_Seraph, Seraphim!_

Avalanche gasped and helped each other up. As they stood and soon realized everything was a dead silent. They turned to see that the Summons had stopped singing and Sephiroth was still hovering above the altar, his wings spread wide and slowly weaving, keeping him aloft.

"What's happening?" Tifa asked as she moved to Zack's side. He had been blown clear across the water and past Phoenix, just barely missing her but the woman didn't notice at all.

"I don't know." Then, he went silent before saying anything more as Sephiroth's mouth started to move.

"_Ecaep eht foregnir Be devole by Mesira!"_ Sephiroth's voice didn't contain anything of normal, but it seemed exalted to something of a voice that belonged to an ethereal being. From his hands in prayer, a small sphere of light glowed and everyone noticed what went on behind him as Meteor and Holy moved across the water and joined his side, their hands rising as glows of light shimmered from their palms, joining Sephiroth's hands in tendrils, becoming brighter and brighter until another figure formed.

This time, no one could ever utter a breath or even gasp as they watched the form evolve into a beautiful girl, not old or young in a long flowing gown that seemed to be made of light and golden hair. Not only was she wearing a gown, but golden armor on her chest and her arms and an ancient helmet of warfare were set on her head. In her hands, she held a long weapon that looked similar to Ultimate Weapon, pointing vertically upward and her eyes were closed.

Yuffie gasped, daring to whisper, "Sorano?"

Tifa nodded as she stood next to the young ninja. "I'd never thought she'd be so beautiful."

The light faded and Holy and Meteor stepped back as Sephiroth and Cloud descended to the altar, their clothes and wings disappearing to leave them lie on the altar floor next to each other. Holy, or rather, Megamiki knelt beside Cloud and laid her hands on her and Sephiroth's foreheads, whispering ancient words before standing to take Madoshi's offering hand. They moved back and the Summonses tilted their head up and from their voices gave out harmonious sound as Phoenix raised her arms up, her brilliant gown dazzling as if it were wings and from her mouth came trilling Phoenix Song.

Then, the whole brilliance of etherealness faded as the Summons faded away as if they were just memories and the stones returned, sitting where they were placed. The air became deathly silent as everyone found their breaths.

"Gods…" Reeve exhaled as he stumbled onto his knees, tears spilling from his eyes. He wasn't the only one who felt overwhelmed. The others were wiping their faces, finding that they were tearful. Zack hurriedly rushed over to the altar and laid the blanket down on Cloud's naked body. Vincent did the same for Sephiroth. Tifa wiped her face harshly as she stepped over the stones of the altar to Cloud's side and placed her hand on her neck.

"Cloud's alive." She said.

Zack moved to Sephiroth's side and felt his pulses and smiled. "So is Sephiroth."

Yuffie hopped to the steps and stopped halfway. "Sephiroth's not a Summon anymore, is he?"

Zack shook his head as he looked up to the youth. "Nope, but he will become the One Winged Angel through Limit Breaks."

"Damn." Barret muttered as he moved onto the altar and looked down at the two forms at his feet. He turned to Zack, "You gotta a lot to explain!" He had seen that Cloud was actually a female and the others who had not known were shocked and puzzled.

"I know, we're gonna take them back to Junon. There's no telling when they'll wake up." Zack replied as he stood up and crossed his arms, glaring as he met Barret's challenging stares.

Vincent stared down at Sephiroth's face, studying his long lost son. "He looks so much like his mother."

Cid snorted. "What the hell're you going on about?"

The sniper shook his head as he knelt down to pick Sephiroth up in his arms. "Zack, I suppose?" He inclined his head to Cloud.

Zack didn't skip a beat and picked up Cloud to follow Vincent out of the place. "I'll get the Materia!" Yuffie called after them and ran around picking every stone. "You know, you got a lot explaining to do! Where's Cloud and why we have Sorano here?" She quipped and Zack face-faulted along with the others who knew.

Barret grumbled, "What the hell she's going on about?" Zack ignored him and hopped across the water and left the building with Vincent in tow.

Reeve stood by Barret's side, noticing that black man was in deep though. "A gil for your thoughts?"

Barret looked a bit startled and chuckled weakly as he rubbed his neck. "It doesn't make sense… Cloud and this Sorano everyone's going on about… they're the same person and I'm confused."

Reeve turned to watch Yuffie pick up the stones of said Summons, he was amazed that the youth had not noticed the connection. "Everything will be explained when we get back to Junon."

"You're tellin' me, some of you knew?" Barret asked, gesturing to those who didn't react.

Reeve shrugged, "Some of us do, some don't. You're not alone. It's a long story."

"Well, da's to come later. Jes' go." Barret gruffly said as he hopped over the stepping stones and left the place. Reeve took a final look around and smiled as he left. However, as soon as everyone was gone from the place, light glowed on the altar and dazzling lines took the form of a woman lying on the altar as if she was sleeping peacefully. Her simple pink dress spread across her legs and onto the glass surface. Then she became solid, the light faded away.

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The trip back to Junon was silence, each to one of their own, some were confused, some were happy and another were just trying to figure things out. They all decided to rest once they reached Junon, going to their respective quarters and wait for the meeting the next day to find out. Reeve had gone and reported to Rufus. Zack had personally seen to Cloud and Sephiroth to the hospital wing, being checked thoroughly by the trusted Doctor Severum.

Barret was the one who proved hardest to convince to go to bed. "Geesh, just go to bed and we'll give you guys the full report later." Zack groaned, leaning against the wall that was next to the window that showed the hospital wing where late night working doctors and nurses were checking over Cloud and Sephiroth.

Barret, of course, being stubborn crossed his arms and shook his head. "No. I want clear a report or else that man loses his head. I don't want the Planet at risk while he's alive." He snarled as he glared though the glass where he could see Sephiroth and Cloud on the hospital bed, dressed in the hospital scrubs. Cloud had longer hair, hanging down her waist and her body wasn't what Barret was used to, not with hard lines of a man but curves of a woman.

Reeve was in the room, talking to a female doctor who was the head of the Science Department for Junon Base. He kept glancing to the window where Barret and Zack were standing outside. Zack threw his head back and his neck cracked as he groaned in frustration. "Come on, can't you trust us a bit?"

Barret looked away from the glass to Zack. "I trust Reeve. You, I don't know yet. The only insane person I trust is Cloud but now I'm not so sure. The day I trust Sephiroth is the day Hades plays Cupid." He still had trouble deciding to trust Sephiroth since he had never met the real one.

Zack snorted and coughed as he tried to not laugh at the idea of Hades running around in a diaper with tiny wings on his back, shooting love arrows. "Okay, would it make you feel better if I place few guards with them?"

Barret thought a bit and frowned slightly. "Why both of them? It's Sephiroth that poses the threat."

"Cloud and Sephiroth can't be separated." Zack turned and missed Barret's astonished face. On Sierra, Zack had the Turks to place Cloud and Sephiroth in separate room and as soon they were parted for more than few feet, both of them trashed and went into seizure, scaring the hell out of them. Zack then put them together and they calmed down, figuring they couldn't be separated just yet. He had felt the twinge of pain while they were separated.

"Why did that happen?" Barret asked as he glanced back to the window to see a nurse stick a needle in Cloud's arm to draw out red blood. "Holy shit…" He muttered as he ignored Zack and stepped up to the window to stare. The blood in the syringe turned glowing green and several doctors came around and tried the same with Sephiroth, only to find the same reaction. Zack saw this and quickly went in. "What happened?"

The female doctor looked up at him and shook her head. "I don't know. According to this machine we put the blood in to test it just now, they're pure Mako. I will have to ask you and Reeve to leave immediately to let us continue."

Zack growled slightly. "What?"

Dr. Saverem narrowed her brown eyes at him and stood her ground. She was one of Dr. Gast and Hojo's assistants in the past, but disliked the latter's method of doctoring. "I assure you, they are in good hands and you will know immediately when we get the results back. But, please leave and give us room and time. You look you need a nap. Doctor's order. That goes for you too, Mr. Vice-President."

Reeve nodded in defeat. "Yes, even the Doctor's orders outrank my status. Come on, Zack, let's get some rest." Zack was reluctant but after Reeve had succeeded in pulling him out, he dragged the taller man to their quarters. Barret had given up and went back to his quarters as well.

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The entire void was dark; it wasn't green or bright anymore. Where was this… oh, that's right, it's been so long. He blinked and felt the solidness, the heaviness and realized he was in his body once again. It was strange, after spending so long in astral plane, floating about with sense of lightness and no form. He reached up and in the dark of the room, his eyes had the cat-like ability to see in the dark and saw his hand. He moved his fingers and rotated his wrist about. It was strange to have his body back. The familiar scars were on his hand but the black bold number one tattoo was gone, leaving his skin pale and flawless despite the scars.

He felt the bed shift and glanced to his side. A smile lingered on his lip as he turned over to caress the soft golden hair that had grown out to long length. Brushing the hair away from the face to reveal soft sleeping face, he felt the deepest desire to see her blue sapphire eyes.

She murmured softly, feeling the soft touch on her cheek, it was almost lovingly and it made her stir. Blinking open her eyes, she looked up and met with the intense green orbs filled with emotions. "Tell me, it was a dream." She reached up and touched his hand that was on her cheek. Soon, the green-eyed man withdrew and pulled her close by wrapping his arm around her lithe waist.

"Dream or no, we are together again. It's over." He murmured, placing his lips on her forehead, feeling the coolness against his hot skin. It had been so long they had physical contact. He then moved down to kiss her nose and then on her lips, deepening the passion, finally tasting her after so long.

"Where are we?" She asked as they broke apart. She glanced around as she snuggled into his arms. With their Mako-enchanted eyes, they could see they were in a room of some sort. A curtain surrounded their bed and it struck her with familiarity. "A hospital?"

"Does it matter?" He asked. She shook her head and rested on his shoulder. "Let us rest and we will see when we wake up, what matter the most is you are here with me." He rubbed her arm to prove his point and she smiled, burrowing deeper in his arms as much she could. They fell asleep once again, only for few more hours.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack sat on the chair next to the hospital bed, which was two beds attached together to keep the two of his best friends close. However at the moment, both of them were occupying one side of the bed, holding each other so closely. He smiled as he watched them sleeping, he knew they had woken up and snuggled together, they were breathing deeply than they were when he had summoned them.

Cloud had pink tinge to her cheeks and Sephiroth looked healthy than ever, his skin showing colors, proving that he was real. He saw them stir, their eyes blinking and they were stirring, their bodies moving as they parted slightly. Sephiroth started to stretch, still holding Cloud close and then he buried his nose into her hair, taking deep breath.

"Hey there." Zack said softly as he watched Sephiroth turn his head and open his bright green eyes to him.

"Zack." Sephiroth's voice was husky from sleep. He smiled and blinked, "its over, isn't it?"

Zack frowned and Sephiroth saw this. Cloud had woken up and heard everything. They both slowly sat up, glancing at Zack. "Uhm. Yeah, everything with Jenova, Dark Sephiroth is over. The meteor is gone; the world had moved on, it's been three months since Cloud killed Dark Sephiroth and went to the Lifestream with you. I've just summoned you two yesterday. You're alive, well and different."

Sephiroth nodded in understanding. "Yes. But what is wrong now?" He asked as he slipped out of the bed and nearly fell to the floor and grabbed hold of the railing. "Jeez. It's been what?" He turned his head to Zack, "Over a year since I've used my body?"

Zack laughed and helped Sephiroth to stand up, "Much longer than that" Sephiroth quickly regained his mobility and stretched his limbs while Cloud carefully got out of the bed, waiting for her body to regain mobility. Zack went to the side of the bed and picked up a duffel bag he had brought in and opened it to pull out some clothes. He placed them on the bed, one pile for Cloud and another for Sephiroth.

Sephiroth took his clothes and started to dress. "Zack, you're never one to evade my questions. We're awake, we're alive, and we're ready to do whatever we are needed to do. Do tell me what is going on? Keep us up to date."

Zack turned to Sephiroth as Cloud started to get dressed, "We're having a meeting in an hour. I thought you both would want to be there. The doctor gave you both clearances to go once you guys wake up. You both are healthy with exception that your blood are pure Mako, something Gaia did for you two. Anyway, to catch you up on this, Gaia wanted you two to stop some of the Weapons that are still walking the Planet, they're getting ready to hurt Gaia, maybe kill her. Also, we're having issue with a new illness that every child all over the world got, called Geosigma. It was something that Jenova did," He turned to Cloud who was zipping up her shirt, stopping just above her ample bosom, she wore a thin black sleeveless shirt underneath. "You're the only one who can help to cure all of us of this Geosigma." He frowned and saw Cloud clutching her arm in pain. "What is it?"

Cloud shook her head and sighed, "My arm's been bothering me for a while since I woke up." She glanced down and gasped softly. Her skin from the back of her hand to her shoulder were covered with terrible bruises, in some area were open with sores. "Is this?" She asked.

Zack's face fell as he inspected her arm. "The doctor didn't notice this… yes, it's Geosigma." He was surprised to see that Cloud had it too. It was painful and terrible for Rufus.

Cloud nodded and took the bandage from Zack, wrapping her arm up tenderly. "I see." She picked up the armor that was laid on the bed and started to strap them on and picked up the sleeves that were attached to the armor. She, as usual, went for one, not two and slipped the sleeve to cover her arm. Slipping on the gloves, "How am I to heal the Geosigma while I have one?"

Zack shrugged. "I don't know. Gaia said something that she couldn't help you with and I think she meant that." He gestured to her arm. "She did say that you're the one to help. There's something else." He turned to the two of them, they've finished dressed and looked good in their new clothes.

Sephiroth had leather outfit that was dark gray, nearly black with hard leather plates over his top chest and shoulders in place of the armors he used to wear. His silver hair hung down his back, shining with the usual luster of silver. Cloud was given a different outfit, accenting her female form. She wore dark blue sleeveless crew shirt over the thin black one and black cargo pants with half skirt that hung around her waist, suspended with suspender and armor over one shoulder with the head of a wolf decor on it. Her earrings matched the wolf too. They looked like perfect warrior couple of the day and age.

"We got three new enemies, sort of. We don't know much about them. All we know, they are the brothers and searching for their mother." He turned his glance to Cloud. "I hate to say this, they're looking for you. You're their mother."

Cloud frowned, "I have children? I thought I can't?"

Zack groaned and buried his head into his hands as he sat down. "Too much bad news for you both."  
"Give them to us, we can handle it." Sephiroth said his voice held no discussion.

Zack nodded as he looked up to the two of them, "All right, Cloud, back in Nibelheim, after the fire, Hojo found both of us wounded and took us to the basement. He did experiment on both of us. He did worse to you. He made you pregnant." He sighed as he saw Sephiroth's livid face and Cloud's shocked expression. "With Sephiroth's semen sample, of course. But that was just bad anyway. You had three boys, and they were taken away by another scientist, which we just recently found dead in a secret lab. But to the point, they are now grown men, searching for their mother, you. They all are also looking of Jenova, what's left of her, which we have also. The point here, you need to deal with them. We can't, they're too strong, too fast and deluded."

Cloud's hand went to her stomach and she frowned, "So… if I had children, how can I not have them anymore?"

Zack shrugged. "Whatever Hojo did to you, he damaged your reproductive organ. The doctors here are trying to figure out why. From what I can understand, your blood changed, meaning, your body also changed, you won't be able to have baby because the baby won't be able to handle your body."

"I see." She said softly, looking away. Sephiroth frowned as he reached out to touch her but was shaken off. He frowned as he withdrew his hand slowly, feeling rather put off. He couldn't help but noticed that Cloud had changed since he last seen her physically. He realized Cloud had grown up; she was no longer the young woman with innocent eyes he once knew. Her eyes showed hardened edge and he regretted seeing the innocent shine disappear from her eyes.

Zack felt his heart break too, knowing Cloud had changed. He stood up, "we're having meeting soon. So, let's go and shock the hell out of them with your presence. We're going to meet about the past projects Hojo did, the status on the Summon Materia, and obviously you two." He moved to the door and stopped, turning back to them, "Oh, by the way, Midgar's gone, destroyed to bits. We're building Neo-Midgar, we're still several months away and we're currently in Underwater Headquarter, which used to be Underwater Reactor below Junon Harbor. It's different around here."

"All right, get going or I'll have to kick your ass out of here. I'm getting a bit cooped up in here." Sephiroth said as he stepped forward and Zack laughed. Cloud smiled softly and took Sephiroth's offered hand and followed.

"Glad to have you guys back…" Zack said as they left the room.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, pretty please with yummy cookie dough Rude in the cream?_

* * *

_Legnad egni wen oel Bnsuoi Rolgso ahcotre dro Foregn ir Besira!_

Arise bringer of order to chaos glorious noble one winged angel

_Ecaep eht foregnir Be devole by Mesira!_

Arise my beloved bringer of the peace

I think some letters were added in to make it sound better. Shrugs.


	44. S4:5: The Wakening

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Five: The Wakening

_The king answered unto Daniel, and said, Of a truth it is, that your God is a God of gods, and a Lord of kings, and a revealer of secrets, seeing thou couldest reveal this secret. _

Daniel 2:47, The Holy Bible

"Sir, can you tell me how I can find the Avalanche? Or the leader of this new city?" The man stopped to turn to the woman in question, wearing pretty simple dress of a country girl. Her skirt were pink with white trimming and her top was a simple corset skirt in rose pink, her russet hair was tied in long braid, held with pink bow. What had struck him odd were her eyes, they were emerald green, shining with glow, showing traces of Mako in her body. He only knew the Soldiers of ShinRa had the trait, not a simple woman. He stepped back, unsure and unnerved by her eyes. Yet, her smile was sweet and kind, he found himself compelled to give her the answer.

"You'd find Avalanche at Junon Harbor, that's where they usually are. The President is heading there today, as for the Headquarter, where they should be, no one knows. It's hidden."

She bowed her head, smiling still, "Thank you. You will be blessed." She turned and left, heading toward Junon Harbor. The man shook his head and returned to hammering nails in the new building.

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Reeve sat back in the chair in the conference room. He rubbed his forehead, realizing he was in the room far too many time than he liked, then it came with the responsibility as a leader of World Regenesis Organization and the co-leader of Neo-Midgar. However, he seemed to be stepping in as a leader of the Avalanche, always calling them up to come to the meeting, giving them responsibility to help out with his organization and dealing with whatever crisis going on in the world, they were the best people for such situations with their experiences in the past two years.

His secretary walked in the room with armloads of folders and files. "Sir, there's someone to see you, Ms. Scarlet Rouge. She wishes to speak to you and the Turks. Do you want me to call them in too?"

Reeve's eyebrows shot to the hairline. He had thought the woman died along with Midgar and nodded. "Please. Thank you, Katrina. Also get her a quarter too, far away from the Avalanche if you can. Yes, also get the Turks here right away. I'll need them to be here for the meeting at two. Make sure no one shows up until two."

"Yes sir." She smiled and blushed prettily as he smirked at her. Katrina left the room and shortly came back in with Scarlet following in from behind. Reeve stood up and greeted her, surprised to see her again. Even more, he was surprised to find her out of her usual swanky outfit but in a humble jean pants and beige shirt, yet the thing remain of her persona was a simple red jean jacket she wore. Her hair was combed simply into a high pony tail and she wore no make-ups, revealing that she was actually older, in her thirties.

"Scarlet."

Scarlet smiled softly as she shook Reeve's hand, "Reeves. It's nice to see you again." She turned to see the four Turks enter the room.

"Shit!" Reno muttered.

"You're alive after all." Rude said as he sat down at the table and soon, everyone followed suit.

"Let's cut the chase." Scarlet started, "I got no where to go, got no money, no one wants me. My expertise is only suited for the ShinRa."

"You want a job here." Reeve bluntly said and Scarlet nodded.

"Yes. I don't know what I can offer; after all I've done for the former ShinRa. To be honest, all I've done, said and dressed like was a ruse." She shrugged as she studied her natural nails, which was once painted boldly red. "I got some information." She looked up to meet Reeve's eyes.

"Oh?"

"You have several Soldiers who are acting upon mutiny."

Reno frowned, "We've checked them all."

Scarlet turned to the dark-skinned man. "I am not sure if you remember from the past, they once called themselves Nibelheim Gangs."

Reno, Rude and Elena's eyebrows shot up. Reno leaned forward, "Do tell, I know them personally…"

Scarlet smirked, "before the Nibelheim Crisis, they were working for Doctor Hojo, supplying information, illegal items and many other things. After that, nothing much until Meteor came and went," She waved her hand to get on with her story, "Dr. Hojo was killed; they started to work for Dr. Gates. I hear he's dead now. But the point is, they're starting to act up outside duty and speaking of looking for one, Cloud Strife. I've my sources; I believe they're also carrying Jenova cells and resisted the call to the Northern Crater. They're potential threats."

"I see." Reeve said. "To think of it, I remember now that there are very few surviving Class Two, and if I'm correct," He turned to the laptop he had on the table and started to click on the keyboard, pulling up information. "Ah, there are two left of them, working here in Junon. I didn't think of it, they're both Lockharts, cousins, rather the relatives of Tifa Lockhart. Zack had told me they had troubles with Cloud Strifef in the past."

"So, is the information enough for you?" Scarlet asked.

Reeve smirked, "You're good. But how can we trust you?"

Scarlet mirrored his smirk, "Well, I can supply you location where you can find them and the base central for the three silver-haired strangers and even their names."

Reeve's eyes went wide, "You're not kidding me?"  
"Nope."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Two O'clock rolled around; Scarlet was shown to her private quarter and was set another meeting with Reeve and Rufus personally at other time. Avalanche and Turks gathered in the conference room, they were given old files and documents to search through. They were profoundly shocked to learn so much more information what the Soldiers Project was about, which birthed several other projects that were not publicized, such as Jenova Project, Adam and Eve Project and finally, the Omega - Life Project.

Soldier Project was a simple project that Doctor Gast and Doctor Hojo had started thirty some years before, testing on their Soldiers, especially with the Elites. At the time, Lucrecia Brown was on the team along with a very, very young trainee, Gates. The project was intended to use the Mako infusion into human body to gain super-strength and speed and stamina. The success rate was pretty high; even there was some side effect that wasn't pleasant.

The Solider Project diverted as Gast and Hojo discovered Jenova and discovered her genetic ability. Hojo took the project for himself and twisted it into something horrible. The Avalanche had found that Hojo's notes begin sanely then grew on, progressively becoming insane. It was around the time Sephiroth was born and they learned that Hojo was the very first subject with the Jenova cell, he injected himself with Jenova's cell and was hearing her voice in his mind, telling him what to do and learned of Sephiroth, resulting in taking the child from Lucrecia, and wounding her, causing her to escape and hide and to die a slow death. Also, Vincent's tragedy, where he had confronted Hojo and was shot to death, only to be retrieved, changed, deformed and placed to sleep for a long time until someone finds him, which Avalanche did recently.

From the Jenova Project, as Hojo's written diary stated was a very recent project when Hojo had discovered Cloud after the Nibelheim Crisis. He saw with Cloud, he was able to breed a super-race, a race for Jenova to carry on her plan and dominate the world. It was her desire to have children to dominate the world, and it only resulted in three children being born, no more because Zack and Cloud had escaped. From this project as everyone had read with stricken horror, they learned that Cloud was truly a female. Reeve had asked Zack to reveal such and Zack approved, after all, what was the point to hide it farther along after Dark Sephiroth, Jenova and the old Nibelheim was gone? There was no need to fear Cloud and her heritage anymore. But it only left more questions for them to wonder and only Cloud could answer them.

Then, Doctor Gates created a new project, called Omega-Life. It was an alternate project to back up the Adam – Eve Project if it ever fails. It combined all the previous Projects and with the technology of cloning, to create the super-race, that is if the original samples were lost or useless. The Turks had discovered the secret lab in the mountain not far from Midgar, and they found within was a large lab that was based on the Omega-Life, however it was a failure, the experiments were destroyed, the place was literally a mess and Doctor Gates were left dead, beheaded. They suspected it was the three brothers who had done this. They brought back documents and files they could find from the lab and everyone learned, the project failed because the cloned experiment subject did not develop as Gates had expected. Cloning only worked if the subject had an imprint of the original's soul in order to live. It was an abomination through cloning, no life was breathed in, no soul was given, and therefore, it failed. And Gates' last note mentioned he needed the female subject, namely, Cloud Strife to achieve the project. They suspected the brothers knew and didn't like the idea, possibility protective and possessiveness of their mother.

Tifa gasped as she read Sephiroth's file, "They gave him more doses of Mako and treatment than any other Soldiers."

"Damn, he's fast, strong and unbeatable!" Cid muttered as he read the result folder.

Reeve nodded in agreement. "Yes, but that file was nearly a decade ago. Right now, his ability has not been measured."

Vincent looked up to Reeve, "You're saying that Sephiroth is much more powerful?"

"Well, we all saw what happened to him and him becoming a Summon, his blood had changed, I am sure the result is different."

"Oh, they even did this to Zack too…" Tifa said as she flipped through another folder. Reeve nodded while several whistled in amazement.

Yuffie quipped as she flipped through the Jenova Project files. "Why are you showing us all of this? Should it be confidential?"

"It is confidential to the world; however, as Avalanche and Turks, you all should be aware of what had happened. It is also part of the WRO process, to prevent from this to happen in the future. Mako had been used wrongly in the past and it is our goal to protect the Planet and make sure no one use Mako at all. Also, Zack agrees that you all should know, Cloud, Sephiroth and Zack had been the victim to the project, all four of them through and through. Most of the Class Two Soldiers were given high doses of Mako as well Jenova cells, which is why there are not much of them left. As for the Class Three and Four, they have chances of recovering and resuming normal lives." Reeve stood up and glanced to the Turks, "Once someone is injected with Mako, no matter how small the doses is, their body, if they survive the treatment, they are immediately addicted and require to have treatment for the rest of their life. The doctors and scientists are working on to find a cure for this. However, it's going to be very difficult and Doctor Saverum had a theory, it is related to the Geosigma, once there is a cure for the Geosigma, it will also cure the Mako Treatment. For now, we have to keep giving the treatment to those, like the Turks here, until the cure is found."

"That's terrible!" Yuffie said, tossing the file on the table, frowning.

"They forgot to put brainwashing here." Reno said, scowling as he tossed the folder on the table as well.

"Brainwashing?" Barret asked.

Elena scowled as she put her copy down on her lap. "Our memories had been altered, but we're remembering things, the real memories slowly."

Tifa frowned as she read another file. "It says here that there are several Soldiers included the project, serving Hojo, giving him illegal supplements and other things. They're also carrier of Jenova cells, massive amounts, and their body acting as incubator for the cells in case of anything."

Reeve sat down and gave a pointed gaze to her, "Yes. Class Two, especially a small group, there are two left and we have them both in custody. There are no more, all the other Class Twos became those dark robed people, flocking north and died along the way because their bodies could not withstand so much Jenova cells. The two we have in custody, I'm sorry to say this, they're both your brother and cousin."

"What? I just saw them and they're fine." Tifa gasped.

"They were lying to you. Sources found they were acting upon mutiny against Rufus and was going to take action soon. I'm rather surprised that with all the Jenova cells in their body, they didn't transform or succumb to Jenova's will."

"That's because Jenova is dead." Everyone turned to see Zack enter the room. "The cells are no good, they're carrying dead bodies in them, but their mind had been brainwashed to point of no return." He stepped in the room and moved to the table. Everyone gasped as they saw Sephiroth follow through, striding in as his green eyes met everyone's. Everyone except those who were familiar with him eyed him, expecting him to declare domination over the world and brandishing his sword but he simply walked in.

"I'm sorry, we lost track of time and I was giving them tour of the Headquarter." Zack said as he sat down. Sephiroth followed and everyone's eyes snapped to the third person, Cloud as she stepped in. She glanced around the room and with flick of her hand she brushed her long golden hair over her shoulder and sat down next to Sephiroth. Those who hadn't had time to process the fact that she was female dropped their jaws. Reno ogled at her, studying her form while the others gaped.

Barret glowered slightly. "What the hell?"

Sephiroth looked up at the man with bored expression. "What?"

Barret sputtered. "What you doing here?" He was still having difficulties with Sephiroth, ignoring Cloud was also with them and acting nonchalantly with the silver-haired man and the fact that she had boobs.

"Isn't this meeting about me and Cloud, we surely can't be omitted."

Reeve chuckled, interrupting whatever Barret had in mind to curse at Sephiroth. "Sephiroth, Cloud, it's nice to see you two up and about. Dr. Severem finished with her tests?"

Cloud nodded softly. "Yep. She said she'll give you the report soon as she gets the result. So, what did we miss?"

Tifa smiled softly and handed the papers over to her. "Here… We were talking about few Projects. I am glad to see you're all right."

"Thanks. We have been covered on those already. There's nothing we don't know." Cloud took the papers and flipped though it, not failing to astonishes everyone.

"You knew?" Cid asked Tifa, astonished and the brunette nodded. The pilot swerved to the sniper and saw that Vincent nodded as well. "Who the hell knew!?" Several hands shot up in the air. "Shit!" He turned to Cloud, "I take it back… you were really girly the whole time…" He cracked up, "Let's mosey!?" He kept on laughing as the others boggled at him.

Reno whistled, "You're really, really a girl after all."

Elena, "It makes sense… Hey Reno, how can you not figure this out years ago with your psychology report?" She bopped the red-head on the head.

"How can I not tell?" Reno turned to Elena, "Look at her! She conned us! She conned everyone!"

"I figured it out about two years later." Zack muttered offhand. Reno shot an incredulous look as he knew it was around the time he did research report on Cloud.

"You figured it out? How? Did you too?" He turned to Sephiroth who smirked and nodded.

Rude rolled his eyes, "Reno, shut up. What's done is done, Cloud's here and as a woman, a beautiful one at that." He bowed his head at Cloud who blushed slightly. "And I am quiet sure; she's not available, am I right?"

Cloud nodded, "Yeah, I'm dating Sephiroth." She looked over to him and smiled. Everyone gaped and Barret cursed while Cid chuckled, muttering how it was so romantic just like his favorite play, the Loveless.

Sephiroth reached out and took Cloud's hand, "Hopefully more?" He glanced into Cloud's blue eyes and saw she smiled at him.

Yuffie started to laugh wildly and loud, drawing everyone's attention toward her. She was about to fall out of her chair and roll on the floor. "Oh my gawd! Tifa! You're so funny!"

Tifa stared at the young teenager with bewildered look, "What are you on about?"

Yuffie struggled to stop laughing and wiped the tears from her eyes, pointing to Cloud and then to Tifa, "Remember Gold Saucer… the hotel? You and Aeris? Cat fight! Ha, ha, ha, oh my! Ha, ha, ha!"

Tifa's eyes went wide and she gasped. "Oh." She then buried her head into her hand in embarrassment as she went red.

"What's the kid's going on about?" Cid asked, leaning forward on the table, curious, ignoring Yuffie howling with laugher.

Tifa shook her head, "It's rather embarrassing…"

Cloud chuckled and everyone turned to her, "I remember. It was late night," She stopped as Tifa interrupted her.  
"No! Don't tell!"

Cloud shrugged her shoulders, "It's in the past." She grinned and continued, "I was talking to Zack in the other room and heard a lot of noises from their room. Tifa and Aeris was having a nasty cat fight, beating each other up because they were arguing about who would go out on a date with me… good old handsome male Cloud." Everyone's eyes went wide and they started to laugh.

"Who won?" Reno asked.

"Well, I came over to their door, told them to stop because the others were trying to sleep. They shot apart and it was funny. They looked like they were doing more than fighting." Cloud traced finger on the table, remembering the memory. "Aeris came to me later that night and we went out, nothing more. We just talked… the next day; she was gone after I blacked out on the island."

"Jeez." Barret shook his head. "Now that's funny. Tifa, why did you go after Cloud when you could have me the whole time, a real man?" He turned to Tifa and gave a ridiculous pout and batting of eyelashes.

Tifa's face was red. "Shut up Barret!" and everyone laughed more.

Yuffie stopped laughing and asked, "So, what's your real name? Sorano or Cloud?"

Cloud smiled at the teenager, "My name is Cloud Sorano Strife. So there."

Reeve shook his head and stood up, "Anyway, Sephiroth and Cloud already know the full details themselves about the project, seeing that they are the subject of all four of them. We are just finishing up on this subject, aren't we?" Reeve glanced around and saw everyone was nodding. "Right. Since Sephiroth and Cloud's here, we can continue what we are going to do about what the next plans are. Sephiroth and Cloud will be given their ranks back, teaming up with Zack to…" He stopped and scowled as Miss Zora came though the door and hastily made her way to Reeve and whispered something that made his eyes go wide with surprise. He turned to Zack, failing to say anything.

"Oh… I am sorry, was I interrupting anything?" Everyone gasped as they heard a familiar sweet voice and their jaws dropped to see Aeris at the doorway. She smiled sweetly and looked at everyone. "I'll go and come back later… It's nothing important…"

Zack sprang to his feet and ran to her. "Wait, Aeris!"

She turned to him and smiled the most brilliant sweet smile. "Zack… you're here too…"

He stopped just a foot before her, taking in the sight, gasping softly, "Aeris, how?" He was overwhelmed with happiness. He reached out; wanting to be sure he wasn't dreaming. When his fingers touched her arm, he gasped.

She cocked her head cutely and giggled. "Zack… what's wrong?"

"You… You…" He failed to say anything more and drew her into a hug.

Sephiroth leaned his head onto his fist and smirked. Cloud smiled widely as she stood up, going over to the said woman. "Aeris!"

"Cloud!" Aeris broke away from Zack and rushed to her to hug her. "Oh…" She looked at Sephiroth behind Cloud and smiled again. "I am glad everything's all right for you and Sephiroth now."

Cloud blushed and led her back to the table to have her sit in the last chair that was next to Zack. "What bring you here?"

She looked around the table, smiling at everyone and then stopped as she saw the Turks, her smile fading. "Oh…"

Cloud saw this and patted her arm. "Don't worry, they're harmless and on our side now, Right?" She turned her head to glare at Reno who faltered and gave a half nervous smile.

Aeris' smile went in full bloom. "Oh that's good. I… uhm… I came here to tell you something…" She turned to Cloud, Zack and Sephiroth with worried glance. "Mother is worried… the brothers…" She frowned as she tried to recall some things, "they are planning something terrible. She wants you to stop him and the Weapons… Stop Maleficius Sephirt, she says."

Sephiroth frowned slightly, marring his straight bored expression with concern shining in his eyes, only Zack, Cloud and Aeris could see. "Maleficius Sephirt, who?"

She shook her head, her eyes wide and afraid. "I don't know… a dark being that can control Weapons. Mother says he has not appeared yet, but it's going to be terrible."

"If we stop this, whoever it is, we can stop Weapons?" Zack inquired.

Aeris shook her head again. "Mother didn't tell me anything more. She said to stop Maleficius Sephirt. Stop him; it's urgent to when he shows up. Also, everything will fall in right places after Maleficius Sephirt is stopped."

"Him?" Cloud asked.

"Could be this Maleficius Sephirt be another Jenova?" Rude finally voiced.

Everyone turned to him and Nanaki looked pensive. "It sounds logical… Aeris?"

She shrugged. "Maybe… I don't know anything more. Mother sends me back to warn you…"

"You're going away again?" Zack asked pained, he looked lost.

Aeris turned to him gave a smile that was reserved only for him. "No. I'm staying now… I missed you." She took his hand and squeezed it.

He smiled in return with relief. "I'm glad."

From Barret's side, Tifa watched the whole exchange, wondering. She was happy that Aeris was back and alive. It was almost as if it was whole again, with Aeris, Cloud being with them again. However, Zack and Sephiroth with the two women seemed to make the picture complete. She frowned, remembering that Aeris sometime mentioned that Cloud reminded Aeris of her first boyfriend… it all made senses… just seeing Cloud and Zack together, they radiated similarities, like brother and sister, even with Sephiroth, as if the three belonged together, right in place. Even with Aeris, the foursome looked whole and complete. She felt a pang of slight jealousy at the friendships between the four, huddled together across the table, whispering among each other as if they had known each other their whole lives.

Yuffie leaned forward, peering at Sephiroth, reaching out and poking him on the arm. "You're real for sure… How, we all saw Cloud slash you up and everything… I still can't understand why you can be sitting here, even if Gaia let you back."

Sephiroth's fine eyebrow rose as he looked to his right where Yuffie sat. "Being a god had its advantage." Sephiroth replied. Cloud and Zack rolled their eyes as everyone else gawked in horror. Cid's mouth dropped open as his eyes bugged. The cigarette dangled there on his lip. Barrett's face was similar with Cid's but his eyes were even wider and he shook with unseen fear and hidden rage. The rest of the group had similar look. Reeve stared at Sephiroth like he was plainly an idiot to say something like that.

"Sephiroth!" The blonde smacked the silver-haired. Zack laughed while everyone else remained silent.

"Sephiroth, I don't think you are really helping to break the ice." Vincent commented dryly.

"Sorry, 'Dad'. I can't help myself." Sephiroth smiled, which everyone gulped as they had never seen the new side of him. Vincent looked irked.

Cloud smirked at him and turned back to Yuffie, ignoring everyone's renewed shock about the 'Dad' part. "Well. When I dropped my Ultimate Weapon…" She shifted her gaze to Yuffie. "I suppose you didn't get my Materia?"

Yuffie nodded. "No, I didn't. I did swipe the rest of them that you left behind." She smirked.

"Oh well, they're useless now." She laughed as the ninja pouted. "Any chances I get my sword back?" she glanced around.

"We got your sword, the Ultimate and Masamune. They're in your quarters; you will be shown to your rooms later." Reeve explained and Cloud nodded, satisfied.

"Wow…" Yuffie looked surprised then she remembered something, she turned to Vincent who sat on her other side. "Hey! Why did he call you 'dad'?"  
The sniper rolled his crimson eyes and groaned as he buried his head into his claw.

Sephiroth chuckled and tugged onto Yuffie's arm causally, leaning closer to her. "You know, he is my father."

She sputtered and stared at him. "No way! You're too old to be his son!"

"Old?" Sephiroth looked hurt. "I look that old? Cloud, Zack? Do I look that old?" Everyone stared at the three with a whole new shock, wondering where Sephiroth had the ability to joke, or even grow another head.

Zack shook his head. "You look old with that hair… being all white."

"White?" Sephiroth looked insulted and tugged onto his bang. "This is silver, not white!"

Cloud laughed and tugged onto his other bang. "Right and you're pretty. Shut up before everyone die of shock."

Sephiroth looked around the table and shrugged as he returned to Yuffie. "I am not that old! I am only thirty five… am I?" He turned back to Reeve. "I lost count of years… missed out few birthdays."

Reeve rolled his eyes and nodded. "Yes, thirty five… you don't look a day over twenty five."

"Right."

Yuffie gaped and twirled to Vincent who was mumbling something in his claw. "How old are you?" She prodded him with a finger.

He jerked away from her finger, knowing she had recently found his ticklish spot. "All right… geesh… this is your fault, Sephiroth." He glared at him and returned to the youth. "If you must know… Sixty four."

"Yeeewww… you're old!" Yuffie squealed.

"Oh, tell me 'father dearest', are you dating this kid?" Sephiroth asked, teasing.

Vincent looked offended. "What? You're suggesting me that I… for this bunch of hyperactive thing that's a thief?"

"You had a thing for women like that… Mother was almost two thousands years old when you knocked her up and got me." Sephiroth replied back, Zack and Cloud was straining to not laugh but ended up snorting behind their hands. Aeris giggled. Vincent rolled his eyes and shot a dirty look to Sephiroth.

Reeve rolled his eyes and stood up, "All right, everyone. I think we need to continue this meeting at another time since we're all too distracted with Cloud, Sephiroth and Aeris' appearance. The meeting is adjourned for now and you all can," He waved his hands, "fraternize, get to know each other once again."

As soon he finished speaking, the Avalanche stood up and went over to Aeris, greeting her and chatting up storm, catching her up with news and everything. Zack moved to the side with Reeve and the Turks, speaking quietly about other things. Sephiroth sat, listening to them while Cloud took a folder and started to read it. From where Sephiroth sat next to her, he could see the side labeled Adam – Eve Project. He understood what had happened, but not to the depth. He knew in the file would be details and wasn't sure if he should allow Cloud to read or back off and let her deal with it on her term. He knew if he takes the folder, she would argue with him and decided, he would stand aside and give her support when she needed him to. There were things he wanted to discuss with her but only in private.

They were together again, physically, mentally and in souls, he wanted to start and begin their future together. However, seeing that there was a lot of excess baggage from the past that they had to deal with and place them out of the way before they could truly begin their future. He never wanted to let her go again and vows to never be apart from her. It would tear him apart to lose her again. He knew, in the past several years, he had grown to love her deeply and learned to cherish what he has and now, being with Cloud next to him, he was going to grab the chances that he almost lost the last time around. Never again, he was going to allow his past delude him. This time around, it is about him and her, together, no others, no ShinRa, no war, no more interference.

He reached out and took hold of her gloved hand. She looked up to him and smiled. He smiled back and leaned over, whispering, "You know, I love you, koibito."

Her smile grew, "I know, always I hold that in my heart." She whispered back. "I love you too."

He frowned slightly, seeing the sadness in her eyes, "Cloud… whatever it is, I'm here, and I'm here now and please, talk to me."

She nodded, "later." She turned back to the folder and read the documents. It gave explicit details how the experiments were done on her, she winced as she felt the pain in her memory and suddenly, her eyes glazed over as she begin to recall everything. Tears started to well in her eyes and she swallowed, fighting to hold her tears back. One escaped and splashed on the paper. Hojo had done horrible thing to her, forcing her body to become pregnant, growing three boys in her womb and taking them away from her. She knew, in the depth of her heart, somewhere, they were her and Sephiroth's sons and there were a chances she could had raised them, love them like a normal family. Her heart grieved for what had happened to them and her. She wanted to know their names and who they are and in her soul, the desire to help them came free.

"Who are they?" She whispered softly and blinked, looking up to Aeris, breaking away from the other Avalanchers and coming over to her side. She placed the folder down and stood up, hugging the russet haired woman. "Aeris, I'm glad you're here too."

"Me too, me too Cloud. I feel that we are sisters, truly." Aeris smiled and glanced over to Zack. "Zack and I decided to try again. I'd like to really have a future with him. How about you and Sephiroth?"

Cloud looked and found that Sephiroth had gotten up and went over to talk with Zack and Reeve along with the Turks. She smiled as she saw Reno gaping as Sephiroth teased the red-head. She knew Sephiroth had a humorous side and now he was free to give in to his emotions and personality. Reno was in for it, payback for all those years during the Academy days. "Yeah…" She glanced to her gloved hand and Aeris noticed.

"You noticed the ring now? Have you asked him about it?" Aeris asked as she took Cloud's gloved hand.

Cloud shook her head. "No. We just woke up and dressed then came to the meeting. We haven't truly had time alone to talk. I am sure he will tell me about it. If he asks, I am going to say yes. I've waited far too long; I don't want to lose him ever again."

Aeris smiled, "I understand. Take the chance, and do it."

Cloud frowned, "But, what if he doesn't want me anymore? I can't have children anymore. Hojo damaged me and I'm sick."

The russet haired woman frowned, "Sick?"

Cloud clutched her covered arm, "the Geosigma."

"Oh no."

"Yeah… I'm sorry… I got to go. I need to think." She glanced over to Sephiroth, who was in deep conversation with Zack. "I'll be back later. Tell him, please."

Aeris felt her heart break; knowing Sephiroth wouldn't like it when Cloud took off without telling him herself. She broke down and nodded, "Careful, please."

"Thanks." Aeris watched Cloud leave the room quietly; she had caught the tear falling freely from her blue eyes.

"Be careful Cloud." She murmured and turned to go over to Zack and Sephiroth.

Cloud stalked down the hallway, scrubbing her face with her gloves, trying to wipe the free falling tears that were soaking her face. "Not now." She murmured and paused, closing her eyes, "Where are you…" She asked quietly as she allowed her senses expand. "Ah, there you are, Ultimate." She had developed a sixth sense with her sword and was surprised to find the sword humming rather powerful, calling out to her. She smirked softly and went in the direction where her sword would be. Few minutes later, she found her quarters and saw it was indeed her room. She found the sword hanging on the wall off the specialized hook. Surprised at the size and the design, she took it and found it was her height and she had no problem handling it. She experimented and saw that she could take it apart, finding several blades attached to it. "Useful. Thanks Gaia." She turned and left the room.

Thirty minutes later found her roaring out of the Junon Harbor garage, perched on top a powerful hybrid motorcycle, the only one in its class, the Fenrir. She was glad the motorcycle had design that she could attach several blades to the motorcycle's sides' storage, giving her ability to access to it while she was riding on it. She suspected it was designed in mind for her, now she had laid claim on the motorcycle and decided it belonged to her, she liked the massive machine, sleek and black and it suited her mood for the moment.

She rode at high speed across the vast land, maneuvering across the dirt road that winded through the mountain and an hour later, she found herself at the cliff that overlooked Midgar in the distant. She parked the motorcycle on the cliff, slipping the goggle upon her forehead as she studied the broken city in the distant. "Wow." She whispered softly.

Glancing to her side, she realized she had came to the place where Zack had died once and where she was left, abandoned by the Turks to fend for herself two years ago. A lot had happened in the last few months she was gone. From the moment she last was on the spot, she had no memories and now she had returned, her memories was with her, every moments and none of them were missing. Her life had changed the day she walked out of Nibelheim when she was barely fifteen, then, she had innocent intention and now, years later, she knew she wasn't the same person she was when she was fifteen. Her emotions, her soul and her mind had been changed, hardened like an aged warrior, seeing things no one should ever see and experiencing pain no one should feel.

She felt that she had to do something and clicked the button and her motorcycle's sides expanded, revealing hidden compartment, holding her swords. She reached to pull out an old sword, battered in its right. "Buster Sword. I don't think Zack minded losing you, he has another one." She said softly and carried the sword over, close to the edge and stuck it in the ground. Silently, she returned to her motorcycle and sat on it. Her phone rang and she pulled it out of the pocket, the screen blipped on and told her it was Zack calling her. Shaking her head, she clicked the phone shut and tucked it back in her pocket and slipped the glasses back on. Revving the engine on, she took off, going down the cliff and across the barren wasteland. She needed a little more time to vent her emotions, letting them go to the wind.

Three motorcycles arrived on the scene where she had left, the middle one kicked the old battered sword down and the first one on the side spoke, "Hey Kadaj. Is that mother?"

Kadaj, the one in the middle nodded, smiling at Yazoo. "Yeah."

Yazoo looked over to Kadaj, "Think she'll be glad to see us?"

Kadaj shook his head, his silver hair swaying around his shoulders, "Not a chance." He said his voice almost remorseful. Then they both glanced over to the third one, Loz where he was sniffing, crying softly.

"Don't cry, Loz." Kadaj said.

Loz sniffled, "But, mother should be."

"Maybe not. We won't know until we try." Kadaj tilted his head over to the side of the cliff where Cloud was making her round. They chuckled together and Kadaj gave a single nod. Loz and Yazoo sped down the cliff, chasing after her.

Behind Cloud, speeding along the ground black shadows chased her and erupted up in the air, forming into several horrendous beasts, chasing on all four. She gasped softly and she reached for her sword and pulled it out. She noticed over her shoulder that two other motorcycles were joining the chase. _It's them… I didn't expect this to be so soon._

With her agility skill and quick movement, she twirled her motorcycle around and deflected the shadow beasts off and resumed her track as the two motorcycles came to her sides. She glanced over and gasped to look into his face of the short haired man, he looked so much like Sephiroth, yet with childish gleam in his eyes, "Mother!" he seemed happy to see her.

However, he attacked her and she swayed to the side, deflecting his attack. _If they want me, why are they attacking me?_ She wondered. She glanced over to her other side and saw a feminine young man with longer hair. It was almost as if he mirrored her, he had her features, yet his colorings were like the other brothers, much like Sephiroth's. "Why did you hide from us, mother?" Yazoo asked disappointment was evidence in his voice.

Up on the cliff, Kadaj longed on his motorcycle, talking on the cell phone. "Don't tell me, you're leading me on, 'cause I think you do have her with you." He pulled the phone away from his ear and sighed, "No need to shout. I don't want to talk to you anymore. Put the president on." He glanced over to watch his brothers chasing and playing with their mother.

Cloud parried her sword against the long haired man, and she winced as her arm started to act up, causing her pain. She glanced over to see them change direction and started to block her path. She quickly sheathed her sword in the motorcycle's storage and manipulated her motorcycle to leap over the shorter haired one's and twirled around to fend off the shadow beasts.

Her eyes went wide as one of the men; the longer haired one came at her, ready to crash into her motorcycle headfirst. She stared as he flipped his motorcycle up in the air, going over her. At the moment their eyes met, he raised his gunblade and shot her; the bullet deflected off her glasses and broke away from her face, causing her forehead to bleed. She twirled her head back to see Yazoo land and resume his cruising behind her. Loz joined him and they both retreated and soon, all the shadow beasts jumped into the air, ready to pounce at her from all directions and suddenly as they came, they disappeared and she found herself alone. Glancing behind her, she saw the third one on the cliff. _The leader… why are they doing this? My own sons… what are they thinking?_

She pulled her cycle to stop and turned to watch them ride off, disappearing. "What's going on?" She asked to no one and sighed. "Ah, my glasses, it's broken." She picked it off from her shoulder and flicked it away. She winced as her arm started to act up again. She started the motorcycle up once again and headed back to Junon Harbor, with her mind set to speak to Rufus. She had not met him yet, but knew he was running Neo-Midgar currently after Zack had briefed her and Sephiroth about what had been happening lately. Rufus must have some answers.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
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"Sephiroth." Aeris approached the silver haired man. "Cloud wanted me to tell you she had to go and think. She will be back." She watched as Sephiroth glance around the room and frowned.

"Why, why didn't she tell me?"

She could see he was frustrated, upset and worried. Placing a calming hand on his arm, "she was upset about something and needed time alone."

Sephiroth sighed in resignation and nodded. "Very well, I hope she's okay." He turned and walked out of the room, Zack and Aeris followed.

"Seph?" Zack asked as he walked by his best friend's side. "Talk to us."

"Ever since Cloud woke up, she was upset about something. I think it was to do with her ability to have children." Sephiroth started and paused as they passed through the glass tunnel corridor. He glanced up to watch the fishes swim above them. "She has been upset about it for a while before while she was looking to help me."

Zack nodded. "I know."

Aeris leaned and rested her head on Sephiroth's shoulder from another side and said, "Give her time. She has to sort this out herself. She will talk to you. She is afraid where she stands with you now, afraid you won't want her anymore because of that. She is also upset about the brothers, they're your children, I can sense she wanted to help them. It's natural for a woman to want to have children with the man she loves. It's like an ultimate failure for a woman to not be able to bear a child."

Sephiroth looked down to her and rested his head on her head, "Thanks Aeris. Cloud should know, no matter what, I love her always and she has never failed me. I can't live without her. I want to help her whenever she needs me to. This is new to me too. It's hard to believe that I have sons out there, trying to do harm, more than good." He shook his head and stepped back, "I have a feeling, this is her battle, and there is nothing I can do unless she asks me to help."

Zack shrugged, "You're right. She's stubborn. Well, Reeve wants us to check on Lockharts in the holding cell. Care for a little distraction while you wait for Cloud to come back?"

Sephiroth nodded, "yes, please lead the way." He followed his best friend down the corridor to the other part of the Underwater Headquarter.

As the three of them arrived to the holding cells, they found Reeve with the Turks outside of one of the cell. Reno looked menacing while Rude looked somber. Reeve turned to them, "Ah, wondered where you disappeared off to."

Aeris turned and saw Tifa joining them. "Tifa."

"Hey." Tifa said. "I'm here to see if it was true that my brother and cousin had truly changed."

"I'm here." Aeris offered and saw Tifa nod her thanks. They watched as the men enter the room, they could see from the two way mirrors where Timothy Lockhart sat at the table, grinning. Tifa sighed, seeing her brother in the light of truth.

"So, it's really true." He spat, glaring at the silver-haired former General. He turned to Zack and smirked, "He's alive, that means, she is too."

"What is your intention?" Reeve asked as he held no emotions as he stared at the mutinous Solider before him.

Timothy shrugged his shoulder. "Who else are watching?" He gave a dirty grin to the mirror and flicked his finger in offensive manner. "He wants her. That's all. Little ditty of a girl who cross-dresses!" He leaned forward and snarled, "That little bitch, she destroyed my home, killed everyone I know. There's nothing left, she deserves all she got."

Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. "You believed that?"

Timothy turned to Sephiroth and sneered, "Yeah, the day she showed up in Nibelheim, that night, it's all down to ashes. No one remembered, no one knew. The world should know that the bitch is the one who did everything!"

Zack frowned, "Why would you be concerned about the world? I can understand your motive for Nibelheim."

Timothy sat back, crossing his hands behind his head. "She was the one with Gaia's blood; she killed many other planets, came here, waited and then went on destroying Nibelheim." He tapped his head, "The voice in me head tells me so… Ah, they're gone… Cloud gone and killed them." He leaned forward again. "She deserved to die, but first…." He grinned, "You know, she was real good. You know, Cloud got a great body… mmhmm… few of us had some great time with her. So sweet… pity."

If one had never seen Sephiroth livid, it was the moment to see, he blew up in rage, everyone in the room feared him, even his own trusted loyal best friend. His hair rose as if the wind whipped around him and he flew at Timothy, letting loose a single powerful punch that sent Timothy flying across the room and crumble against the concrete wall, down in a heap. The wall was left with a large crater dent.

From outside the room, Tifa and Aeris gasped. Tifa turned around and buried her face in her hands. Aeris comforted her, whispering soothing words.

"Oh… okay." Reeve murmured eyes wide as Sephiroth stood up, straightening himself and smoothing out his ruffled appearance. "We'll get the doctor in here. Is he even alive?"

Zack went over to Timothy and took his pulse. "Amazing enough, yes. He's suffering from broken bones." He looked up to see Sephiroth glowering, his hands balled up in tight fits. "Remind me to not cross you."

Sephiroth felt a smirk coming on his face, "You'll survive my punch. You beat me once."

Zack shook his head and stood up, "Geesh. Let's get out of here and wait for Cloud to come back." He saw his friend nod. "Come on." He led Sephiroth out of the room and gave Aeris a nod. Aeris nodded and turned to Tifa, continuing to comfort her.

Reno went over Lockhart and kneeled by him, poking the man with his uncharged electro-rod. "Amazing, that punch should've killed him… He's alive… well, barely." He grinned as his electro-rod sparked and jolted Lockhart, causing him to jump. "Hee hee…"

Reeve rolled his eyes and stared at the ceilings. "Why am I in room full of idiots? Hey! Leave him alone and get out of here!"

Reno shrugged and stood up, giving another last jolt. "Whatever you say, man."

Sephiroth told Zack he wanted to get away and think. Zack took him to the surface to Junon Harbor and showed him a great spot that overlooked the calm sea and left him there. After returning below surface, Zack found Aeris waiting for him. "Aeris."

She smiled at him and stepped up to him, leaning over to rest her head on his shoulder and he wrapped his arms around her, "Aeris." He buried his face into her hair, glad to find that she was real and in his arms once again.

"They really love each other?" Aeris asked, looking up to meet his violet eyes.

Zack nodded, "Yes." He turned and led her back down the corridor. "For a long time, he was lonely until he met Cloud at the ball. I had never seen the man hit it so hard, he just fell in love and it was different for him. I just knew they were perfect for each other, just like you were one for me."

Aeris sighed, pausing as they passed through the glass hall. "I'm sorry."

"What do you mean? Why do you have to be sorry for?" Zack asked as he stood behind her, his hands on her shoulders.

She leaned back into his arms and smiled softly, "When you proposed to me years ago." She felt him tense. "I meant that. I turned you down and I didn't realize I wasn't going to see you ever again. I was upset when I didn't hear from you for a week and then the newspaper came, announcing that you all were dead."

Zack lowered his head to her shoulder, "You weren't ready. I had thought about coming back and try again. I was going to keep asking you until you give in. Yeah; I didn't get to come back. It's forgiven, we're given another chance. Do you think so?"

She turned in his arms and smiled brilliantly at him. "I'd like that."

"I think I'm going to give this another try…" He got down to his knee and held her hand. He pulled the chained necklace off his neck and slipped a single ring off. "I held onto this for a long time… After I died and brought back alive, I lost it and Reeve found it along with my other things and gave it back to me. Now," He looked up to her and saw her green eyes shimmering with tears. "Aeris, will you marry me?" He held the ring to her, showing it was a simple gold band with tiny pink diamonds surrounding the center, forming flower with light green tear drop sapphires as leave on the sides.

Tears spilled from her eyes and she nodded, crying. "This time, yes! Yes… I'm not going to let you go again!" He stood up and she threw her arms around his neck. He smiled, slipping the ring onto her finger. She admired it and smiled at him, "It's so beautiful… I can't believe you held onto it for so long."

"Only for you, love. For you." And he leaned down, kissing her lips.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
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The Fenrir roared through the new city's street, causing the people to jump to the sides as she passed them by. She skidded the contraption to side and parked it by the curb of the street. She sat up, cutting the motor off and slipped off. Several men who were watching gaped at her, surprised to find a woman riding a large sleek ShinRa's new model of motorcycle (it was a new model, ready to be released before Meteor Crisis). She glanced up the building; her hand shadowing her eyes as she saw that she had came to the right place.The sword had a special strap that lay on her back and she slipped the massive sword in its holster and she started to walk up the long stairways to the top where the President would be. She had called and found that he was in the Healin' Center on the outskirt of Neo-Midgar sitting on top of a forestry mountain. It was time she met with him and had some talk. She knew the man needed to talk to her too.

She walked up the door and pushed it open, she saw Reno turning to her and prepared to attack her. Hiding her smirk, she stepped aside as he went past her and she slammed the door shut behind her and flicked the lock, locking him out.

"Okay, so you're good." Reno's voice came from outside, exasperated. She masked her emotions and turned to find Rude coming in from the other door, Cloud was too fast for him, her sword met with Rude's neck and he backed off, scowling. From outside, Reno called, "Go Rude, lookin' sharp."

"Shut up already, Reno." Rude said loud enough for Reno to hear and they heard him cursing outside.

Rufus wheeled by, his body still covered with white sheet, preventing Cloud to truly see him. "You were always good, much like a Solider. It's unusual to see a female hold high skill as Elites." He moved to face Cloud and Rude stood behind him as a guard. "You haven't lost your touch."

Cloud sighed, "Rufus ShinRa." She had not expected to find that the young President wounded and weak. "Do I feel sorry for you."

Rufus ignored her remark, "The day of the explosion," He offered as an explanation. "I was able to escape with my life from the help of the Turks. But I haven't healed due to the Geosigma."

She shifted, showing she was rather bored of the discussion and wanted to get to the point. "What do you want from me? Who are they? What do they want with me?"

Rufus sat in silence and Cloud huffed, rolling her eyes, figuring the young President wasn't going to give her what she wanted. "I'm leaving."

"We need your assistance, Cloud. They do want you; after all, you're their mother." He started, stopping Cloud from leaving the room.

"Not interested in helping the ShinRa. I'm here to find out what's going on."

"I acknowledge that ShinRa owes the planet a lot. It goes without saying that my company and I put the world in the sorry state it's in. Therefore, it's our responsibility to set things right."

"Hey, I'm still out here." Reno called from the other side of the door. Unfortunately, he was ignored.

"As a first step, the Turks had been sent to investigate what you have left behind in your last battle."

"Yup, at the Northern Crater." Reno supplied.

"What do you think we found? Nothing. Nothing at all except for remains of Jenova, which lead us to connect to the Geosigma appearing every where. However, not all had gone as planned, we were interrupted by the same three that attacked you, Kadaj and his brothers."

Cloud frowned, hearing the name for the first time, "Kadaj." She remembered seeing the third one on the cliff, not participated in the chase earlier. So, that was his name. It was strange, now knowing his name; she felt connection to the young man and knew somehow he was in pain.

"It seems he doesn't want us finishing what we started. Really, what could they be thinking?"

"So, what should I do?" She asked her body was directed to the door, ready to leave, her head downcast as she listened to Rufus.

"You're our buddy, aren't ya?" Reno asked from outside. Cloud rolled her eyes, remembering how annoying her former roommate was always. She kicked the door, making it shake violently.

"Kadaj's group is young and violent, as dangerous as they come. That's why we decided it was best to let you handle them." Cloud nodded softly almost unnoticeable. "I don't know what the Planet wants from you, seeing it sent you back alive. You, Sephiroth and Zack are all I have to help to change the future."

Cloud moved to the door and opened it to find Reno leaning on the railing and looking relieved that he was allowed back in. "What's this about Jenova? How is this connected?"

"The Jenova remain is nothing but a dead piece of flesh. They also seem to want it. You're their mother, that's no surprise. There are plenty of kids who miss their mothers. That's the world we live in, after all, we want in the end is to rebuild our world, Cloud."

Frustrated she didn't get enough from Rufus, "But, I…"

Reno smirked, butting his shoulder against Cloud's bare one, "C'mon, Cloud, think about it. Together we can rebuild ShinRa." Cloud snapped her cold blue eyes to Reno and narrowed her gaze. Then she stormed off. Reno stared after her with confusion.

"Not interested." Cloud said as she went down, disappearing from their sight.

Rufus and Rude shouted, "Reno!" Rufus sighed in disappointment.

Reno shrugged his shoulder, "What? Isn't that what you are going to do?"

Rufus shook his head, "You misunderstood."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
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Barret searched the corridors and found Tifa on the other side of the Underwater Headquarter, staring out of the window into the dark depth.  
"Tifa?" She turned and smiled, wiping her cheek, her eyes red from crying.  
"What's wrong?" He asked as he stood by her side, they easily were almost the same height, with him only two inches taller. She found him not too large or bulky in her eyes and he was just like a teddy bear, her teddy bear.

"Oh… Just upset about my brother…" She laughed slightly. "Sephiroth gave him a heck of a punch…"

"Really?" Barret asked as he leaned forward on the railing, his head turned to watch Tifa beside him, gazing out to the sea. The light from the surface danced though the water, reflecting silver on her face.

"We went down to the brig… my brother… he had changed after all. I don't know what Reeve will do to him, as long he is put away. It still hurt… Cloud had shown me her memories about my brother before when we were in the Lifestream… I was too blind to see how cruel he was. I got no one left except Cloud from Nibelheim."

Barret felt sympathy for the woman and reached out to rub her back lightly. "Hey, you know you got us. Avalanche will always be your family."

Tifa smiled as she turned her head to him. "Yes. An odd bunch of people pulled together to form different families."

"Families?"

"Cid, Yuffie and Vincent, the three of them… I think Vincent likes Yuffie more than he thinks he let on. Cid he lost his son and saw him in Yuffie…"

Barret chuckled, "Yeah… Yuffie's back to her old self… thank god… I never thought I'd miss her stupid grinnin' face."

Tifa giggled. "A relief, isn't it? Yeah. Now that Cloud's back, she got her family again… Strange to think of this, but Sephiroth and Cloud, they're together, same as Zack and Aeris… The four of them belong together…"

Barret nodded. "You're right… Now I think of it… they do."

Tifa turned her head to Barret with contemplative look on her face. "It was funny; I was crushing after Cloud for a long time and to find that 'he' was actually a she." She looked away laughing softly.

Barret staggered. "Uhh… I don't know…"

"Weird to think about it… Have you seen Sephiroth look at Cloud? I want that."

Barret gazed away to the sea and thought for a bit before answering. When Cloud and Sephiroth came in the conference room, Cloud still had the sorrow in her eyes, yet there was love every time she looked at the silver-haired man. And the same was returned form the former General toward her. "Yeah, they really love each other."

Tifa sighed. "It hurts to not have that…"

"Hey… Tifa…" Barret stood back up, tugging onto her elbow to have her face him. She straightened up. He bit his bottom lip and sighed, he knew he had to come around to admit it. Ever since he met Tifa, he had liked the woman and over the time, the feeling grew. He had been playing with fate in the past two years, dodging danger and playing the risk card with their lives, never admitting while every moment, they could had died, yet they were still alive and here and it was time.

"Barret?" She became concerned. "What is it?"

He looked back at her, his dark eyes locking with her crimson ones. "Tifa… ever since I first met you… I felt something… now, it's stronger." He noticed blush creeping up on Tifa's face and found this a cute quality on her. He felt his own blush coming on fast. "I was thinking… would you be family with me and Marlene and Denzel?"

Tifa smiled shyly. "Really? You like me that way?" He nodded, feeling rather stumped. "Barret." Her smile grew wider and she cupped his face with her hand, her head still cocked to the side. "You had been a great friend… I am so stupid to not see this… I'm glad…" She leaned forward and kissed his cheek. "I'd like that, I love Marlene to bits, and Denzel would be happy to have you part of our family. Yeah." She nodded, smiling brilliantly and the smile reached her eyes finally for the first time in a long time. Barret reddened whole lot, even his dark skin turned rosy red and she giggled at this. She couldn't believe that she had not seen the handsome quality Barret had and smacked herself inwardly.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
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"Wake up my children." The ethereal voice whispered, somewhere in the deep forest of the Mideel.

"Mmm… five more minutes, mom?" A woman stretched, rolled over to snuggle into the warmth next to her and gotten a mumbling growl in reply from another occupant in the bed.

The ethereal voice sounded annoyed. "No seriously, wake up now!"

"Ooh… All right, I am up!" The woman whined and sat up, stretching and flipping her long platinum blue hair over her shoulder and turned to the other occupant of the bed that seemed unreal. "Oh, Ifrit! Wake up!" She shoved the man with brilliant blazing long red hair.

The man rolled over and grumbled, ignoring her. "Shaddup Shiva."

"Ifrit! We have to wake up! Ooo… you look yummy even as human."

That snapped Ifrit's eyes open. "Human?" He bellowed in surprise and eventually woke up, staring wide eyed at a pretty flesh toned woman who was giggling at him and rubbing his chest almost too seductively. He grabbed her hands and stared down to find his skin was also flesh colored as well, but darker compared to her pale creamy flesh. "Now what?" He groaned and turned his head to find Gaia at the end of the bed, looking very annoyed. "Mother! What did you do to us?"

"I made you guys human, like you once were eons ago. It took a lot out of me to give you guys' life again as human."

"I liked being the fire god!" Ifrit growled and slipped out of bed only to realize he was stark naked. "Whattt?" Gaia and Shiva giggled together. He twirled around, not minding his modesty as his brilliant golden eyes blazed. "Clothes?"

Gaia rolled her eyes and with a snap, the clothes materialized onto their body, dressing them in finest robes of ancient times.

"Thank you." He grumbled and helped Shiva out of bed. No matter how he treated Shiva with kindness, he would never admit to anyone he was that decent and kind to her, even if he and Shiva had been an item for years.

"I have a mission for you two. I want you to go to Cloud and Sephiroth and help them." Gaia explained as she waved her arm. The bedroom disappeared and they were suddenly in the main chamber of the temple. "The Weapons severed their link to me now. They're linked to the one who would become Maleficius Sephirt and there's nothing I can do. I had already send Aeris for warning, but that wasn't enough. Also, you can consider this as your second chance in life."

Shiva clapped her hands and jumped in small glee. "Oh wow!"

Ifrit, on other hand, he frowned. "You mean, we're mortal now and we're stuck like this for the rest of our life?"

Gaia nodded. "Two hundred years, three hundred years top. That's a long time. Life span of a mortal usually is eighty to a hundred year. Be glad you're of my children, the Valkyries alongside with Cloud, Sephiroth, Zack and Aeris."

"We are?" Shiva asked her head tilted as curtain of her shimmering hair swayed to the side.

"Yes, Valkyries. Between the six of you, you all would be able to populate the world the way I wanted it long ago. Aeris is no longer a Cetra; it took too much for me to change you all. There's not much I can do for the Geosigma, only Cloud can unlock the cure from deep inside the Planet to bring forth the cure."

"You're expecting us to breed out a new race?" Ifirt asked astonished.

Gaia nodded with a cheeky smile. "Of course, I can see few bouncing lil'Ifrit coming soon! With you and Shiva in bed like that, you know what I mean."  
If his hair was already blazing red, his face was ten times darker as Shiva's cheek tinted dark pink.

"Well, toodle. I'm going to miss you, my children." With a swish of her arm, Gaia disappeared in thin air.

Shiva turned to Ifrit who was still struggling to calm his horrible blushing. "Oh, come on. Let's go and find them!" He only nodded and allowed Shiva to drag him out of the Temple and they found couple of Golden Chocobo waiting for them with packs to bring them to Cloud and Sephiroth.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
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Yuffie burst from her quarter with her bag of Materia, she had gotten hold of the entire Summons and Zack didn't even bother to get it back from her. But that wasn't the matter; she had frantically looked down the hallways and ran down one way before skidding to stop to run back the other way, searching for someone. She found herself few corridors later and skidded across the smooth floor and crashed into the first Avalancher, which happened to be Vincent who was talking to someone. She crashed into him and yelped; glad she wasn't able to topple the tall sniper.

He turned and glowered at her. "Yuffie, what are you running for?"

Yuffie's eyes were still wide and she waved her hand to dismiss the question. "Never mind that! Holy and Meteor's gone!" She held her bag up open for him to see.

"And?" He asked, peering in the bag, seeing whole bunch of red stones. "Didn't you put them somewhere else?" He crossed his arms.

She shook her head wildly. "No! They're supposed to be in the bag! They're gone! My room's a mess!"

Vincent's eyes widened slightly. "What? You're saying someone broke in your room and took Holy and Meteor?"

She nodded wildly. "Come! Come on!" She grabbed his hand and started to drag him back to her quarter. Surely enough as they arrived her quarter, it was the same as she left it a moment before, a total chaos. Her furniture had been ransacked all over the room, most of them broken. Her clothes and things were strewn everywhere as well.

Vincent's eyes widened considerably as he stood in the doorway, taking in the sight of the room. "Are you sure you didn't do this?"

Yuffie sighed exasperatedly. "No you dolt! You think I'm that hyper to do this?" She asked, incredulously at him and poked him rather hard in the rib. "The bed!" The bed had been turned upside and ripped to shred. "Even I can't do that!"

He winced and grabbed her finger. "We have to report this. Anything else missing?"

"Nope, just Holy and Meteor."

"Interesting." Vincent stepped out of the room, still holding Yuffie's finger, dragging her along and closing the door. "Let's go and find Reeve."

"Right on." She yanked her finger back and followed the tall sniper down the hallway in search for the Vice-President. "Are you sure you're sixty four?"

The sniper stopped and glanced down at the youth, a good two feet shorter than he is. "Yes, I know my age. Why in the world are you going on about that?"

She looked away and blushed horribly red. "Nothing…" She muttered and followed him who had started off again. "Just that you're hot…" Vincent didn't stop this time but smirked inwardly, having heard the quiet declaration.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, pretty please with delicious Reno on the top?_


	45. S4:6: Revelation Part II

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Six: Revelation Part II

_Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness and peace have kissed each other._

Psalm 85:10, The Holy Bible

"What?" Reeve looked up from his desk at Vincent and Yuffie. "Meteor and Holy's gone? How did this happen?"

Yuffie gave him an exasperated look. "Come on, you know me! I keep my things secured that no one can steal from me! Now my room's a mess and the two Materias' gone. Yes, it's gone, no, I don't know how!" She replied with fast paced tone and gave Reeve a glare.

Vincent's eyebrow cocked as the girl huffed. "Look like someone had outdone you in thievery."

The girl turned to him and slapped him rather hard on the arm and glowered. "Shut up! I take that back what I thought of you!"

He chuckled. "Oh, what was that?" He teased.

Yuffie rolled her eyes and turned to Reeve. "Come on! Meteor and Holy's stolen! They could be summoned again!"

Reeve rubbed his forehead. "If they could find some excess energy, then it's possible, only a pure Valkyrie and Cetra can summon them. Aeris is not a Cetra anymore and the only Valkyries we have are those four, Aeris, Zack, Sephiroth and Cloud. Thank you for letting me know and I'll have this investigated immediately," He glanced away murmuring under his breath, "How can they breach the security?" He looked back to the red-eyed man. "Vincent, inform Zack of this. Cloud and Sephiroth need to know too."

The sniper nodded and bowed his head. "Thank you. Come on, there's nothing else we could do." He tugged onto her arm and dragged her away.

Yuffie gaped at him and then at Reeve. "What about my room!" She whined.

Reeve gave her a cheeky grin. "Don't worry. I'll have another room for you soon. Just go and have fun." He waved as Vincent dragged the girl out of the office. "Cute thing. Good luck Vincent." He murmured as he returned to his paperwork and groaned at it, he didn't even want to do this at all. Picking up the phone and clicked it open, it was a purpose of a distraction for now. "Miss Zora… see to it that Yuffie get a new room by tonight… Is that room next to Valentine available?"

"Yes sir." She replied.

He grinned. "Good, have her things moved there. Is the invitation ready?"

"Oh yeah, they're being mailed as we speak now. Are you sure that it's wise to have a Ball with all of this troubles going on?"

"Everyone needed to be cheered up and have fun, no matter what. We got good group of people and fleet of Soldiers at our dispatch. I'm only really worried about the brothers and this mysterious Maleficius Sephirt character."

"Yes… anything else, sir?" Her cheery voice piped though the phone.

He chuckled. "Yes, one more thing… how do you feel about going to the Ball as my date?" There was silence on the line. "Miss Zora?"

"If you are asking me to go to the ball, you better very well use my name properly!" She snapped playfully.

"Of course, Katrina. Is that a yes?"

Giggles and then, "Of course, Reeve! I'd be honored to go to the Ball with you." Then another giggle and the phone clicked to silence. He shook his head and closed his phone.

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Sephiroth watched Cloud eat her cereal as she read the newsletter at the table. They were in the kitchen/den in the Headquarter resident wing. Nanaki was napping on the couch as usual while Cid and Barret were playing cards at the counter; they had cups of coffee next to them, filling them up every time they drained the coffee from the coffee maker nearby.

He was sitting on one of the lounging chair, observing silently. The Avalanche appeared to accepted him and gave him simple greeting as he entered the room. Even Barret gave him a grunt of greeting, showing that he had somewhat accepted him, even by small margin. He had been looking for Cloud when he had woken up earlier and found she had already woken up and was gone from her room. He did use the advantage of sensing her out and found her in the kitchen, eating her cereal. She had not yet noticed him, being so engrossed with the newsletter. There were several others on the table and he figured she wanted to catch up on the news, reading those papers.

He wondered if the Avalanche had the relationship like this every day in the past couple years, while they were traveling. He glanced over to Nanaki and saw the wolf was watching him. His silver eyebrow rose, questioning him silently.

"When you're around us long enough, you'd find us one odd bunch of group." Nanaki started, sitting up and slipping off the couch to sit in front of Sephiroth. "Despite our difference, we have come to trust each other that nothing surprises us anymore, even with Cloud being a female and loving you. The Avalanche had accepted you easily because they saw you as part of Cloud. They now see that they can't view her without you or you without her. It's simple as that."

"Interesting." Sephiroth said quietly. "So, they'll just merge me as part of the group like that?"

Nanaki cocked his head, "They've already considered you one of them. Give them time and they will include you in their activities. They've had difficulties to accept Zack in the beginning, but now, with Cloud's help, he's part of us. Soon, the Turks will also be part of us. Fate brought us all together for a reason or two and they all begin or end with you and Cloud. They all know that and cannot deny it."

"True, you're wise. I can see why Cloud trusts you from the beginning."

"Yes. It was hard for her not to. Cloud needs you the most now; she is dealing with difficult issues and she need to see that she cannot do it alone. Go to her and be there for her."

"It's hard for me to catch up with all of this, it's like, I went to sleep one night, and wake up, it's had been several years and everything had changed around me. Including Cloud." Sephiroth looked over to Cloud to find her finished eating and standing by Cid and Barret, teasing them. She must had noticed him but left him to talk to Nanaki.

"Cloud had changed and so have you. You're no longer that General that everyone knew in the past. Here, everyone is starting to see you as a man, a mortal man. A man capable of any man to be, one to love, hurt and has a life."

Sephiroth nodded and stood up. "Thank you, Nanaki." He turned and smiled as Cloud came over to him. "Cloud."

She smiled at him and leaned up on him to kiss his lips, "Morning. Have you had breakfast?" He shook his head and she grabbed apple and an orange from the bowl on the table. Holding them up and thinking as he watched her amusedly. "You don't like apple. Okay, orange is it." She tossed the apple back and they walked out of the room.

"Did the ride on the motorcycle help you yesterday?" Sephiroth asked, he had not been able to find any time to talk to her after she had returned, it was late by the time she came back and they all had already gone to bed.

Cloud nodded as she walked close to him, "A little. Got to meet them."

"The brothers?" He asked in surprise and he became curious, "What do they look like?"

She stopped and turned to him, giving a sad smile. "Everything you'd expect in our children. They had silver hair, one does look a lot like you and the other one, and he had my face. They all, I suppose, had green eyes like yours." She looked away, "Only… only if we could raise them, they'd be different. It's so strange… to see them grown like that; I wonder what they looked like when they were babies, growing up… I am sure they're beautiful when they were young."

Sephiroth noticed the depression starting to settle over her and he reached out, pulling her toward him and embracing her. He had expected her to resist but found she had burrowed into his arms, crying softly. "Hey… don't worry. I don't care what will happen; I love you too much to let you go. I'm here, we're together and we will face this together to the end."

"I'm sorry…" Cloud sniffled, looking up to him. "I… I am afraid you'd not want me anymore… I'm not the same as I used to be. It has been so long."

"Never think that. I've also changed too. We both are not the same as we used to be but together, we'll learn. Right?" He asked, cupping her face, seeing her smile.

"Yeah." She murmured as he kissed her and let her go.

"You'll be all right here? I got an invitation to head into the city for some kind of party." He fished around his jacket and found a card, showing it to her. She laughed as she read the card. "Male-bonding party, sound stupid." He chuckled. "I'm going to leave Masamune behind, I don't think I need to go out and terrorize everyone with my sword just yet. Aeris is here too."

She gave him a shove, "Go on, have fun. I am sure I'll get dragged into something like that soon with the women. I think I will take a nice long hot shower… oh, that's right, mine's not yet set up."

"Use mine." He handed her his card to his room. She nodded and kissed his cheek and watched him walk away.

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Cid looked at the paper and then up, again the paper then the building before he gave up and turned to Vincent. "This the right place?"

Vincent nodded as he held his own copy of invitation he had gotten though his mail this morning. "Yes. Asgard, the local elite bar."

Cid returned to the paper in his hand and frowned. "What's this? 'Male Bonding Party'?"

Vincent shrugged and strode into the place and handed the card to the hostesses who in turn led them into a private room. He found Barret sitting at a large reserved table grudgingly with Reno and Rude. "Barret." He said as he sat down next to the man while the pilot took the other seat next to him.

Reno brushed the stray bang out of his eye as he peered at Cid who was scowling as well. "Hey. We might as well make the best of it." He snapped his finger and a waitress soon was at his side. "Do you know anything about this reservation?"

The waitress looked around the table and her eyes widened slightly as she remembered something. "Oh, that's right. Male Bonding Party!" She gave a mega-watt smile and winked at Reno. "The President should be here shortly. He said that this is a private party for you all to get along… Hmm… I was told there is party of ten. Where are the others?"

"Who?" Barret asked as he looked up from his glass of beer.

"I don't know. Don't have the list of name on my hand." She smiled at him and took out the notepad and a pen from her apron pocket. "Do you want to order or wait until the rest shows up?"

Rude spoke. "Get two bottle of Makohol and a bottle of…" He turned to Barret. "What is it you like?"

Barret snorted. "Odin's Apple would do."

"Ah, good stuff… Odin's Apple too."

The waitress nodded and briskly took off, not to neglect swaying her hips.

Reno shook his head and turned back to the table and across to Vincent. "So, you're the legendary Turks of all around."

Vincent's eyes narrowed. "That's the past. I do not wish to speak of it."

The red-head held his hands up in surrender. "Okay, okay. I get what you mean. Turks' past is nothing to talk about."

Then, Reeve came in and found them, sitting next to Reno, "Sorry for being late. I got held up in the office, trivial stuff. Rufus not here yet?"

Barret shook his head and grumbled. "What's this?"

"Ah, yes. I thought we all should get to know one other and get along better, since we all were on different sides before and now we're working together, Rufus agrees."

Cid rolled his eyes. "You expect me to get along with that?" He pointed to Reno who was smirking like a devil.

"What's wrong with me?"

Cid snarled as he rose out of his chair to lunge at him but Vincent grabbed hold of his collar and promptly pushed him back in his seat. The Turks and Avalanche had tolerated each other's presences, keeping true to their professional attitude and behavior while working with Reeve and Rufus. But now, at the Asgard, outside their job, everything was bared out in the open.

The door opened to reveal Tseng following Rufus into the room. Rufus was dressed casually, his head still covered with ivory hooded jacket and his pants were pale ivory jeans, sitting in his wheelchair. Then, Zack came in with Sephiroth and Nanaki was slithering in from behind the silver-haired man. They seated themselves at the table, oddly enough, separating the Avalanche and Turks. With Sephiroth's presence, everyone stared at him, waiting for something to happen and he stared back coolly. He raised an eyebrow and everyone twitched and he found it was amusing.

Reeve stood up, raising a glass, "Good for you to join us!" He smiled and everyone grudgingly rose their glasses to join in the toast.

Zack peered in his glass and noticed it was glowing blue. "Ahh… Makohol, haven't had this in a while." He took a sip and wheezed a bit. "Don't drink it." He nudged Cid who sat next to him in a cheery way. "Unless you got Mako in your blood, it's poison."

The pilot wrinkled his nose and gripped his hand around his own glass. "Thanks, I'll stick to Odin's Apple."

"Odd to not have Cloud here." Barret commented as he drained his own glass and got another.

Sephiroth looked over his glass. "Cloud? Yeah, you guys are used to her being a guy. It's different now."

Zack snickered into his drink. "This is a male bonding party, she's not invited." Sephiroth gave him a glare and he laughed, knowing Sephiroth wanted Cloud to be with them too.

Rude nudged Reno and pointed to the door which was left open to bring in cool draft. "They look suspicious."

The red-head turned and glanced across the room and spied two couple that looked very out of place, wearing ancient garments that could pass them off as royals entering the bar. His jaw dropped as his eyes roamed over the tall female with brilliant silvery blue hair tied up in elegant do and gowned in shimmering violet dress with golden accented lining and jewelry. Her eyes were of the palest blue lined with dark kohl and violet eye-shadows. His eyes fell upon her deep maroon lips and he gave a low wolf whistle. "Damn, it should be illegal for a woman to be that beautiful!"

Everyone whipped their head to see and Sephiroth frowned while the other's eyes went wide. The man next to the woman was also familiar to him. The stranger was tall and large, easily the same build as he was, with long flaming reddish hair that had golden blond streaks here and there. His face was broad and sharp with sharp golden eyes. His skin was tanned, as if he came from the nomad desert tribe near the Corel area in ancient time. He was also dressed in elegant finery of red, gold and black outfit.

"Huh?" Sephiroth muttered.

"What is it?" Zack asked, finally breaking away from staring at the woman.

"They're familiar… I know them but I can't remember." Sephiroth frowned.  
The woman turned to meet their gaze and a wide smile spread across her face. She squealed and quickly made her way over to their table. "Sephy-Poo! You're here!"

Everyone gawked at Sephiroth who rose to meet her. His frown melted into a surprise. "Shiva?" He asked.

Zack couldn't look more shocked. "Shiva? You mean, the summon Shiva?"

Sephiroth nodded and looked up and down. "What happened? You're human!"

She giggled and gave him a bear hug and then patted on his head like he was a little kid, even though he was taller than her. "Aw, I missed you! And Zack!" She turned to the raven-haired man who promptly dropped his jaw. She giggled and patted his head as well. "Oh, you don't know me but Sephy-Poo here told me all about you and Cloud while he was spending some time in the Middle Land."

The tall reddish haired man stepped behind her and rolled his eyes while his low voice rumbled. "Shiva, stop it. You're embarrassing everyone here."

She turned to him and slapped him lightly on the chest. "Oh, don't be so glum, chum!"

Sephiroth's eyebrows disappeared into the hairline. "Ifrit?"

"The one and only." The man's voice raised a notch and it was almost booming. He held his hand out as he and Sephiroth shook a firm shake.

Reeve stood up and smiled at the two. He had given up trying to conduct the speech he was going to give. There was no way he would get around getting a meeting done with the sort of people he was around with. "Please join us! How…"

Shiva waved her hand and sat down next to Sephiroth, ever so cheerful. "Oh, Gaia turned us human and we're here!"

Ifrit shook his head and sighed. "Shiva…"

She looked at him and batted her eyes, giving an innocent look. "What?"

"We found Sephiroth, as might well tell him."

"Oh, right! Sephy… Gaia send Aeris back but it wasn't all. She had to send us too to help you guys out with the Weapons."

Rufus found this interesting as everyone else around the table. They all leaned in closer to get better hearing. "Weapons severed their links to Gaia and are being controlled by this Maleficius Sephirt." Shiva explained.

"Damn." Zack muttered.

Sephiroth nodded in agreement. "Cloud had been intercepted by the three brothers yesterday. Still there was no mention of this Maleficius Sephirt. We have no information on him."

Shiva gasped as she clasped her hand over her mouth. "Oh dear! We know who!"

Vincent looked surprised. "Who?"

Ifrit placed his large hand onto Shiva's arm. "It's all right. Maleficius Sephirt is a strong evil being that look a lot like Sephiroth here. Gaia couldn't explain much but she did mention that the brothers are kind of a larval form for Maleficius Sephirt, if they manage to get hand on something, one of them could transform, becoming powerful."

"What?" Barret slammed his glass down on the table. "You're telling me there's another bastard out there?"

"I resent that." Sephiroth muttered to the dark man who pulled a look at him.

Shiva nodded timidly as her slanted eyes were wide. "It's terrible! He has Meteor and Holy in his grasp… Mother only knows what they will do…"

"How did you know? No one knows that Meteor and Holy had disappeared recently." Reeve asked.

Shiva gasped once again, "Uhm…" She glanced over to Ifrit who shrugged. "Premonitions?" she laughed weakly as she realized she was being a blabber-mouth.

"What the hell?" Cid stood up at the same time with Barret. "How did that happen?"

Vincent sighed, "Yuffie found her room a mess this morning, the only thing was taken was the Holy and Meteor Materias. We do not know how the security had been breached." He glanced to Rufus who waved his hand.

"Security had been doubled. We suspect it was one of the brothers that snuck in and took the Materias."

"Yes. I am having this looked into before informing you all." Reeve said.

Ifrit shook his head, his wild hair swaying. "Maleficius Sephirt has abilities that we could not understand or even guess. He would be here and then there in a blink of an eye and has all the abilities of the Materia linked to Gaia. It is possible he had transformed from one of the brothers already."

"We're dealing with a powerful being that we could not even beat?" Rude asked.

Sephiroth frowned and stood up, "They're after Cloud… Cloud!" He shot out from the room and with loud revving noise; everyone knew he had took off on the motorcycle he had came with.

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Cloud stared with shock, backing up against the wall in her room, her hand gripping tightly on the closest weapon she could grab and it was the Masamune which Sephiroth had left behind. She was dripping wet, had gotten out of the shower and was only dressed in a towel wrapped around her body. "Kadaj, what are you doing here? How did you get in here?" She asked.

"Mother, we need you." Kadaj said his voice soft and it sounded like a child, hurt.

"Why? You and your brothers attacked me yesterday. If you want me, you could have asked. I would have helped."

Kadaj shook his head, "I can't." He bowed his head as he held his hand over his heart, "He wants you… I don't know who he is… he wants you so bad." He looked up and the room started to shake. She gasped as she stared into his eyes, slitted like a cat's, glowing green, so much like Sephiroth's but with malice and at the same time, struggling with pain.

"You're not Sephiroth…" She saw his face flicker, showing two faces, his own and of Sephiroth's. "Who are you?"

Kadaj frowned as if he was offended and hurt, "Mother, how can you say this? You know me." He stepped forward, his hand held out to her as the other one still over his heart. "Help me…" He fell to his knees as he was wracked in pain. "He wants you…"

"No. I can't go with you." She said with resolute decision. She frowned as she felt her arm twinge as he came closer, "You have Geosigma…." She knelt beside him, reaching out to touch his cheek, the Masamune still in reach. "It's inside you, fully."

Kadaj gasped and snapped away from her touch as if it burned him. He stood up and backed away. He scowled and then blinked, his face becoming cool and collected, his voice changed deeper and his eyes were different, "Whatever you say, you're still coming with me, even if I have to destroy the place apart."

Cloud's eyes widened as she gripped the Masamune, standing up. She held tightly onto the towel as she backed up. Kadaj's face shifted, showing the familiar face of Sephiroth and she knew it was the Maleficius Sephirt that was struggling to break free from inside Kadaj. "No."

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"Damn it!" Sephiroth looked around frantically in the cafeteria after he had found Aeris. She had said that she saw Cloud last in the cafeteria after the guys had left earlier. She was no where to be seen. Zack finally showed up, had immediately went after Sephiroth when he left Asgard. Shiva and Ifrit were behind him as well.

"What's wrong?" Shiva asked. She looked about worriedly.

"Cloud's in trouble. I can feel it… she's afraid…" Sephiroth murmured and gasped. "Deathly afraid… Right, my room!" He took off in blinding speed with the other three on his heel.

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"What do you want with me?" Cloud asked, trapped against the wall with no where to go. The man was very, very fast and seemed to have the ability to transport from one spot to another in blink of an eye. She knew she had no fighting chance with the man, even if she had surpassed power, it wasn't enough.  
There was some time she needed Sephiroth and this was the time she needed him badly.

He trailed a cold finger on her cheek. "So perfect…" He whispered as he lowered his head closer to her, his breath trickling on her cheek and lips.  
She shivered; it was like blast of icy wind. Her hand was still gripping the Masamune but knew it was no good; the weapon was for distanced battle, not close range. She could see his eyes and gasped, it was purely white, no pupils or irises at all, all white and glowing green. She could sense that Kadaj was gone and all there was the malicious presence left.

He chuckled and drew back slightly. "Now that I see you, so perfect. I'll just keep you to myself. My Queen of the world when we take it over."

She let out a small terrified moan. "Oh no, not again. Don't you guys have enough?" She shivered as the flashback of the previous clone, Dark Sephiroth came to mind. This man was much like him but ten times worse.

He drew back fully and had an impression he was growling slightly with exasperation. "Hojo didn't see the fine point in this, either does Gates. Dark Sephiroth was an idiot… Jenova was really a bitch. But, I'm so much better and I have a perfect plan. No one can stop me, not even you. Together, we can create whole line of stronger people." His finger trailed down her neck to her arm where she was gripping the Masamune. He lightly tapped her hand and she gasped involuntary and the Masamune fell to the floor with a loud unpleasant clunk.

_Sephiroth! Where are you?_ She cried with her mind, hoping for all of the goodness in the world that it would work. She could feel sense of panic and couldn't tell if it were her own or someone else. The door slammed open behind them. Cloud then gave a small cry.

Sephiroth gasped as he stood in the doorway, finding Kadaj standing so close to Cloud. He registered the look on her face and it added to his senses of her feeling which caused his rage to increase a hundred folds.

"Oh… it's widdle Sephy." He sneered mockingly, turning away from Cloud and stood in front of her, his weapon in his hand and his stance was very loose, yet he was grinning like the cat had ate a rather very plump canary.

"Cloud!" Sephiroth ignored him, finding it difficult to reach her and stood his place as Zack, Shiva and Ifrit came in behind him.

"Oh my!" Shiva gasped and with an instant, her hands glowed brilliantly bluish white as Ifrit's hands turned golden red.

Sephiroth turned his gaze and glowered at Kadaj. He glanced into the eyes and gasped, realizing it wasn't Kadaj, how he knew, he had no idea but was staring at a new being and he knew it was Maleficius Sephirt that they were dealing with. He moved in a usual stance and suddenly with burst of light, he transformed into his alter-ego, the One Winged Angel, his wings exploded from his back, spreading wide.

Zack's hands instinctively came together and with blast of blue shimmering light, a sword appeared in his hand and it was the Ragnarok, the next powerful to Ulitma Weapon, his own personal sword.

"Oh, great now you're all here… who's next?" Maleficius Sephirt rolled his eyes and sighed in boredom. He flicked his hand and sighed, "This body is too weak. I need the left of Jenova, where is she?"

However, behind him, Cloud closed her eyes and clasped her hands together to gather the strength from the depth of her heart. The sight of Sephiroth and her friends gave her some strength and in a growing blinding golden light, she transformed as well. Soon, she was gowned in silver and gold armor over ancient pale periwinkle blue gown and holding the Ulitma Weapon in her hands which she had summoned from the other room.

Maleficius Sephirt turned around and his eyes went slightly round in surprise. "You too? The better reasons I should keep you." He stepped back from her, not daring to show any sight fear he had felt seeing he was dealing with several powerful people in the room.

With blinding flashes of lights and loud explosion, golden, blue, white and red light burst in fireworks of light to the center of the room and then it all died down soon to find that Maleficius Sephirt had disappeared.

Shiva's hands returned to normal color. "Is he gone for good?"

Sephiroth shook his head as he went back to his true form, the wing disappearing from his back and he ran to Cloud who collapsed to the ground, shivering and clutching the towel around her body tightly.

Ifrit growled and stepped out of the room to prevent from anybody coming in. Reeve had just arrived; trailing behind him was Vincent and the others. He went and explained, filling the others with the information.

Zack went to his friends' side and knelt. "What is it?" He asked Sephiroth.

The silver-hair man looked up to his friend's blue eyes. "He's still around. Now I know what it is. I can feel him. Kadaj is the larva, Maleficius Sephirt is in him."

Cloud nodded as she fell into Sephiroth's arms and shivered. "Yes. He wanted me. Kadaj didn't want him to come out… my son, poor him. He's hurting so much. He came to me for help but Maleficius Sephirt is using him too, he's confused."

Zack's pounded the floor beside him. "Damn it. He will never get you!"

"Oh, what was that?" Aeris asked as she pushed her way though Ifrit and Shiva and found the three in the corner of the room. She gasped and knelt beside Zack, watching a very pale Cloud in Sephiroth's arm. "Oh dear! Are you all right?" She reached out and grasped Cloud's hand lightly while sending a warm wave of her healing Breath of the Earth.

Zack smiled. "Thanks Aeris. Cloud needed that."

She gave him a smile in reply and helped Cloud up from Sephiroth's arms. "Shoo, both of you out of here. Let me help Cloud to get dressed." Sephiroth nodded his thank and left the room with Zack in tow while Shiva followed Cloud and Aeris to Cloud's bedroom next door.

After Aeris had shoved Cloud into the bathroom lightly, she turned to Shiva and tilted her head. "I guess you're Shiva?" The other woman nodded vigorously and smiled a mega-watt smile.

"Yeah! It's too bad we haven't met before except when you summoned me few times."

Aeris giggled and moved to the dresser and started to pull out some clothes. "What happened here? There were loud explosion and Reeve became really worried because he thought the whole half of the Headquarter had been blown out and the alarm went off everywhere. It's really a mess out there now with all the people running around with the alarm going off."

Shiva waved her hand as if it were nothing. "Oh that. Four of our powers clashed together and exploded. We were aiming at Maleficius Sephirt within Kadaj."

The peaceful member of Avalanche twirled around with a gasp. "Maleficius Sephirt! He was here?"

"Yes. He was after Cloud. But I don't think he will pull the trick again. Sephiroth's bound to stick to her side twenty-four/seven now."

"True." Aeris looked up to find Cloud emerging from the bathroom, looking slightly better. "Oh Cloud. Here." She handed her some clothes and sat on the bed while the blonde dressed hastily with some shyness.

"Oh! You never had been around other women like this before!" Shiva quipped and giggled. "Don't worry! Now you got us to help you out!"

Cloud murmured her thank and tugged onto her boots. "You really don't have to. I'm all right. I am used to dressing in front of Sephiroth and Zack, not that they looked, they always turns away." She laughed at their horror stricken face.

Aeris shook her head to disagree. "Cloud! You spend most of you life and you haven't owned a dress!"

The blonde's head snapped up. "I did so too!" She pointed to the closet. "There are few dresses in there! What was left from the past."

Aeris looked a bit surprised and went over to the closet and browsed though it. "Aww! This is so sweet! You have to wear this sometime! Ooh… no, no… nope… not even that one either."

Cloud became utterly confused as Aeris came out with armload of dresses that she did not recognize. "These… what are these?" She went pink. "Not mine! Those are Miss Zora's. Reeve left them here because Zack wanted me to wear something for the ball."

"The Ball! That's right; it's coming up in few days." Aeris walked over to the bed and dumped the dresses.

Shiva reached out and pulled a skimpy black shimmering dress. "Ooh. Did you try this one on?"

Cloud pulled her face and shook her head. "No! I am not wearing that!"

Shiva giggled and started to browse though the clothes, pulling one after another. "This Miss Zora got some tastes, I got to meet her!"

Zack came back in the room and found the three of them at the bed with pile of dresses strewn all over. "So you found the treasures."

Aeris gave him a look. "You call these treasures? None of them suit Cloud!"

Zack frowned and pulled a dress out of the pile which happened to be the same black dress that Shiva had picked up earlier. "Sephiroth didn't think so for this one. Well, we thought if Cloud didn't find anything, we'd take her shopping."

Aeris came around the bed and stood on her toes, peering up at Zack. "You bought some of the dresses in the closet?"

Zack looked ever so proud and crossed his arms. "Yep. I got good taste? Some Sephiroth picked out too."

"You got lucky." She commented and giggled. "Tifa wanted to go shopping later. I'll take Shiva. I don't think Cloud would want to join us yet."

Cloud shook her head. "No. I'm going with Zack and Sephiroth. After what happened with Kadaj twice, I'm going to stick with Sephiroth for now." She looked away, feeling very nervous.

"You're feeling better now?" Zack turned to Cloud, who promptly nodded in reply. "Good, Sephiroth's waiting for you. He got the whole building under really tight security. I think Rufus had tripled the security after he got the report. Expect the place to be swarming with more guards now."

"Don't bother. He appeared into the room himself. He can get anywhere without anyone knowing, security or no."

"Still, he's getting paranoid now after seeing that damn bastard's another clone of him. He just got Dr. Saverem to destroy all the samples. The woman's raving mad now. The box with Jenova inside is now being under tighter lock."

"Oh. Let's go." Cloud murmured and left the room. Shiva frowned, feeling pang of sadness and tugged onto Aeris' arm to stay behind and whispered. "What's wrong with Cloud? I sense great deal of sorrow."

Aeris nodded. "She's confused. She is being a target and Maleficius must have said something to her."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Cloud glanced to the side glass wall as she followed Zack down the corridor. A golden school of fish swam by, creating a beautiful mirror dance, reflecting lights. _"Together, we can create whole line of stronger people." _His voice echoed in her mind and she shivered at the coldness, the depth of desire laced within.

The very word had triggered something inside her, a memory of when she had fondest wish of having family. Her hand idly trailed to her flat stomach and she sighed. She couldn't have children at all and the only ones she had are all grown. She wondered how their childhood was; she could bet everything they didn't have one. Why did Maleficius Sephirt even bother to go after her if she could not? She should be glad she can't because it was something they wanted from her, yet she wasn't.

She wanted children of her own badly, with Sephiroth. She wanted a simple life; peaceful and happy without any burden or worries of the world upon her shoulder, a normal common life like many thousands other people in the world had. Yet, fate had a different destiny for her and she often felt there was no good that came out of it. However, thinking over to Sephiroth, she supposed that was one of the few good thing came out of her destiny, she couldn't think of any other life without him.

"Cloud?" She blinked and looked up to find Zack's worried face peering down at her.

"What?"

"You just zone out of there. Are you okay? Did that bastard do anything to you?"

Shaking her head, "I'm fine." Looking over her shoulder, she found Sephiroth behind him and smiled gratefully. "Thanks for saving me back there." Sephiroth took her hand and drew her to sit in one of the couch. She then realized she was in the President's office. A warm mug of hot cocoa was placed in her hands.

"The recent events had brought some attention and I think we should put some haste to the action about it." Rufus said as he sat at his desk, Reeve standing behind him with Tseng on the other side.

Looking around, Cloud noticed the Turks on the other couch with Scarlet to her surprise to see the woman alive and dressed humbly. Sephiroth and Zack were sitting by her sides, a bit close and protectively while they tried to not show it, and behind her stood Vincent, Cid and Barret along with Tifa and Aeris near Rufus's desk with Yuffie. Shiva and Ifrit came in soon, trailing after Miss Zora and stood between the two couches, facing everyone.

"We got new members. Shiva, Ifrit." Reeve raised his hand to introduce the two new faces. Shiva waved and smiled while Ifrit kept a brooding face and crossed his arms. "They came to us recently to report that this character, Maleficius Sephirt has complete control over Weapons. I also got reports from the observation crew; the Weapons are slowly heading toward Junon, but with no immediate danger. There are two of them left, Emerald is out of his dormant state and Ruby had sprouted from its hiding place from under the sand over at Corel desert."

"Huh?" Cid asked, confused. "If they're heading to Junon and they're not showing any danger, what the hell?"

Reeve rubbed his temple. "Cid. We are keeping very close watch on them. They're not aggressive yet, but I am putting out a high level alert. That means," He gave the trio a glance before turning to the Turks. "All of you and the Soldiers will be on twenty four hours contact."

"Everyone?" Barret asked then.

"For now." Reeve replied.

"Rufus, tell them anyway." Zack sighed as he took the empty mug from Cloud's hand and placed it on the low coffee table in front of him.

The President gave him a speculating look and nodded. "Right. We're working the ranking system out as we speak. We have lot of good people on the military program that we're rebuilding now. From what it look, Sephiroth will become the General again, ranking the control over all military personnel, including the Turks." There were some murmurs of objection from the other couch.

"Shut up." Tseng snapped at Reno who rolled his eyes. "Zack will be Commander as Cloud will be the Lieutenant. But none of this will be in effect until after the Ball. As for now, they will be holding title, so give them the respect they deserve. You have to admit, they're the best out of everyone on the planet right now." Everyone slowly agreed, seeing the truth in his words.

"The Ball! Are you sure it's wise to go on with it with all the danger?" Tifa asked everyone's question.

"Yes. We cannot let this stop us. We need to have some cheerful time. But we will be on alert anyway. The Ball was intended to celebrate our new start after what happened with Meteor."

Yuffie frowned. "Will any other countries be in danger if their rulers show up at the ball?"

"I do not believe so. The brothers' objectives are obviously Neo-Midgar and Junon. Especially with Cloud right here. We all know they want Cloud and what's left of Jenova. We're not sure what else they are after yet."

Everyone's head turned to her and she suddenly wished the couch could swallow her whole. "Recently, Maleficius Sephirt gave her a visit and expressed his desire for her." Rufus continued.

"Damn!" Barret cursed. "So, who is he?"

Cloud snorted with distaste, drawing attention again. "Like Dark Sephiroth, but stronger and whole lot more dangerous. We can't do anything unless he comes to us. Rufus, the weapons are connected to him; it's going to be difficult. It might take three of us," She gestured to herself, Sephiroth and Zack, "to break our final Limit Break to take one down together." She continued, "Maleficius Sephirt can't come out yet from Kadaj because he needs Jenova to make himself stronger. Kadaj is struggling to hold him back."

"Yes, that seemed obvious. So, we are going to go ahead with the Ball and let thing run its course."

Ifrit made some noises and everyone's head twirled to look at him. "He will come back. This time, we will be ready. He may be strong, but we got whole lot of good people with strength."

Shiva smiled and leaned to him. "Yes. That's right."

"That's the thing I like to hear. We will not let anything stop us."

Everyone gave their agreement and soon, most filtered out of the room, leaving the three and the two Summonses with the President and Reeve.

"Cloud, are you all right?" Reeve asked with concern.

Cloud rolled her eyes. "Damn it. I am not some kind of fragile thing that's about to break. Yes, I am fine!"

"Whoa, girl." Zack whispered.

Cloud gave him a withering glare. "Gates wanted me to continue the Adam and Eve project, now he's gone and it's out of the picture. But it's not going to work this time. Hojo screwed it up big time; he released a whole lot of evil spirits by wakening Jenova."

Sephiroth frowned. "What? What do you mean?"

Cloud stood up and paced around the room. "He said something…" She stopped and looked to Sephiroth. "The virus. All the time, we thought it was just an alien virus, but it was actually souls of people from another planet that got destroyed eons ago." She gestured her good arm upward to the ceiling and brought it down to her other hand, as if demonstrating the crash of meteor onto the planet. "The souls needed bodies, hosts, to go on, to survive and they found the Cetra, but the Cetra's bodies couldn't handle it because the body was weaker. They turned on each other, fought and killed. Then there was few left."

She turned to the rest of them. "Until Jenova, the Valkyrie came around. She didn't touch just one person, she touched several. They found that she was very, very powerful and was able to house several souls together. So each person she touched, they attached themselves into Jenova, and finally, the last one, the one we know as Jenova took over. It was the soul's mistake in revealing itself." She clutched her arms and shook her head. "So, the Valkyries suspected and killed her. The real Jenova imprinted her own soul into Lucrecia's body inside the womb, protecting the child. Then, she was beheaded. Lucrecia was carrying two souls her whole life, her own and her mother's and that's why she was powerful and was able to live two thousands years until she met Vincent and had Sephiroth. She couldn't go on and she was so weak and tired, so she went into hiding and waited."

Zack closed his eyes as he understood. "Shit. That's too much."

Cloud shook her head, "No but that's not all of it. Jenova used Hojo to separate the two other souls in her, to give them their bodies. They wanted a Valkyrie body but there was none, except for me and Sephiroth at the time. Hojo used cloning. Dark Sephiroth was Jenova's son from the other planet; he had same intention as Jenova did. The third one… I believe…" She frowned as she closed her eyes. Her mind was filling her with information that her Valkyrie genetic memory supplied. "The third one was a ruler, a malicious tyrant. He wanted to rule the world, but… The cosmos… the gods of the cosmos decided to destroy the planet. Gaia was among one of them…" She opened her eyes and gasped, "Gaia is kind of the Queen of Cosmo, and her husband is Ouranos."

Rufus's eyebrows shot up, "You're not kidding me? That's the most powerful legendary god."

She nodded. "That's why Jenova wanted revenge on Gaia. She and the host of thousand of souls piggy-backed on the crumbling rock, what was left of their planet, floating in space and waiting for the right time. And the time did come, Meteor was upset with Gaia and he just reached out and grabbed the closest rock to hurt Gaia and the rock just happens to be there." She shook her head once again and sat down with Sephiroth and he took her hand into his.

"This soul, the tyrant ruler, he is Maleficius Sephirt, I don't know how he was passed onto Kadaj but he want out and he wants me, because I'm a Valkyrie, I'm also powerful enough and he wants to create a whole race of people for him to rule." She sighed. "He's the only one left from the previous planet, the rest of them are dead, or I think." She frowned.

Sephiroth became pale as he caught on. "Cloud?" He turned to her. "But, you can't have children…"

Her eyes darkened considerably as she got up to the window with her back to everyone. Her hand splayed on the cool glass. "No." A lone tear fell, unnoticed by everyone. Taking a deep breath, she turned around with a determined face. "It doesn't matter. We must stop Maleficius Sephirt."

"That's right!" Zack crowed as he stood up and grinned with enthusiasm. Everyone else smiled but Sephiroth who watched Cloud with hidden concern and worry, suspecting the matter had bothered Cloud to a point that it was causing her to break down.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Scarlet's tan boots clacked in the hallway as she quickly made her way to catch up. She found the object of her goal, "Mr. Highwind!" Cid stopped and turned around. A dark scowl came across his face. Barret and Vincent glanced over their shoulder and frowned. "Can we have a word?" She asked as she approached them, very aware of their feeling toward her.

Cid shrugged and waved his hand to Barret and Vincent. "Go on. I'll be along soon."

She gave a small smile and they went into an empty office nearby.  
"You know the sound of my name sound nasty coming from you." Cid muttered as he leaned against the desk.

Scarlet sighed. "Mr. Highwind? I was being formal. Cid… I …" She looked down and wringed her hands together.

The pilot felt the anger melt away from him as he watched Scarlet immediately looked years younger. He smiled slightly, remembering her cute antics when she became nervous; the wringing of hands and toeing the carpet with downcast eyes. "Come off it, what is it?" He asked softly.

She looked up, surprised to hear the tone of his voice. "I know apologizing will not do…. But you should know that I'm sorry for leaving you all those years ago."

Cid's face darkened as he glanced away. "Why?"

"What?"

"Why did you leave?"

She sighed and sat down in one of the chairs. "I was afraid. Pregnant at seventeen wasn't my idea. I got a job and I didn't want to be burdened with a kid."

Cid closed his eyes to suppress a rage coming on and strained to calmly say, "Scarlet, you knew I would be happy to help you. I loved you."

She sniffled as tears started to stream down her face. "I knew that. I was afraid."

"You did the only thing you could do, you ran away. I can't say that I forgive you for that. I was angry, but that was long time ago. I am over it."

She looked up at him, freely crying. "I heard…" She choked, "He died… how?" Cid looked down to his feet. "I felt so guilty for so many years for leaving him with you. I don't know how many time I wanted to come back. I missed you and him."

"His name was Cody."

"Cody? Beautiful name, it suits him. He looks so much like you when he was born."

"Yeah. It was a plane accident over Nibel Mountain." He choked a bit. "I was taking him out for a flight. He loved to fly."

"Just like you." She whispered.

"Yeah. We lost engine during the flight. I don't know what happened. I told him to stay in his seat. We had crash landed many times before but this was the worse." She looked up again and found him openly crying as well, roughly wiping his face with the sleeve of his shirt, and not looking at her or anywhere in the room but at his feet. "He wasn't in his seat when we landed. The plane was ripped to shred. I found him some yards away. He didn't survive. Nibel Mountain's the cruelest place to land." His hand searched something in his pocket and drew out something, a small pilot goggle and an old picture.

She choked as she saw it. "Oh…" She studied the picture, "He's so beautiful."

"His goggle… I never parted from it." He looked up at her and handed it to her. "He was a great kid."

She took the goggle in her hand and cried. "I am sorry! I wish I knew him. It's not fair…"

"I know…" He found himself holding Scarlet in his arms. "Nothing is ever fair. I always believed that no parents should ever outlive their children."

"Cid… Despite the past, can we start over?" She asked her icy green eyes glittered with desperate hope. "I missed you so much."

The pilot stared at her for a long time and finally answered. "I don't know. I'd like to, but I can't forgive you yet."

"I would like to earn it. Give me a chance."

"All right." He replied with smallest whisper.

"Thank you." She whispered as she rested her head onto his chest and he hesitatingly hugged her.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	46. S4:7: Advent Children

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Seven: Advent Children

_Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now there are many antichrists; whereby we know that is the last time._

1 John 2:18, The Holy Bible

Marlene had requested to go to the old church in Midgar to gather some flowers from there when Tifa came to visit her and Denzel. She mentioned that she thinks the flower from there will help Denzel. Tifa agreed, taking the young girl. Everyone was surprised to find the church still standing despite the rest of the city in shamble and Tifa agreed as long it was only for short time. She knew the flowers were still blooming in the old church.

Tifa had taken a truck and drove an hour to the old Midgar and it took thirty minutes to maneuver the small truck through the shamble and they finally reached the still standing church. Marlene happily hopped off the truck and straightened her white sweater and skirt, running ahead to the door. "Hold on, Marlene." Tifa called after her and shut the door to the truck and chased after the young girl.

"This was Aeris' church?" Marlene asked as she took Tifa's hand and they walked into the church. Up ahead in the center, the floor was full of glowing green grass with yellow and white flower in full bloom everywhere, sitting under the sunlight where the sun shone from the missing rooftop. The scent filled the old building.

Tifa smiled, wishing Aeris could have joined them but decided to stay behind to catch up with Zack. She remembered how they had happily announced that they were engaged the night before at dinner, causing for a celebration to come in full swing. She laughed as she recalled how the men without Mako ended up roaring drunk and the ones with Mako had to drag them back to their quarter to leave them to suffer hangover in the morning.

"I guess it is." She let Marlene's hand go and the girl ran toward the flowers and knelt in the grass, inspecting each one of them, smelling them. She smiled as she stood, watching the young girl begins to gather the flowers. She looked around the room and spotted a box near to the side and went over it. Marlene had gotten up and went over as well, holding several flowers in her hands.

"What's this?" Marlene asked as she picked up a long white cloth and held it delicately in her hand. Tifa frowned, recognizing it as bandage. Apparently someone was here recently and had Geosigma. She glanced around and saw broken glasses on the ground next to the box and picked it up. It had the design on it matching the logo of the new motorcycle.

The lettering on the glasses read, "Fenrir." Marlene looked up to her confused. Tifa shook her head, laying the glasses down. "That's Cloud's. She was here few days ago."

"It's just like Denzel. Is Cloud sick?" Marlene asked as she laid the cloth down next to the glasses on the top of the box.

"Why didn't she say something?" Tifa asked, more to herself.

Marlene held up the flowers she picked, "Would Cloud want some flowers to feel better too?"

Tifa smiled, nodding, "I suppose so." She watched as Marlene run to the small field and started to pick some more. "Cloud, you got to stop trying to fight alone…" She murmured.

"Tifa?" Marlene asked as she stood up, her arms full of flowers. She had decided to take as many back to give to others as well.

"Let's go home, Marlene." Tifa moved to the door and Marlene ran to her side and they turned to start walking down the aisle but the door slammed open, revealing a man stepping in.

"Wanna play?" The man asked and he was received silence. He flicked his head, revealing his face and silver hair. "I guess that's a no." He glanced around. "Where's mother?"

Tifa gasped, recognizing him as one of the brothers. They were looking for Cloud again. She moved and pushed Marlene behind her. Loz glanced to the flower and sneezed.

"Gross." He stepped up and glared at Tifa, "Hey, where's Mother?"

Tifa balled her fits and held them up; she had slipped her gloves on earlier. "There's no one here."

"Fine. Play with me." He smirked. He saw Tifa fall into battle stance and Marlene run to the side to get out of the way. "This will be fun!" He ran into her, his movement was very quick but luckily for Tifa; she was also quick as well with several years of experience under her belt.

He appeared behind her and she dodged his trick move and they battled, rising up in the air, kicking and punching at each other and Loz found himself thrown against the benches, crashing across the room. Tifa landed and Marlene ran up to her but stopped as they heard music playing in the air. It played three times before Loz pulled out his cell phone as he stood up. Tifa found it ironic that it was the music that the people had created for Avalanche, calling it Final Fantasy Seven theme in honor of their saving the planet several months before.

"She's not here. I'm not crying!" Loz spat as he answered the phone, though his eyes were red. "No, I got it. I'll bring the girl." He glanced over to Marlene and then pocked the phone. "Where were we?" They resumed their battle as Marlene dodged and quickly got out of the way.

Tifa was thrown clear across the room and landed on the wall above the flower. She looked up through the flurries of petals that was thrown up in air. She saw Loz grinning and she bounced of, attacking with her rounds, pushing him back. He attacked back with equal fervor and the table was turned when Tifa grew tired. He threw her across the room and she landed in the bed of flower, lying there. He moved and was above her, charging up his Dual Hound weapon, it crackled with energy and as he was about to make the final move to kill her, he felt something bouncing off his head. He turned to see Marlene frowning at him, holding couple of Materia in her hands.

Tifa gasped, "Just run!"

Meanwhile in Neo-Midgar, Yazoo had a truck and was sitting in the center of the city while the children were filling the back of the truck. He smirked, waiting.

One of the girl approached Denzel as he was sitting outside the building of Cloud's Heaven, the orphanage. She had a moggle plush doll in her hand. Denzel had seen her around a lot; she was one of those who had Geosigma like he had. "You've got the stigma, too? C'mon, they're gonna fix us."

He looked at her and thought about it. She grabbed his arm and he followed her, getting on the truck along with the other kids.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Cloud parked her motorcycle outside the church and noticed the truck parked as well. "Hm, so Tifa's here as they said." She glanced around, everything was silent, and there was no sound except for the wind and birds. Tifa had not returned and the others were getting concerned and Cloud volunteered to go and find her and Marlene. She liked the little girl and was also concerned for the girl too.

She entered the church and saw Tifa lying in the flower. Her senses went off. She ran up to her and knelt beside the brunette, picking her up and resting her onto her lap. "Tifa, Tifa!"

Tifa moaned softly and whispered, "You're late."

Cloud shook her head, "Who did this?"

"He didn't say." Tifa groaned and opened her eyes, pounding headache filled her head and she winced. "Marlene!" She slumped back down into Cloud's arms.

"No…" Cloud murmured and winced as she felt her arm acts up. Lying Tifa down on her lap gently as she could while her arm were shaking uncontrollably and she shivered, watching the black and green ooze drip off her fingers onto the flower and she felt light headed, the noises filled her head. There was shouting and screaming, then finally silence. Her eyes rolled back and she fainted, lying beside Tifa.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Cloud moaned softly and reached to touch her head. She had remembered the headache and the voices in her mind earlier and blinked, she gazed up and saw it was already dark and realized she was back in her room at the Headquarter.

"Y'know… you're pretty heavy." Cloud tilted her head over to the side to find Reno standing with Rude near the door. She saw Rude slapping the red-head on the head rather sharply.

"That was rude of you!" Rude admonished and huffed, stepping away from Reno as if he didn't know him.

Reno gaped comically, "Geez! With the sword she carries around… what about her motorcycle? No one can ride that thing! It's too heavy to lift from the ground!"

Cloud smirked and looked to find Sephiroth sitting on the bed beside her, holding her hand. He smiled at her and said softly, "Hey… You all right now?"

She nodded. "I'm fine now… what happened?" She asked softly as she sat up. She clenched her hand that was not held and found the lingering pain of Geosigma still there. Frowning, she glanced around and found Zack with Aeris and Tifa in the room too.

"I felt something and knew there was something wrong. Reno and Rude happened to be in the area and found you and Tifa passed out in the church. They brought you two back here. Tifa's all right, a little worse to wear." Sephiroth explained and they both looked over to Tifa and saw her nodding.

"I just…" Cloud said and found she had nothing else to say. She couldn't think of anything, feeling rather uncomfortable and put off with the others in the room. She wanted to be alone, to think. Looking up to Sephiroth, she realized, she'd rather talk with him, personally and alone.

"You don't care?" Rude asked, noticing Cloud's emotionless face. "The kids are gone." Cloud turned her blue eyes to the bald headed Turk and blinked. He shrugged, "You're a real handful." He nodded to Sephiroth and then both Turks walked out of the room.

Zack moved closer to the bed. "Cloud. The kids went missing from Neo-Midgar. We got report from Yuffie when she called Wutai and found the kids are also missing there. All of the children all over the world with Geosigma are missing."

Cloud stood up and let go of Sephiroth's hand. She moved to the window and gazed out to the sea, watching the dark blue shades shift. "Marlene doesn't have Geosigma, right?"  
Tifa spoke. "No. But she's also missing. The guy I was fighting with took her. He's one of the brothers, the short haired one."

Cloud gave an emotionless sigh. "Loz." She just somehow knew his name; she could feel the connection between herself and the three men. The third one was called Yazoo. Loz was the eldest, she knew and sensitive of all the three, easily upset and tempered if things didn't go his way. She figured he would have been handful if she had raised him.

Sephiroth stood up and went to her side, standing behind her, resting his hand on her shoulder. She leaned back into his chest instinctively and he wrapped an arm around her waist. "Cloud, what do you know of them?"

Cloud shrugged as she rested in his arms. "Not much…Don't you feel them?" She looked up to his face above her own.

"Not as strongly as you do. I feel their presence, but nothing more. I feel they are somewhere north."

"Hm. I feel more than that." Cloud softly whispered.

"Mothers have stronger bond with their children." Aeris spoke, explaining. "They could feel and sense their children's emotions and well beings because the life they shared before the children were born. That's why you could feel them, their emotions and well beings. What more, you feel them through the Geosigma and the Planet. This is the advantage you have. Where they are, the children are too."

"Why would they want the children?" Zack asked, "Especially the one with Geosigma?"

Cloud shook her head. "I don't know." She broke away from Sephiroth's hold. "I better go and find them… I need to talk to Kadaj, before Maleficius Sephirt takes over."

Sephiroth looked hesitant first and then nodded. "We will be behind you in case anything happens. Take the phone." He took her hands and held them to his chest. "I don't want any more of those episodes to happen again." He leaned his forehead to her forehead, "Cloud… please don't shut us out."

Tifa stepped up. "Cloud, why didn't you tell us that you have Geosigma?"

Sephiroth stood back up, still holding Cloud's hands as they turned to the brunette. Cloud stared at her silently. He let her go and turned to the others, "There is no cure. Gaia wants Cloud to find one. It's already proving difficult for Cloud with the burden she has on her shoulder." He turned to her. "Cloud, don't do this alone, we're here to help you. Just ask us."

She sighed and turned away, gazing out of the window again. "I know. The brothers, I'll deal with them. We'll see what else we all can do."

"Good."

Reno and Rude came back in the room. Tifa turned to them, "Did you find them?"

"No." Reno replied, "Only a witness. Kadaj's gang took the kids."

Cloud turned back to them. "Where are they?"

Rude gestured upward, "They're at their base now. The Forgotten City."

Sephiroth frowned. "Forgotten City?"  
"Yes." Cloud stepped toward the door. "It makes sense now. Maleficius Sephirt told me that he want us to make a whole line of people. They took all the children with Geosigma; they're the people that Maleficius Sephirt wants to change. They believed that the Geosigma…" She winced and frowned as she glanced to her arm, recalling how the Geosigma dripped off her fingers. "I don't know what they're trying to do." She glanced back to Sephiroth. "Sephiroth… I have to go." She saw him close his eyes and slowly gave a single nod. She sighed and ran back to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest. He returned the embrace and she leaned up, kissing fully on his lips. "I love you. I'll call." She said as she broke away from him and left.

"Seph! You're going to let her go just like that?" Zack asked astonished as he stared at the door.

"Like I said, it's her battle. She believes and feels that she has to save the boys and the children. How, I do not know. Only she can. We will follow and keep few steps behind her in case she needs us. Let's go." Sephiroth said his voice strong and full of authority. He truly believed in Cloud and trusted her and knew in the depth of his soul, it was the right thing to do.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

The Crystalline Forest of the Ancient City was still beautiful at their best. The sky was dark and distant and the ground, despite it being dirt with plants, looked ethereal blue and the tree, bare of leaves glowed brilliantly white. It was one place on the entire Planet that she felt where she belonged for some reasons. She could visualize the entire planet beautiful as the Ancient City and knew it was the future.

Her Fenrir motorcycle was running smoothing, roaring across the bluish dirt road. The forest was vast and large; it had taken the group a half day walk to the temple deep in the forest from the city long ago. She knew she would be there shortly, the white tree zipping by her as she maneuvered through.

She wondered why and how she was getting all the information that no one has about the three brothers, their names and who they were and their reasoning. Aeris had said it was mother instincts, but she knew it was much more than that. She also wondered why they took Holy and Meteor. It was one thing she wasn't sure yet.

By the large conch shell shaped temple, the lake stood like a glass surface, glowing from the surrounding forest. Kadaj and his brothers stood on one end in the front of the temple while the crowd of children stood on the other side, watching. Marlene was being held by Loz and he had yet harmed her so she knew she was safe for now.

Kadaj glanced around, smirking. His eyes were slitted like a cat, glowing green. "Look at what Mother was hiding… Powers forged in the Lifestream. With these," He held up two Materias, the Holy and Meteor ones for everyone to see. "The powers will be ours." He brought it down and walked along the edge of the lake. He pulled out several Materia from the box that he and his brother had also swiped and no one had noticed it was missing yet from the Headquarter. It was full of powerful Materias, all mastered and leveled up. He pulled a green one out and held it to his arm; his body absorbed the orb and glowed from the depth of his arm.

Turning to everyone, "Mother has given me a very special gift." He winced and felt his spirit being overtaken and whispered, "No…" Then his eyes shifted, becoming white. "The power, yesss…" His voice changed, deeper and he hissed.

Loz and Yazoo gave each other a glance, they appeared concerned and confused. Loz asked silently, "What's going on?"

Yazoo shook his head slightly, silently replying back, "Not good. It's the guy." Loz looked about to cry but Yazoo shot a look. "Shh, don't. Mother's coming." Then Loz looked happy and Yazoo rolled his eyes.

Kadaj, or rather, Maleficius Sephirt glanced around and smiled, "Good, the children are here." He clenched his hand and raised it up, "The power to fight against the planet that torments humanity. She gave this gift to all her children. That's right, you and I are brethrens. Brothers and sisters, those chosen when we inherited Calamity of the Sky's legacy from the Lifestream!" He paused and looked away. From the internal, the other voice inside him was shouting at him. "Shut up, little boy." He murmured and turned back to the crowd of children. "But, the planet doesn't approve of that, at all. It's doing everything it can to hold us back. That's why it's racking our bodies with pain and filling our hearts with doubts! Now, I shall heal you and we shall go together!" He started to glow dark aura, black tendrils flowing around him and he stepped into the water, spreading the clear water, turning it black. "We will join as a family and strike back at the planet!"

The lake turned entirely black, filled with the Geosigma. "Do as I do." He walked to the center of the lake and cupped his hands and brought it up to his lips, drinking the contaminated water.

Denzel was in the crowd with the children, he watched as the silver haired man drink the water. He felt compelled to move, he didn't know why but just did and took steps toward the water. Marlene on the other side saw him and screamed, "Denzel!" Loz held onto her tightly.

Denzel was already in the water up to his chest and he took drink of the water. His eyes shifted from gray blue to green, much like Kadaj's. The other children followed and drank the water.

"Denzel!!" Marlene howled in despair and turned away, crying. Loz frowned as the child buried her head onto his leg. He knew there was something wrong with him and his brothers. However, Kadaj seemed to get the worse of it. Suddenly, he blinked and groaned and then his eyes became pale and he just lost all thoughts. Yazoo went through the same thing, becoming comatose as well. Marlene looked up to Loz and saw his eyes and gasped softly and glanced over to Yazoo and saw the same. She stepped away from him and he didn't hold onto, but let her go as if she were never there. She glanced around and wasn't sure what to do. The children were stoic, moving out of the lake after they had drunk the water and disappearing into the forest, leaving her alone by the lake's edge. Kadaj had moved out of the water and disappeared into the forest as well with his two other brothers. She gasped softly, crying as she felt abandoned and alone. She knelt to the water and touched it. The black water suddenly became clear under her touch, slowly spreading, purifying the water back to clear blue. She frowned in confusion and looked up to the dark blue sky, "Aeris, was that you?" And she got no response. She sighed in defeat and snapped her head to the side and saw Vincent Valentine appear from the forest. "Vincent!" She cried and got up, running to him.

"Are you all right, Marlene?" He asked softly, looking her over for any wounds but found none. "Where are the others?"

Marlene shook her head, "They're gone… the forest." She pointed where they had retreated. "They changed all of them. The water was black, now it's fine."

"I see. Come, we shall wait for Cloud. She is dealing with them, I suppose."

"All right." They went into the forest and found a spot to wait. Vincent knew Cloud was somewhere, encountering them. He hoped and wished well for Cloud. Sephiroth had sent him ahead to the Temple while the others waited behind, knowing he would find Marlene and he did.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Cloud knew she was close. She could feel them nearby, however there was something wrong. The sense she had identified as Kadaj had disappeared again, replacing with a new sense and she understood it was Maleficius Sephirt who had taken over again. Shortly, the two other senses she had known for Loz and Yazoo disappeared, replacing with something similar to Maleficius Sephirt, she suspected Maleficius Sephirt had took control of the two others as well, suppressing their spirits down to prevent any mutiny.

She blinked and found herself somewhere else, in the vast of whiteness. She looked around and saw she was in endless field of flowers. Someone was standing back to back to her and she could tell it was a man. It felt strange for her and she turned to see him and gasped softly as she met the eyes of Madoshi.

He stood before her, garbed in black robe that had gold trimming, handsome and ethereal. His shoulder-length hair was inky black that it seemed to absorb all colors and his face, pale and handsome with black eyes, yet his eyes held none other than love. He smiled softly to her, touching her cheek. She gasped in surprise to see compassion coming from him.

"Madoshi?" She asked, "Why am I here?"

His voice was deep, much like Sephiroth's voice, but smooth and calming, "I brought you here. I need to tell you something." She nodded. "You're about to break, hmm?" He asked, smirking as he walked around her, inspecting her. Then he touched her arm, where the Geosigma was. "Why?"

Cloud shook her head at the strange questioning, "I… I think… I want to be forgiven." She said.

"Hm. Yes. All things will be right in the end… only if you travel the right path. Child, Megamiki and I had found a way to reincarnate ourselves, yet part of our souls remained, broken and apart, imprisoned within the Materias. It was only you and Sephiroth who can free us."

Cloud frowned. "I don't understand."

Madoshi smiled, "Gaia says you have the ability to cure the Geosigma." He gestured to her arm and she looked down to it. "Yes. But you think you can't. Why?"

"Because I don't know how. I don't feel complete."

"There." He looked up to the whiteness of the sky above them. "Megamiki and I wanted to be together more than anything, to live normal lives. We figured, why not be reincarnated, so we did. However it came with a price, of cutting our souls into pieces. Through the generations, we found ourselves together once again but only to be taken apart again."

Cloud stared in Madoshi's eyes, seeing the familiarity. "You're Sephiroth."

Madoshi gave a large grin. "Hai, my love. Once you're whole again with Megamiki, you will be able to cure the Geosigma. And we all will be together again." He leaned down; cupping her cheek with his warm hand and his lips covered her own. Her eyes fluttered shut as she accepted the warm kiss from Madoshi, whom she also known as Sephiroth.

She blinked once again, finding herself on Fenrir and looked up. The gunshots filled the silent air and she swerved to avoid the bullets. Kadaj, Yazoo and Loz appeared at the end of the dirt road. Kadaj gave a gesture and from the trees above, the children came down, blocking Cloud's path. She gasped and tried to swerved the large motorcycle to avoid the children but ended up slipping down, sending the motorcycle toward the three brothers. They jumped over the vehicle with agility and came toward her. She grabbed her sword and held it.

"I'm glad you could make it!" Maleficius Sephirt said as he peered down to Cloud, holding the Souba toward her, its double blades glinted in the glowing light.

Cloud looked up into her son's face, staring at the blank orbs of the eyes. "I only came for the kids." She said with hard resolve.

Maleficius Sephirt turned to the children that were surrounding them. "See this woman? She's our mother! But alas, in our happy flock…" He put the sword to her face. "She's what you'd call a black sheep."

Marlene cried out from somewhere, "Cloud!"

Maleficius Sephirt turned to the girl and Cloud took the distraction as a chance and stood up and they suddenly clashed into another blade to blade battle. They clashed against each other at amazing speed and strengths, leaping and flying around the trees, going higher and higher and several trees were felled in the process. Loz and Yazoo became involved in the battle, and Cloud was fighting three of them off. She didn't want to hurt them at all, her motherly instincts and her heart still cared for the boys that she called her own. She knew they weren't being themselves.

Then, suddenly, she found herself being whisked away as the red phantom came sweeping in, deflecting off the three brothers' attack and took her to secluded spot. She stood up straighter as she felt her feet hit the ground and moved the sword into its holster behind her back. "Vincent." She said and shook her head. "I can't do it. I can't bring myself to hurt them." She turned halfway away from him. "What do you know about this?" She asked as she slumped down, sitting at the base of a tree.

"Not as much as you do." Vincent moved to sit next to her, his hand touched her arm. She flinched as the Geosigma started to act up. It reacted horribly toward his touch and she glanced to meet his red eyes. He gave a single nod. She understood immediately, he was full of Geosigma in a way because he had been a victim to Hojo's experiment but he did not hold the newer version of the illness, rather the older one. She reached out and touched his cheek and he closed his eyes. "The sigma… it's a symptom of alien matter infesting the body." He explained as he stood up. "The body tries to eliminate it and overcompensates. Inside our bodies is a current… like the Lifestream. That current is what fights out any malevolent intruders."

Cloud looked up to him. "Intruders? The Calamity of the Sky?" She asked.

He looked at her, "Yes. The Calamity Gene, Jenova's mimetic legacy."

"Yeah… they're using the children." Cloud stood up and brushed her clothes free of the blue dust.

"Little soldiers." Vincent murmured. "Only those who were Hojo's victims can control it because they are immune to older version of the illness, like you and me."

"What about Jenova? They're not asking for her. Yet, I think."

"Heaven's dark harbinger… Jenova, if they get their hand on it, Maleficius Sephirt will be able to fully transform."

Cloud frowned, "Kadaj."

"I'd rather not know. But I am not you." They both turned to the bush which it rustled. Cloud drew her sword out and Vincent stood stock still. Marlene burst forth through the bush.

"Marlene!"

"Cloud! Denzel and Tifa!" The girl ran up to Cloud and hugged her around her waist. Cloud patted her hand on the girl's head, surprised to find the girl grown since she had first met her.

"Tifa's all right."

"I want to talk to her." Marlene said and watched as Cloud searched for her phone and found it missing. She turned to Vincent, "May I?"

Vincent drew his cape back to show he doesn't have a phone. Cloud gave him a strange look. Marlene gaped at him, "You don't have a phone?!"

"Vincent!" Cloud was almost amused at the sniper, wondering how he could not have the phone entire time. "Can you take Marlene to Tifa? I need to see someone."

"I can't do that."

"But I…" Cloud started and Marlene backed away, frowning at her.

"Forget it, Cloud! Why don't you ever pay any attention to us?" She turned and ran to hide in Vincent's cape.

Cloud stared at the girl, shocked. She realized the girl was right, she had been so focused on her own problem and not paying attention to the others. It was her responsibility, if she was to become the Queen, she has to start thinking of the others first. Closing her eyes, she dropped her head. "Marlene… Please, give me some time. There's a battle to be fought, but it's not as simple as just fighting it. You understand?"

Marlene shot back, "No, I don't."

Figures, no child should ever understand the heavy burden of the planet. Vincent quietly asked, "Cloud, are you sure this is about fighting?"

She looked to the sky between the silver white branches above them. "It's just not the fighting that I have to deal with. It's everything, the children, the planet... the future." Vincent hummed in agreement and understanding. She heard Madoshi's voice in her mind, _Isn't it time _you_ did the forgiving? _She turned to the tall sniper, "Were our sins ever forgiven?" She asked softly.

Vincent gave a shrug, "I've never tried."

"Never tried?" She paused and looked to Marlene who was peeking at her from Vincent's cape. "Marlene, let's go." Marlene smiled and ran out, grabbing hold of Cloud's hand. "Well, I am gonna try. I'll phone in the verdict." She smirked as she saw Vincent roll his eyes. The two of them walked off hand in hand.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

After the disappointing battle with Cloud, the three brothers disappeared with the children. They showed up in the center of Neo-Midgar where there was an erected monument for the Meteor. The children stood in a line surrounding the monument and Loz and Yazoo were standing inside the line, holding chains that were attached to the monument.

"What do you think you're doing?" A man called from the crowd that gathered around.

"Give us back our children!" Another called with angry voice.

"How do you sickos justify this!?"

"Give me back my baby!" The crowd was starting to grow restless and becoming into angry mobs. Several mothers ran to their children, trying to wake them up but they stood stock still, ignoring everything going on around them.  
"Look at me when I'm talking to you!" A man shouted as he tried to wake his son up.

Yazoo sighed and held his hand up. The crowd became silent. He clenched his fist and the shadow beasts shot out from the ground, attacking the crowd, sending them scattering off.

Tifa appeared and gasped as she saw Denzel among the other children in the ring. She ran toward him. "Denzel!" She placed her hand on his shoulders and saw his eyes, green in color and slitted, it wasn't his eyes. She looked up to see Reno and Rude approaching the two brothers. She wondered where the third one was. It was still strange for her to see the children of Cloud and Sephiroth there, standing, causing troubles. Nothing ever seems right.

"And what are we up to?" Reno asked as he approached the dais where the brothers were tugging on the chain to the massive monument. He tilted his glasses up to take a better look at the two brothers. Rude tugged his glove tight and fisted his hands.

Yazoo swished his head and took a look to the red-head. "We know Jenova is here…"

"Oh yeah?" Rude asked, curiously.

"Yeah!" Loz started, frowning at the Turks. "This…" He shook the chain, "thing here, the monument thing. ShinRa made it."

Reno looked surprised and gasped, "Oh, no." He pointed to his head, "You're just too clever!"

Reno nodded quietly, "Except you're wrong."

"Wherever she is, we just don't know." Reno finished and they both chuckled.

"What? The peons aren't trusted?" Yazoo asked, angry.

Reno frowned and sputtered at the statement. He pulled out his electro-rod and ran forward to attack.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

From the center of the city, a building wasn't complete in building and up several stories high; Rufus sat in his wheelchair, watching the event going on in the center. He wasn't happy with the appearance of the three brothers, causing chaos within his city. He hoped Cloud would be able to sort them out soon; it was causing him some headache and moral spirit to diminish. He wanted the people to see that he can be a good leader to them, not lose their trust by having those three men running around wildly, causing wrecks here and there.

He saw Kadaj join him on the floor where he was watching from. "Say, Kadaj, I got a question for you."

"I've got an answer." Maleficius Sephirt replied, smirking.

Rufus felt strange, glancing up through his hood to Kadaj's face and noticed the eyes were strange and realized he wasn't speaking to Kadaj but rather a new being. "You wanted Jenova's cell in order to be whole again. What do you mean by that?"

Maleficius Sephirt watched the scene in the center of the city, smirking the whole time, enjoying the chaos. "She has what I need to become complete."

"Sephiroth… the nightmare." Rufus murmured as he watched from under his hood, studying Kadaj.

"So they say. But which Sephiroth are you talking about?" He chuckled.

Rufus frowned as he watched Kadaj move to face him, his boots on the edge of the floor before the drop. "I've never known Sephiroth. Granted, he's powerful and strong. But he's nothing I am."

They turned to the footsteps joining them. Sephiroth came out from the shadow. "I am here."

Maleficius Sephirt's eyes widened and he winced; realizing Kadaj from within came forth, his eyes turned green. "Father…?"

"Kadaj." Sephiroth replied, staring at the young man before him. "Trust your Mother; she is trying her best to help you."

"How? He wants her…" Kadaj clenched his hand on his chest, struggling to not let Maleficius Sephirt break free again.

"I know."

Rufus murmured, "Poor little remnant."

Kadaj gave a small scream and his eyes went white once again and he growled, glaring at Sephiroth. "It doesn't matter. Cloud will be mine and we both will rule the planet! You're a weak! Fools like you should be ridden of!"

Rufus sighed, "The nightmare returns." He said referring to the race of Calamity of the Sky.

Maleficius Sephirt turned to Rufus, "As long as you exist, the nightmares will come again and again." He sneered.

"You've picked the wrong Planet to mess with. Unlike any other that I am guessing, we have the Lifestream running course through our planet, bordering life and death. If that cycle is the very truth of life, then history, too will inevitably repeat itself. So, go on. Bring it out, bring it on. You and your Jenova, Sephiroths… It won't matter. We will do as life dictates and stop you every single time."

Sephiroth glared at the young man before him with the eyes of pure evil. "Whatever you try to do, it won't work. Fate has set its course and in the end, it's going to be me and Cloud together, no one else."

"Please." Maleficius Sephirt scoffed. "You're playing with an emperor here."

Rufus's eyebrows rose, "Emperor? Maybe you were eons ago. But here, rules are played differently."

"Then, let's put an end to all of this." Maleficius Sephirt raised his hand to the sky and the Materia within his arm glowed. The sky turned dark and swirled above the city.

Sephiroth recognized the Summon and wondered how he had gotten his hand on the rare Summon Materia. "What are you doing? This will not mean anything." The people below in the city center was scattering around, running away from the shadow beasts and some were staring up to the sky in awe as the clouds formed into a twist. Some thought it was another Meteor coming to doom their lives.

"Denzel!" Tifa called again, lightly slapping the boy's face. "We got to get away!" Out of the sky, the huge dragon monster appeared and Tifa gasped as it landed behind her, too close for her liking. She turned and pushed the boy behind her. She glanced up to find it was the Bahamut Sin. She had heard this Summoned one was a rare one and very powerful, only to be used for evil intention. She could guess who had summoned him.

Reno looked up to the sky, "Oh boy! He… he!" He chuckled weakly as he saw Bahamut Sin above him. The monster went over the monument and started to rip it apart. "Hello!"

Rude's eyes went wide behind his shade, "Oh no!" He noticed the beast was starting to power up, building up massive fireball in his mouth. They turned and ran. They grabbed some children that was standing in the way and kept running until the explosive ball of fire blew, blowing everyone off their feet in the radius.

Reno shook his head and shoved the girl's hand off his face. In the process of shielding her, her finger was shoved up in his nose. "Is it after us?"

Rude shook his head and saw that his glasses were broken and he gaped at it. "I'm not lookin'."  
Yazoo also had been blown across the center came up to Reno and Rude, swinging his gunblade in front of them. "Are we having fun yet, huh?"  
The red-head growled, "The time of my life!" He jumped up and started to attack Yazoo and they both went into battle, fighting each other with their hands and feet. Reno used his electro-rod to parry with Yazoo's gunblade.  
From behind them, Rude called after them, "When are you gonna call it a day?!"

Yazoo shot a look at him, "What? Just as soon as you give back Mother. That'll be the end of everything!"

Reno frowned as he landed on his feet beside Rude. "Didn't you already talk to your Mother or are you referring to Jenova? You guys are so confusing!"

Yazoo shrugged and jumped up the building and they started to fight once again and Rude was pulled into the fight with Loz.

"Forget your little reunion and get a grip!" Reno shouted as he dodged a swing from Yazoo.

"All we want is to be with Mother!" Yazoo kicked Reno, sending him flying back to land beside Rude who had been knocked down by Loz.

"Mother will know. When she gets here, she'll decide what's best. Now, where's Mother?" But he wasn't given answer as the sign they had been fighting nearby fell upon the Turks and Rude rubbed his head.

"Damn sign." He turned and noticed it was the Loveless sign. He stood up and heard a crunch, realizing he had stepped on his shades and became upset, "That's the second one!"

Reno shook his head and turned to the brothers, "It's a freaking dead heart!"  
"Hey!"

"That's not Mother and I will have you not refer to her that way."

"Oh, now you are making sense! Cloud's not gonna be happy with you two!" Reno shot back.

Loz looked affronted, "You meanie!"

Rude pulled another pair of sunglasses and slipped it on his face while Reno brushed himself off. The bald headed Turk turned to the brothers and sarcastically said, "Our apologies. We'll inform Cloud that."

Reno nodded. "Your mom's cool. She's gonna whup your asses!" He shook his head and muttered, "What the hell am I sayin'!?"  
"Ah, you guys are boring." Yazoo said, ending their quarrels and hopped onto their motorcycles and they took off, leaving Rude and Reno in dust.

"Geez, I just cleaned myself off." Reno muttered, glancing at himself, his blue suit covered with dirt. "They're so gonna get some whoop-can ass from Mommy dearest. I'm counting on her."

"Yes, yes." Rude said as he cleaned his glasses and noticed there was a crack on the lenses and growled.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Tifa had been thrown to the ground by the explosion by Bahamut Sin and was protecting Denzel. Denzel's eyes opened and he realized where he was. He turned to the woman he had come to love as his own mother, wounded. He felt angry and looked up to see Bahamut Sin above them, roaring and making a mess.  
"Tifa?" He asked as he touched her face and she didn't response. He frowned and got up, running after the huge monster that was easily hundred times larger than he was. "You're dead!"  
Tifa groaned, waking up and sitting up. She saw Denzel running to Bahamut Sin and was going to call out to him but Barret showed up. She sighed, smiling as Barret stood in front of the boy and his arm transformed into a large revolving machine gun with three turbo boosted barrels, blasting upon the Summon. He turned to the boy, "You look after Mom." He gestured with his head toward Tifa and saw her, he gave a wink.

Denzel nodded and ran back to Tifa, standing by her side. Suddenly, they watched as the red wolf ran onto the scene, running with a black cat upon its back. They watched as Nanaki leap up in the air and using the Summon's body to gain altitude and attacked its face. The cat was yelling, "We can't handle this!"  
Yuffie arrived on the scene, after having parachuted down from the roaring Sierra that appeared in the sky above them. "Alright, who's been touching my Materia!?"

Tifa chuckled, "The bad guys, naturally." She watched as Yuffie whip her weapon, the over large shuriken, attacking the Summon. She noticed the girl appeared to have her shine and ferociousness back and smiled, glad the girl was back in mode.

Denzel touched Tifa's arm, "Who's that?" Tifa looked down to him and smiled, realizing that he had not been fully introduced to everyone in Avalanche, being so busy with the things going on in the last few months since Meteor.

They looked to find Cid appearing and deflected several shadow beasts that was about to attack them with one twirl of his javelin. "Ah, she's a beauty, that Sierra." He looked up to see the airship hovering above them. "How's the kid?"

Tifa nodded. She wondered where the others were and suddenly, surprised to hear the voice, "Where can I buy a phone?" She turned to find Vincent returned as well.

Denzel watched from her side, wide eyed at Vincent who drew out his three-barreled gun. "Who's he?"

"They're our friends." Tifa explained and turned around once again as she heard the motorcycle approaching them and saw Cloud on it, her long golden hair whipping behind her. "Cloud!" Denzel's eyes went wide and he smiled at the woman.

"Marlene is safe. I took her to the Cloud's Heaven." She rolled her eyes at Tifa. "What made you name the orphan like that?"  
Tifa laughed. "I thought it'd be cute."

"I'm gonna go back and see Marlene. Ok, Cloud? We'll wait for you. We'll see you there, won't we, Cloud?" Denzel asked as he looks up to her with hopeful eyes.

Cloud gave a nod, smiling as the boy ran off. Cloud turned to Tifa and gestured to the seat behind her and the brunette got on the motorcycle and they were off, to join with the others. She looked up to the building nearby and saw Sephiroth with Rufus and Kadaj. She frowned and waved as she saw Sephiroth meeting her gaze.

Sephiroth turned to Maleficius Sephirt. "She is here; there is nothing you can do about it."

Maleficius Sephirt glared at Sephiroth, "We'll see." They turned to watch the showdown with Bahamut Sin.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	47. S4:8: The Reunion

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Eight: The Reunion

_O my soul, come not thou into their secret; unto their assembly, mine honor, be not thou united; for in their anger they slew a man, and in their selfwill they digged down a wall. _

Genesis 49:6, The Holy Bible

"I hate lies." Maleficius Sephirt sneered as he watched Bahamut Sin swoop around the city, causing chaos.

Rufus peered up at him, resting his chin on his fist. "I apologize. I'm not sure what you're really asking for."

"Is that right? I want Jenova, where is she?"

"Oh, that. I thought you were asking for your mother…" Rufus made a sweep with his hand, gesturing to Cloud rushing toward Bahamut Sin. "She is here."

"Fool!" Maleficius Sephirt turned to Rufus and Sephiroth stepped closer to Rufus in defense. "The little boy here…" He slapped his chest, Kadaj's body, "He wants Mommy-dearest, but I can't have that. He's a weakling, like you," He nodded toward Sephiroth, "He wants Cloud to help him and his brothers. But here, I'm stronger, I'm here, I am going to use this body! And I need Jenova to help me to change. Where is she?"

"Oh…" Rufus' eyebrow went up. "Right, right." He nodded, "Well, you see, when we took her heart, what's left of her… it fell out of the helicopter when Kadaj and the two others were chasing my Turks. So sorry." He shrugged as he said, not feeling one bit sorry.

Maleficius Sephirt growled. "I feel her, she is near. The reunion is coming and we need her."

Sephiroth frowned and asked, "Reunion?"

Maleficius Sephirt gave a laugh that sent chills down both men's spines. "Reunion, yesss…" He hissed. "Thousands of us are all scattered out. Sweet Jenova, she's a genius, but at the same time an idiot for getting herself killed." He darkened and turned to watch Bahamut Sin fighting with Avalanche. "Thousands of our souls, as we were trapped in the lifestream, we are all now released and it's time for us to be together once again."

Sephiroth looked to Rufus to find the young president surprised as he was. "What is this?" He mouthed silently and looked up to see Bahamut Sin roaring, gathering energy ball in his mouth, ready to attack. He could see Cloud leaping upon to a beam in the distant, ready to attack. She looked like a flea compared to the massive Summon.

Maleficius Sephirt spoke as they all watched Avalanche fight with Bahamut Sin. "My brothers and sisters, who all share Jenova's cells, will assemble, and together we'll take revenge on the planet!" They saw Barret firing upon Bahamut with fervor, his three barreled machine-gun arm roared, the blasting echoed across the city and reached their ears. Then they heard a loud click, knowing he had run out of bullets. Bahamut Sin attacked him and he dodged, falling backward and he twisted, grabbing onto a beam.

Maleficius Sephirt smirked, "I've already sent out the invitations, but…" He laughed slightly, "You know, someone's gone and hidden the guest of honor."

Rufus tilted his head to the young man, "Invitations?" He asked and they heard Cid yelling in the distant and turned back to see Cid running and landing onto Bahamut Sin's head, sticking the javelin squarely on the head and soon, he was being shaken like a rag doll by the massive beast. Nanaki jumped and grabbed hold of Cid before Bahamut Sin could bash Cid into the beam.

"The stigma." The youth answered.

They watched as Bahamut Sin crash and land onto another building like a bird clawing onto the branch and jump off, attacking the others. Vincent made a show with his agility jumping, jumping from one beam to another then onto Bahamut's arm and then the other, all in while, and shooting at the Summon. Yuffie joined him, scaling up the tall building with her running and leaping off backward, flipping to attack with her massive star. They both looked like they were dancing together, jumping and spinning across Bahamut Sin's body, attacking every point, making the Summon confused and enraged.

"But you know all about that. Jenova's legacy lives on in the Lifestream and makes it happen. She does… so much for us, and I…" He glared to Rufus, "I can't find her! But what can we do? We're just remnants for now. Until I find Jenova, I can't be whole again. Geosigma and a legacy are enough for a true reunion."

Bahamut Sin was being attacked by Nanaki, Vincent, Cid and Barret all the same while Yuffie leapt to the side, staring in surprise as she caught her breath. But Bahamut Sin was angry enough, his flare attack was building up and directed toward her. She gaped as the blue ball of flame shot toward her, and missed, shooting to the side, exploding the building behind her. She turned and saw that Vincent had shot enough to alter Bahamut's direction.

The building that exploded crumbled and started to fall, Barret stared wide eyed as the massive building descended toward him. He yelled and prepared to run but he knew he wasn't fast enough. Then found himself lifted and thrown to the side in blinding speed. He looked up to see Cloud on another beam above him as the building crashed down beside him and realized she had swooped in and threw him aside, saving his sorry arse. "Take your damn time!" He yelled at Cloud who stood stoic as she looked up to Bahamut Sin with her swords in her hands, looking every bit a warrior with golden hair flapping in the wind like a banner behind her.

Tifa joined Cid, Vincent and Yuffie on one beam, looking up to Cloud. Barret was joined by Nanaki with Cait on his back.

Rufus asked, curious "What do you mean?"

"Surely you've noticed…" Maleficius Sephirt turned to Rufus and his white eyes glowed, the entire place shook violently as Sephiroth and Rufus looked on, watching as Maleficius Sephirt struggles to reveal his true face, shifting Kadaj's feature to the familiar face of Sephiroth.

Sephiroth hissed, "Damn you."

Maleficius Sephirt chuckled. "You're quiet popular. Your gene is very good, that is why I need Jenova to remove the other genes to have your body. Cloud will be mine, the world will be mine." Sephiroth only growled in reply, disgusted at the alien soul who had twisted mind.

Cloud jumped high and started to use her agility, leaping and flipping all over Bahamut Sin's body, slashing with her sword. The Summon roared in rage as he tried to bat her away but missed every single time, getting every slashes. She leapt off, making a back flip as she latched her swords together and it glowed bluish as she attacked, building up her limit break. The first one came and went, attacking Bahamut Sin, making him stagger back and fell.

She flipped and landed several stories onto a beam that crisscrossed the area. She watched as Bahamut Sin rise up and roars, his mouth glowing brightly as he flared up. He shot to the sky high above the city and Cloud followed, jumping up.

Barret grabbed her hand as she reached him and he grinned, using the momentum, throwing her up with all his strength, "Alley-oops!" He cheered as Cloud flew higher and attacked Bahamut Sin.

The Summon kept flying up and she fell back down, losing altitude. She saw Cid on the next beam below her, he twirled his Javelin and she landed on the staff and he flipped her up, making her fly higher. "Yee-Haw!" he yelled as she shot up.

Bahamut Sin was already far in the sky and Nanaki jumped from high point of the building nearby, grabbing her collar, throwing her up higher and he fell, landing below to watch. Yuffie dove from several stories higher and flipped, latching her hands together to grab hold of Cloud's boot and Cloud jumped, gaining more altitude.

She shifted her sword and rearranged the blades together and it glowed slightly blue, drawing the energy and strength from her as she kept flying higher and higher, catching up to Bahamut Sin.

Vincent dove from another high building, his red cape flowing behind him like an ominous wing and he grabbed Cloud's outreached hand and pulled her up, sending her to even higher reach. He back flipped and landed graciously next to Yuffie.

Cloud saw Tifa standing on the top of the building she was flying along and smiled. She knew Tifa would help as well, lending her strength as all the others had done so. Bahamut Sin was roaring, his mouth becoming brighter and brighter with pure energy, growing as he hovered above the building high in the sky. Tifa jumped and grabbed Cloud's hand and she yelled, "No giving up!" and used her strength and momentum to push Cloud up to keep flying upward. She smiled as she landed down to join the other Avalanchers.

From the top and the tallest building in the city above them all, Aeris and Zack together watched as Cloud shot up. They both jumped down together and grabbed hold of her. Cloud met their eyes and saw their love and support; she could feel their energy course though her veins as they touched her. They together pushed her upward, sending her shooting to the sky faster than any others had done.

As Cloud zoomed, breaking the sound barrier, Zack and Aeris landed, holding their hands together as they watched on. They saw Cloud glowing brightly blue.

She flew up higher; her body enveloped in glowing ball of blue flame, as if anyone from the distant would have thought they were seeing a blue comet shooting up toward the massive dragon beast. The ball flare of energy shot from Bahamut Sin's mouth, growing in expanse as it shot down toward her. She held her sword, ready, the power coursing through her, building up, adding from all those who had lent her the power. She shot through the energy ball, piercing through the center, her body shaking as she kept going up and upward.

Suddenly, as if everything calmed and the whole world became white. She found herself facing the handsome man before her, coming down to her in gentle descent. He moved to face her and his hands cupped her cheeks as his black eyes glittered with compassion she couldn't fathom. His black hair billowed around his face as his robe flipped, as if the wind was whipping around his body.

He smiled and said, "Go, beloved." His face leaned down, his lips brushing against her and then suddenly, as he passed through her, she found herself facing Bahamut Sin. She drew in the energy from the ball itself, absorbing it and channeling it to the blade of the sword.

Across the city, Sephiroth watched as Cloud shot through the sky toward Bahamut Sin. He reached up to touch his lips as he whispered, "Go, beloved." He knew she had heard him and smiled despite Maleficius Sephirt growling as he watched with them.

She brought her sword up and leapt as her sword made connection with Bahamut Sin's head and she kept running to keep the movement going, the energy surging through her and she felt her back breaking out and white dazzling wings shot out. The sword was dragged along the back of Bahamut Sin as she ran, leaving behind wake of blue energy slicing the dragon's body, destroying the dragon.

As she reached the end, she jumped high, her wings taking her soaring high in the sky while Bahamut Sin plummeted to the ground, crashing all the way down, defeated and broken. She turned and started to flip, her wings spread wide and glorious in the sun. She did several flips as she dove down and landed gracefully on the beam and her wings disappeared. She looked down, her golden hair flapping in the wind as she watched Bahamut Sin disappear, dead.

She turned her head to across the city where the center was and from where she knew Sephiroth was with Kadaj and Rufus, the building exploded in a huge fireball. She frowned and leapt down from the beam onto the Fenrir and she kicked the motor into rear, roaring away from the place. She has to go and see if Sephiroth was okay, even though she knew he was all right.

As Cloud was leaping up in the sky, attacking Bahamut, Maleficius Sephirt clenched his hand and turned to Rufus and Sephiroth, "This is good. What should I summon next?"

Rufus stood up from his wheelchair, removing the robed sheet from his body. Sephiroth stared at the young president, "Rufus, what are you doing?"

"He wants this." Rufus said as he held up the box.

Maleficius Sephirt gasped, "Jenova!"

Rufus smirked, "A good man would've known…" He threw the box to the side of the building and Maleficius Sephirt screamed, shooting beam from his hand, using the power of the Materia within his arm. The beam shot to the side, missing Rufus and exploded at the end of the building, causing the entire floor to rush with huge explosion of fireball. Sephiroth grabbed Rufus and leapt off the building, falling headfirst downward. Maleficius Sephirt saw the box falling and jumped ahead.

Rufus twisted in Sephiroth's hold and drew out his gun, shooting at Maleficius Sephirt as the man flew past them.

"Jenova!" Maleficius Sephirt yelled, reaching for the box. However, Rufus shifted his gun and started to shoot at the box, intended to destroy it.

Rufus and Reno stared up to the building, "Sir, no!" They both yelled as they watched the three of them freefalling.

Cloud leaned forward as the motorcycle was pushed to its speed limit, racing across the street through the city. Everyone jumped out of her way and she saw Sephiroth falling from the building with Rufus and Kadaj. She had no time to panic; her focus was to reach there first.

Then halfway down, Rufus shot and the box was hit, slicing the dense metal, causing it to leak green substance. Elena and Tseng stood on either side of the building, shooting their nest gun, making a crisscross safety nest, and catching Rufus after Kadaj had passed them.

Maleficius Sephirt grabbed the box and landed down with cat-like agility. Then Sephiroth landed beside him with same agility and the young man looked up, gripping the box to his chest. He shot his head to the side and saw Cloud rushing toward them. He stood up and ran to his motorcycle and his brothers joined him and they were gone.

Cloud skidded the motorcycle to the side and parked by where Sephiroth stood. "What's going on?" She asked as she sat up.

"I'm going after him." Sephiroth said and turned to the silver sleek motorcycle, a father design of Fenrir, called Loki and slipped on it, revving the motorcycle. "Go after the two others. I'll take care of Kadaj. He has Jenova and I have to stop him."

"Sephiroth…" Cloud said as he moved his motorcycle next to her. "Be careful." She leaned over and he did the same, they kissed halfway and then, he was gone. She followed him afterward, chasing the brothers.

Tifa ran up to the other Turks as they helped Rufus up, holding him steady as Rude wheeled the battered wheelchair that survived the blast from several stories above. "Are you all right? We saw that way across the city!"

Rufus nodded, "I'm fine, thank you." He turned to Nanaki who trotted over to him with Cait on his back. "Reeve, where are they heading?" He asked, knowing Reeve had placed tracking devices on both Cloud and Sephiroth's cell phones.

Cait bobbed on Nanaki's back excitedly, "They're heading to the tunnel to the old city."

"We'll block them off." Reno said as he ran to the building and started to climb up the tarp that was hanging on the side of the building, Rude followed, to get to the top where their helicopter sat. "We'll take care of them." he crackled as he kept climbing with ease like a spider along the side of the wall while Rude fell down and attempted again.

"What is he going to do?" Yuffie asked as she, Vincent and Cid joined them with Barret in tow.

"Knowing Reno, something drastic." Tseng said with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

Elena shook her head, "Yeah. Guess we'll have to wait."

"Not here without knowing what's going on! Come on! Sierra await!" Cid shouted and waved as the large sleek airship roared into sight and hovered above them. "Let's get on board!" And soon, everyone was on board Sierra and headed toward the old city, searching for Sephiroth and Cloud.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

At Junon where Reeve sat at his desk with Katrina, his secretary and secret girlfriend standing behind him, watching on as he played on his laptop, controlling Cait from it. He had to remain behind to keep doing his duty while the other went off and save the world once again. Shiva and Ifrit came in his office and he acknowledged them with a nod of a head, never leaving his eyes from the screen of his laptop.

"What's happening now? There had been an explosion going off in the city. We could see it from the harbor." Ifrit asked.

Reeve replied, "Maleficius Sephirt got upset... I would say he still harbor Kadaj's childish antics. Cloud had defeated Bahamut Sin and it was amazing, I got the video. I am sure she'll appreciate it." He grinned.

Shiva rolled her eyes, "Geez. I am sure you got all the videos from all the time you spent traveling with them." She waved her hand, "Anyway, you didn't say what's happening now."

"Oh, Sephiroth and Cloud are after the brothers now. We lost sight of them because they went onto the highway and tunnels that connected the old Midgar to Neo-Midgar." The Highway had been there way before Neo-Midgar was built, it was built in purpose to connect Midgar and Junon but never was completed until Meteor event came around and it was abandoned. The tunnel went through under the mountain that separated Midgar from the rest of the world. It was almost complete except that it didn't connect all the way to Junon, but rather, ended where Neo-Midgar was built. It was going to remain closed forever for that there was no need to return to Midgar at all.

"Oh." Shiva said and moved around to watch over Reeve's shoulder. "Ooh, so you guys are on Sierra?"

"Yeah... crazy airship. I wonder why ShinRa bother to build all those things." Reeve muttered.

"Why is Sephiroth going after Kadaj?" Ifrit asked as he heard the conversation over the laptop, hearing the others talking.

Reeve looked up to Ifrit and darkened slightly, "Maleficius Sephirt took Jenova and he intended to use Jenova to transform himself completely. I think Sephiroth felt the need to go after him because Kadaj had made contact briefly, calling him father."

Shiva gasped, "Oh my! Poor kid."

"I know. Now we're starting to realize the brothers' intentions. They only wanted help from their mother and now Kadaj identified Sephiroth as their father, it sparked the need in Sephiroth to help now. I suppose."

"It's natural." Ifrit said simply as he watched the screen, seeing that Sierra was flying over the mountain, heading toward Midgar.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

As the brothers took off through the city, revving their motorcycles at the high speed, speeding along the street, causing the people to jump to the side, watch as two more join them in black and silver blur. They made a sharp turn around the corner, heading toward the highway that lead out of the city, through the land and to the mountain, leading to the old city on the other side of the mountain. Cloud and Sephiroth revved their engines and skidded as they made the turn and soon, they were out of the city, chasing the brothers. They had split, Kadaj taking the higher road and Sephiroth went after him, steadily catching up.

Cloud caught up with Loz and Yazoo quickly enough as they entered the abandoned highway. The metal sign, 'DO NOT ENTER' that was barring the road was suddenly demolished as their motorcycles crashed right into it, sending it to flip backward at high speed, Cloud ducked as it went over her head. If she were a normal person, without the quick lightening reaction, her head would had been cleaved right off by the sign, but then, she was lucky as it crumpled to the road behind her.

As she reached to their sides, they were suddenly into the tunnel that led underground that went through the mountain, Yazoo pulled out his gunblade and started to shoot at her. She maneuvered her motorcycle to avoid the bullets while she whipped out her sword and deflected the rest of the bullets and Loz was suddenly climbing the tunnel wall as they sped along at high speed, gaining momentum and soon, he was above Cloud and he leapt off, attacking with his Dual Hound weapon. He jumped onto Cloud's motorcycle and caused them to spin suddenly around and around as Cloud fought him off.

She was strong and quick as she fought, single handily with one sword and another hand, keeping control of the machine under her legs, going over two hundred kilometers per hour while Yazoo sped along, watching. Then, Cloud was able to push Loz off with her sword and he leapt off, landing right onto Yazoo's motorcycle.

Above the tunnel, on the surface as the highway winded through the mountain, with dangerous curves going around the jagged rocks and the sharp deep incline, Sephiroth and Maleficius Sephirt were locked in blade battle, their swords clashing in spark of flurries as they curved and rode the mountain. Sephiroth's Masamune clashed and sparked every time it collided with the dual bladed Souba. He narrowed his eyes, meeting Maleficius Sephirt's pale eyes in furious rage as they kept going, turning sharply and descending and ascending on the road dangerously at high speed. He knew Cloud would not want him to hurt Kadaj but he had to do all he could to stop Maleficius Sephirt, yet the alien being wasn't being helpful, fighting back with equal fervor, perhaps harder.

Back in the tunnel, Loz had regained control of his motorcycle and went ahead while Cloud and Yazoo locked in blade battle, their motorcycles clashing against each other as they flurried their blades at each other, clashing in explosions. He sped ahead and thrushes his Dual Hound to the road, causing severe damage and held on as his legs swerved, using the momentum to twist and turn, flinging the motorcycle like a slingshot, sending it flying toward Cloud and Yazoo. Cloud's blue eyes flickered and Yazoo saw this, smirking as he withdrew his gunblade and spread his arms wide as he rode along with his high speed moving motorcycle. As the motorcycle came flying to their head, Yazoo ducked and the motorcycle went over his head, barely sweeping across and Cloud, in lightening speed, she grabbed two of her sword and stood up, her swords clashed together, causing burst of light and she jumped, flying toward the oncoming vehicle and slashed right through it, sending it to fly behind her, cleaved in two. She landed and flicked her sword behind her. She watched as Loz jumped from the road ahead, leaping off Yazoo's motorcycle, flying toward her, attacking and she deflected and he went back as she sped ahead. He reached his motorcycle and within the second he realized it was destroyed, he gasped as it exploded in huge fireball, sending everyone rushing forward as the shock wave pushed them along through the tunnel. Loz back flipped, riding the shockwave and landed onto Yazoo's motorcycle and they both stopped, watching as Cloud went ahead. The long haired brother growled, chucking his gunblade aside as it was destroyed, cleaved to the nub. Loz adjusted himself and slid down to sit behind his brother and they were gone, chasing after Cloud.

Ahead at the end of the tunnel, Rude and Reno stood, facing the tunnel with their helicopter behind them. They had each handmade bomb with timers on them. They had flown ahead, spotting Cloud and the two brothers disappearing into the tunnel and Sephiroth and Kadaj locked in blade battles on the higher road winding through the mountain. They knew they would eventually meet ahead and the roads they were on would end in the old Midgar, if they were to keep going, they would be flying right into Sector Five area.

"Hey, partner." Reno drawled as he turned his head to Rude. "This thing," He held the bomb, "uh, got any bite to it?" He asked.

Rude glanced to his friend; his sunglasses glinted in the late afternoon sunlight. "ShinRa technology at its finest." He smirked.

Reno's voice had chuckles in it, "Oh, so you made this." He looked over the bomb in his hand; it looked like some kind of several sticks of explosives taped up attached to the timer on it. He knew Rude was always good at making bombs and many other things.

"If nothing else... it's flashy." Rude said his voice full of glee. Reno smirked and they heard the motorcycles roaring echoing through the tunnel and the explosion that occurred. They knew they were almost out.

"Oh, good."

Rude went to the control and started the timer, setting the countdown. "You'd love it. I know it."

"Looks like we are clocking out early." Reno said as they saw Cloud speeding past between them and they left the bomb down and quickly boarded the helicopter and they hovered above the sky, watching from safe distance.

As Maleficius Sephirt and Sephiroth left the mountain, the road becoming straighter and even, Maleficius Sephirt sped up, breaking away from the battle with Sephiroth and rode ahead while Sephiroth chased him. Their road went down and bypassed the road that came from the tunnel and they saw the helicopter taking off from it. Sephiroth suspected something was going on but he kept his eyes on the other silver-haired man, chasing after him. He saw Maleficius Sephirt look back and turned his head to see and saw Cloud coming, catching up. Then suddenly, the explosion blew, blowing to the sky in colorful firework and explosion. He gasped as the shockwaves after another pushed against him, throwing his balance off and he skidded and was thrown off course. Cloud jumped from the above highway where the explosion went off and landed beside him and sped after Maleficius Sephirt. She drew out her sword and attacked him. They were once locked in battle for a moment and Sephiroth watched as the two of them rode right off the end of the road and down into the Midgar slum below. He turned his vehicle and revved, jumping off the end and saw Cloud below alone and knew Maleficius Sephirt had taken off in the rubble of the slum. He parked next to Cloud as she stood up and righted her massive bike.

"You all right?" He asked as he looked over his love of his life and saw she had minor scrapes from the battles she had went through. But overall, she looked fine.

She nodded and slipped back on the motorcycle. "Yeah. He got to me here." She looked to the single sleeves on her arm and sure enough, it was ripped to shred. She ripped it right off, exposing her arm, covered with Geosigma. He reached out and touched it, caressing her arm. She shivered slightly under his warm touch, feeling the warmth spread though her body like tingles. "We better get to him. I think he went around the corner there." She gestured ahead where there was a path cleared. He nodded and they both revved their motorcycles and were off.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Maleficius Sephirt ducked and turned right into the still standing building of the slum and crashed the door down and skidded right into the flower garden in the center. He stopped and growled, shaking as he held the box. Kadaj was fighting with him the entire time while he was battling with Sephiroth on the way. Suddenly, he felt his being pushed aside as Kadaj took over. Kadaj held the box as he looked down, realizing it was the heart of Jenova. He shook violently and started to cry and whimper. He wanted one person in the whole world to console him. "Mother..." He whispered and then felt Maleficius Sephirt struggling inside him. The other person was horrible, mean and he hurt his mother and father. He hurt his brothers too. He didn't like it. He hated it. He wanted to know why the other was living inside his body for as long he could remember. He wanted to have fun, he wanted to laugh and enjoy life but his whole life, and four short mere years were none of those but torture and pain. For long time, he only knew his mother by the dreams he had and now, his mother was alive and fighting him. It hurt so badly, to see that her eyes each time they fought, there was despair and love in them, as well pain. He wanted nothing but happiness and love in her eyes, he wanted not the fighting but her holding him close and crooning soft songs to him, to comfort.

"Mother! Mo-o-t-th-h-er-r-r!" He screamed and suddenly, Maleficius Sephirt took over and he went black.

"Stupid boy." Maleficius Sephirt muttered as he glanced at the box, noticing the crack in the edge and peered, seeing the liquid sloshing inside. He looked up to see through the doors he had crashed into earlier, Sephiroth and Cloud appeared, revving their motorcycles. They looked perfect together, glaring with hardened battle experience and almost godly as they stared at him back. He conjured an energy ball and shot it toward the pillar on the side of the building, causing it to crash down. He turned his motorcycle and jumped it right on the falling pillar, gaining ground as Cloud and Sephiroth sped into the building. Cloud went right under the pillar and Sephiroth jumped right over it. They turned and parked in the garden, looking up to him.

He growled and shot another beam, hitting the ground in the middle of the garden, by now, all the flowers had lost their petals, being shot in the air and floating down around them. He paused before sending a second energy ball as he noticed the small crater was filling with sparkling water, rapidly gushing up and becoming into a mystical fountain, spiraling up with sparkles and tendrils, covering the two into bubble shield and it started to rain around them. He winced as the water hit his skin, burning him. He growled and shook the water off and sped off to get away. The water had burned his skin and he didn't like it.

Cloud looked down to her arm and saw it had healed of the Geosigma. "The Cure... How?" She looked up to Sephiroth, puzzled.

He shook his head. "Apparently there was the cure here the whole time. It's in the water." He looked around and saw that the water was settling and gushing gently, creating a large pool in the sunken floor where the flower garden once was. The yellow and white flower petals floating around on the surface. "I better go after him and stop him before he merges with Jenova."

She stepped closer to him and wrapped her arms around him, kissing him. "Careful love. I'm gonna go and join the others. We'll be watching you if you need anything."

Sephiroth nuzzled his head into Cloud's soft golden hair, inhaling her sweet scent. "There is only one thing I need. Masamune is not suited for this sort of battle; I need your sword and motorcycle."

She nodded into his chest. "Take it. I'll take your motorcycle and sword. Love you." she murmured and stepped back as he slipped onto the black motorcycle and rode out of the church with grace and dignity. She watched as he disappeared around the corner and turned to the silver sleek motorcycle. She smiled as she slipped onto the silver Loki and left the building, leaving behind the pool of water, keeping in mind for the others to come and get the cure from it. She looked to the sky and saw Sierra roaring over the city and it stopped and hovered above her. She followed it until it found a clearing nearby and landed, the dock opened and she rode right into it, greeting Tifa and Barret who had the door open for her. She parked the motorcycle and got off. "Let's go." She said and Tifa smiled, turning to Barret and gave a single nod.

Barret hit the button on the side and the door closed and hit the smaller one next to it, yelling into the intercom above the buttons. "Get yo' stinking ship going!"

"Shut your mouth!" Cid replied back and the airship roared to life, rising to the sky and flying around the city in the circle until they found Kadaj and Sephiroth facing each other off near the large still standing building of ShinRa Headquarter.

Cloud joined with the rest on the deck of Sierra, watching from the large glass window that made up the nose of the airship. She stepped up to the metal railing that lined the middle, holding the glass together. She saw Sephiroth standing before Kadaj; they were eyeing each other skeptically, holding their swords. It was strange to see Sephiroth with her own sword instead of Masamune and looked to her hip where she had strapped the overly large katana. She reached to touch it and felt the power within. Sometime, when dealing with dark power, she knew, the power of light and love was needed to be used and this was what Sephiroth needed and her sword was it.

"Cloud, I brought you Materia." Yuffie came up to her, her arms full of colorful stones. She tripped a bit as the ship tilted. She shot a glare at Cid. "Watch it!"

Barret grumbled and turned to Cid, "Yo Cid, land this junk of heap!"

Cid scowled as he was standing before the steering wheel of the airship, "Shut up! You want off, you jump!" Cloud merely rolled her eyes at them and ignored them, turning to watch Sephiroth.

"Let Sephiroth fight his own battle. Kadaj is simply a larvae form of Maleficius Sephirt. Kadaj had simply asked his father this time around to help."

Yuffie quipped in disgust. "Larva? You mean he's an insect?"

"Shit, that's messed up." Reno replied, brushing his long hair back over his shoulder. He and Rude had rejoined everyone on Sierra and was picked up after the explosion. Rufus was sitting under the cock pilot deck, watching out of the glass as well with Elena and Tseng by his sides, guarding him.

Cait hopped on Nanaki's back, causing the wolf to growl under his breath. "Lassie, shut your boot!" Reeve shot through and Yuffie shot him a dirty look, ready to chuck a Materia at the cat.

The pilot mused, "So the punk's gonna become something else soon?"

Tifa moved to stand beside Cloud and as she stood next, realizing, they both wore similar boots and yet, Cloud stood taller than she did, proud and regal. Looking up to the blond haired woman who had a mask of cold indifference on her face, yet she could find the depth of concern and worrisome in the blue eyes. "Cloud?"

Cloud blinked but did not move. "Kadaj is safe." She simply said. "Sephiroth will take care of Maleficius Sephirt."

"One would think." Vincent murmured. "What do you mean by Kadaj is safe?"

Cloud gave a small hint of a shrug. "Maleficius Sephirt forced him back so hard that he is disconnected from the body for the time being. He is safe in the Lifestream with his brothers."

Tifa understood and nodded. "Yeah. It's Sephiroth's fight now."

Yuffie whined, "Why can't we help out?"

"This is man's talk." Cid muttered, retorting to the teenager.

Yuffie twirled around and shouted at Cid. "Sexist! Sexist!"

Rude chuckled while Tseng muttered at the Ninja, "Talk to Cloud about being sexist. She's the expert around here."

"Ooh, good one!" Reno chirped, laughing as Yuffie did actually chuck a Materia toward Reno and it knocked him on the head, making the red-head scowl.

Barret scowled and crossed his arms and said softly, "Some men don't get it, either."

Tifa looked up to Cloud's face and saw a tiny smirk, knowing Cloud was somewhat amused by the other's antics. She turned back to watch as Sephiroth and Kadaj went out into battle, jumping across the ShinRa building like grasshoppers, in quick and agile movement, parrying and clashing their blades against each other, making a show of lights every time the blades collided. She watched as they rose to higher ground, using the building as leverage, "Several months ago... Think of the strength we all had when we fought that last battle. It's only been a while since then; it's so strange to watch Sephiroth fight, being a part of us, rather than being the enemy. I didn't think of it, then, we were incomplete, now we're whole, all of us together, the Turks, the Avalanche, the Summonses."

Cloud gave a single nod. "Yes. We are brought together, to fight for the future and Sephiroth and I are to bring you all into the future, we are the core, the foundation, the heart of everything."

Everyone remained silent on the Sierra after hearing what Cloud had said, mulling over her words that was being taken to the heart. They realized, she was right, they were the true core of everything and yet, it wasn't over yet. It was as if Cloud and Sephiroth, being together, they weren't complete, as if part of their souls were missing.

Barret finally broke the silence, feeling uncomfortable. "He's got ten minutes." He said referring to Sephiroth battling with Maleficius Sephirt.

Yuffie laughed, "That Sephiroth's a royal pain in the ass... like always. Same goes for you too Cloud!"

Cloud gave soft chuckles. "As always."

Tifa shook her head. "Cloud is Cloud; we can't have it any other way."

"Damn right!" Cid shouted as he steered the airship to give better view as they watched on Sephiroth battling with Maleficius Sephirt.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Maleficius Sephirt stopped his motorcycle and looked up to the large damaged but still standing building of the ShinRa Headquarter. It stood ominously tall and regal in the center of the battered city. It was a good place as any. He got off and held the box close to his heart and darted off, finding a good place to focus on the box without distraction. He got up on a floor that was exposed and stopped as he heard Sephiroth behind him. He turned to find Sephiroth standing below, holding the Ultimate Sword in his hand.

"Sephiroth. Can't you just bug off?" He snarled.

"No. I cannot allow you do this. You're messing with the universe's plan. This wasn't supposed to happen. You were not supposed to exist anymore. Even Kadaj was not supposed to be born. Yet, you are all here, and everything is a mess for this planet. It is up to me and Cloud to fix it and make everything right again."

"Then, why are you taking action? Cloud was supposed to be the one to come after me. After all, I want her. She will be mine."

Sephiroth shook his head, smirking. "My son asks me. In a mere word alone, he seeks my help instead his mother. Here I am. I am the one who will rule this planet, you will not. The people will not see you fit as their emperor. They are strong; they will die before allowing you to rule."

"I don't need them." Maleficius Sephirt chuckled and shot a blue electric beam toward Sephiroth. The ex-General jumped aside with ease and jumped to attack with Ultimate sword and then they were in battle, leaping across the surface of the broken building of ShinRa, accelerating in speed and increasing ground, going to dangerous height. They moved with dangerous dance, their swords clashing, sparking off energy lights and pushing each other off and gravity wasn't the issue here.

Suddenly Maleficius Sephirt retreated as he saw Sierra roar into scene behind Sephiroth, gushing powerful wind against them. Sephiroth stood, not looking back but he smirked as his hair whipped around him with liquidity. He cursed inwardly and gripped harder on the box as he jumped up, higher away from Sephiroth. The man proved to be a challenge. Kadaj's body was weak and not up to par to Sephiroth's level and with the man using Ultimate Sword instead of Masamune, he had the upper hand with the advantage of the sword using different ability, including dual swords.

Sephiroth noticed Maleficius Sephirt trying to retreat every time he attacked, defending and parrying him off. Yet his agility was liquid and smooth, but not up to his level. He knew Maleficius Sephirt was frustrated and smirked. It was good to have Cloud's sword at time like this. He knew in the future, they both would be sharing swords to meet their advantage and he appreciated it, they worked together like partners and he liked that. He would never, ever let anyone take Cloud away from him ever again, it was enough that it had happened the last time around. Maleficius Sephirt kept expressing that he wanted Cloud and takes her for his own. But to what purpose, he wanted to know why.

He jumped higher, chasing after Maleficius Sephirt. He knew Cloud didn't want him to hurt Kadaj's body but it was hard to not to. He caught up and they locked into another battle. Maleficius Sephirt looked a bit exhausted and used his energy to make a wild attack. Sephiroth flashed the sword, quickly batting the young man, knocking him aside to fall over the edge. The double-bladed sword fell to the bottom, out of reach and gone in the rubbles. Maleficius Sephirt watched as the sword disappears in the depth, hanging on for his life on the edge of the building. His single hand holding on the ledge whiles his other hand holding on the box. He looked up as he felt a resounding thump above him and saw Sephiroth, in his black and silver glory, staring down at him, the sword pointed to him, glinting in the evening sky. He had to admit, he was jealous of the man, he was everything a god could be, strong, famous, he had Cloud and he had the whole world in his hands and he was damn powerful. He didn't like that. Before in his old life, before Ouranos and Gaia destroyed his planet and killed thousands of his subjects, along with himself, he was like that, a powerful emperor and he wanted to take that back. He felt the box in his hand and smirked, knowing it was the only way he could have that. He threw the box toward Sephiroth.

Sephiroth flinched, expecting an attack and with his quick reflex, he slashed. He saw that he only slashed the box as it was sent flying away from them. He frowned as he noticed the box slid, completed cleaved in half and watched as Maleficius Sephirt did a suicide jump, backward and he grabbed one half of the box and dug in it, taking the heart out and letting the box go. Maleficius Sephirt looked up, grinning, "Welcome to my Reunion." It was almost in slow motion as Sephiroth watched the other hold the heart to his chest and suddenly, black tendrils swirled around his hands and covered him. He fell down and landed below, looking up smirking. The heart was gone.

Sephiroth jumped, to attack. Damn it all, he has to stop Maleficius Sephirt, even if he had to kill Kadaj in order to do it. He knew Cloud would forgive him. He drew the sword as he came down to Maleficius Sephirt and attacked but he found himself stopped in explosion of light and saw that Maleficius Sephirt held his sword with his hand and he stared at the mirror image of himself, everything alike, and soon, the dark version of Masamune grew in Maleficius Sephirt's hand and slashed him away, he jumped back, defending himself. He landed and stared. It was like Dark Sephiroth all over again, yet, Maleficius Sephirt had a darker and ominous aura about him and his eyes were completely white, without pupils.

They stood apart from each other; Maleficius Sephirt had a sword similar to Masamune, and Sephiroth with Ultimate Sword. Maleficius Sephirt leaped high and landed where they were above and Sephiroth followed. He turned back to Sephiroth and smirked, "It is done." He looked to the sky where Sierra hovered in the distance, watching them. "Ah, Cloud, your Geosigma is gone?" He frowned and turned to Sephiroth.

"Maleficius Sephirt. What do you want?" Sephiroth asked, nearly growling as he watched his counterpart standing above him.

He replied, "I want what you have. I had it until those damned gods decided to destroy my planet, my world, my home. I was the rightful ruler, I had it all. I had a beautiful queen, loyal subjects but all are gone."

"You were a tyrant. You killed and tortured your subjects. You thirsted for immortality. This is why Ouranos and Gaia decided to kill you and your planet. You were corrupted." Sephiroth shot back, having known Maleficius Sephirt's background, given to him in memory from Gaia.

"Ah, a small price to pay for becoming an immortal. Let me ask you, why are you immortal, when you were born a mere mortal? A gift? Why not me?"

Sephiroth shook his head. "I never wanted to be immortal, I never wanted this power I have, I never want to be the king even though I know I will be. But they are burden, a gift given to me by Gaia because I had a good heart. And I shall accept it with all of my heart and rule justly. You killed, you pillaged, you raped and devoured for the powers I have and in the end, what did it get you? A dead planet with tortured souls, that is your hell and you will never make my planet your hell. This is my paradise, get out!" Sephiroth snarled and readied his sword, standing in stance, feeling all the energy crackling around him. He knew the others were lending and the planet was supporting him. The Ultimate sword glowed blue and the surface became crystal clear, shimmering with color of the rainbow. It thrummed with life in his hands.

Maleficius Sephiroth sneered as he raised his hand to the sky and clenched his fist. The sky turned dark and ominous, the clouds gathered, darkened and twirled above their heads. "It shall be mine." He murmured darkly, "Cloud is a perfect queen, better than Jenova ever was."

_Estuans interius ira vehementi._

_Estuans interius ira vehementi!_

Sephiroth lunged, attacking Maleficius Sephirt with renewed fervor, their blades clashing in flurries. They moved in fast paced dance, leaping and jumping, twisting and turning. They fought with equal ground and strength. Maleficius Sephirt smirked as he attacked and pushed Sephiroth away, causing him to fall. Sephiroth used his advantage to regain his ground, attacking back, pushing Maleficius Sephirt, and knowing the world is waiting on bated breath for him to defeat the demon from hell. It was the entire planet on his shoulder he had to protect, his love and his future.

_Sephiroth, Sephiroth! _

_Burning inside with violent anger._

Maleficius Sephirt smirked as he kept fighting, feeling good with the whole power, whole and in control of his body. Sure, it was not the same as his former body was eons ago, but the wait was worth it, the body was imitation, perhaps better than Sephiroth, for it came with powers and good look. He looked to Sierra where he knew Cloud was watching. He smiled as he thought of the idea of having her by his side, under him, writhing with pleasure. She would be his, forever. Ah, damn the planet, with the power he has now, he will rule the universe. But first thing first, he has to get rid of the pesky pest, one named Sephiroth. There could only be one of him, and he will be the only one.

_Burning inside with violent anger!_

_Sephiroth, Sephiroth! _

Across the vast barren land, through the mountain and into the new city of Neo-Midgar, everyone could see the dark cloud forming and hovering over the mountain where Midgar stood. They all felt it in their heart, the ominous feeling, knowing there was a battle going on and they all stood watching, even they could not see, but they felt, waiting for the outcome. It was different from Meteor, they knew, it was their future that was at fate.

In the building of Cloud's Heaven Orphanage, Marlene stood with Denzel, watching the rain starting to fall, drop by drop; it became heavier steadily by the minutes. Yet everyone stood, ignoring the rain. She gasped as she felt the surge of power that exploded, washing them over. "Is it her?" She asked, wondering if Cloud was giving the power. Aeris came to them, standing behind the children as she held her hands on their shoulder, watching out of the window as well. Zack stood beside her, holding her waist as he held her close to his body. He felt it too, watching, waiting and praying for Sephiroth to end the battle. He had trust and faith in his best friend. He looked to Aeris and saw her smile, making his hope stronger and resolved. He nodded and turned to Denzel who winced in pain, touching where the Geosigma bothered him on the forehead. He rested his hand on the boy's head, soothing him, giving him a silent comfort.

_Sors immanis Et inanis_

_Fate, Monstrous and empty_

Maleficius Sephirt slashed, batting away Sephiroth, sending him to fly into the building across, crashing through the glass and landing on the floor. He jumped and flew right into the building, to find Sephiroth gone. He jumped and ran, bouncing off the wall and the columns that supported the floor. He found the other silver-haired man, running and leaping as he did. He attacked and Sephiroth twisted, defending himself, they parried and fought, twisting their bodies around, jumping and leaping until they were out on the other side.

_Estuans interius ira vehementi._

_Burning inside with violent anger!_

Curious to the strength and the power that Sephiroth has, he asked, "Where did you get this strength?"

Sephiroth snarled, "I don't feel like telling you." He fought hard and pushed the other man away. He paused, hovering in the air, unaware he had the ability to fly as he watched Maleficius Sephirt backs away and started to glide, coming back toward him, attacking.

_Sephiroth, Sephiroth! _

"I had thought of a wonderful present for you, a good bye one." Maleficius Sephirt said as he landed sideway on the building, looking down at Sephiroth who landed and stood, looking up at him.

_Veni, veni, venias,_

_Ne me mori facias_

"Shall I give you despair?" He asked as Sephiroth leaped up, fighting with him.

_Come, come, O' come_

_Do not let me die_

"On your knees, as my first subject. I want you to beg for forgiveness."

_Veni, veni, venias,_

_Ne me mori facias_

Sephiroth ignored him and kept fighting and then suddenly, Maleficius Sephirt was on the top and he was still below, looking up. He had thrust the swords in the side of the building and standing on it for there was nothing else to stand on. He felt the surge of massive power enveloping him, the warmth spread in his body and he knew Cloud had borrowed her power to him, giving him renewed strength. He smirked and watched as the building started to crumble above Maleficius Sephirt. He made a graceful back flip, grabbing the swords, pulling it out of the building and latching them together. The large debris pieces of building came tumbling down, raining all around him. He slashed the large debris away, clearing his path so they wouldn't hit him.

_Come, come, O'come_

_Do not let me die_

As he slashed the building parts away, he saw Maleficius Sephirt appear out of the debris, attacking with malicious smirk on his face. He narrowed his eyes, attacking back. they landed on a falling part of the building and with quick fervor, they battled, attacking one another, jumping and bouncing off every debris of the building, keeping themselves above as the gravity kept pulling the building down, tearing it apart.

_Veni, veni, venias, Glorosa_

_Ne me mori facias Generosa_

They landed on what was left of the ShinRa Headquarter as the rest went crumbling below in loud crash and dust. Sephiroth slashed the Ultimate sword as Maleficius Sephirt pushed with the dark Masamune, pushing him back and within an eye blink, Sephiroth found himself pinned to the wall with the sword piercing his shoulder. He glanced down to his shoulder then up the gleaming blade to Maleficius Sephirt, meeting the smirking face that mirrored his image. He snarled softly as Maleficius Sephirt asked, "Tell me what you cherish the most, to give me the pleasure of taking it away from you."

Flashes of images came to his mind, the world, Cloud's smiling face, the children he had met, his best friend Zack and Aeris and of his new friends. He blinked and gripped Masamune with his hand and with strength he had, he pulled it out and moved, letting it go to pin the wall once again under Maleficius Sephirt's weight. He stood up and flashed the Ultimate Weapon. "I pity you. You just don't get it at all." He said softly and attacked.

_Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa_

_Ne me mori facias, Genrosa_

"There is not a thing I don't cherish!" He shouted and he attacked with all his strength and power, breaking the Masamune sword bit by bit, corroding the metal away as the Ultimate Weapon glowed brightly and Maleficius Sephirt snarled, chucking the broken weapon away and it disappeared in black dust, glittering and fading away in the wind. He hovered above while Sephiroth thrust the sword upward, sending all six blades apart circling him in the air.

_Come, come, O' come, Glorious_

_Do not let me die, Noble_

Maleficius Sephirt watched in confusion as the six blades hovered around him in circle, glowing with lights then saw Sephiroth jump up, grabbing the first one and suddenly, before he could think or blink, Sephiroth flashed from one point to another in articulate pattern, gathering each blades, adding to the sword and attacking him every bypasses. He was jerked and thrown around with each attack. He growled, struggling to keep control but he couldn't.

_Veni, veni, Venias, Gloriosa_

_Ne me mori Facias, Generosa_

Sephiroth landed, holding the complete Ultimate sword, having completed the different version of Omni Slash, watching as Maleficius Sephirt stagger as he hovered in the air. He could see that the other man was wounded and weakened. He said, "Stay where you belong - in memory."

_Sephiroth, Sephiroth!_

Maleficius Sephirt growled, "I will... never be a memory." Two dark demonic wings burst from his back and enveloped him in a cocoon and he disappeared in black glittering dust. His voice lingered in the air, "It's not over, yet."

The Sierra hovered close to where he stood and the door open to reveal Cloud jumping off the airship and landing on the building. She ran up to him and he grabbed her, holding her close to him, nuzzling her head with his face, glad to have her in his arm once again. "Sephiroth, where did he go?" She asked, looking to meet his green eyes.

"I don't know yet, but he is still out there." He said softly. He looked up to see everyone on the deck of the airship and smiled.

"Yeah! We rocks!" Yuffie cheered, jumping.

"See, what did I tell you, fools?" Barret crowed.

Cait hopped up and down on Nanaki's back, "That's my boy, Sephiroth!"

Tifa laughed, "He sure did show him."

Cid yelled, "Hang onto your britches!" He spun the steering wheel and the airship hovered and turned around in the sky, hovering before the two.

Sephiroth smiled at Cloud and was ready to move, to head to the airship and go back home. But before he could move, he jerked back as he felt the pain exploded in his shoulder from the back. He gasped and looked down to find Cloud gasping in pain as well. He realized as the gunshot echoed in his ears and knew the bullet had pierced through his shoulder and through Cloud's. He turned to look and saw Loz and Yazoo staring at them. They looked bedraggled and Yazoo dropped the Gunblade, letting it clatter to the ground.

"We'll go... together." Yazoo said softly, breathing hard.

"Together... we'll play..." Loz stumbled. Both of their arms glowed bright from the Materias that were within.

Cloud gasped and shouted, "No!" She could tell they were struggling with the being inside them controlling them. "I can help you!" She shouted, holding her hands out to them.

Sephiroth gasped as he saw their arms growing brighter and he knew what would happen. He grabbed Cloud and said, "No! You can't help them!" He picked her up and ran away from the boys, shielding her body with his as they exploded, bursting into massive ball of flame. He stumbled and twisted in the air, falling as he blacked out.

Tifa gasped as she saw the whole thing from the deck of the airship, "No!"

Over in Neo-Midgar, Denzel shot his head up, "Cloud! Sephiroth!"

Aeris gasped as she felt the shockwave of the explosion spread, rippling wide. "What happened?"

Zack shook his head, "I don't know. We should go and check."

"The Church," Denzel said, looking to Aeris.

Marlene nodded, "Yeah, we need to go there."

"All right, let's go, kids." Zack announced and turned to leave, the three of them followed suit.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud blinked and realized she was in that kind of dreamscape again, everything was white, however, this time, and there was no field of flower or Madoshi. This time around, there was a simple lake, much like the one in the front of the temple in the Crystalline Forest. There was a little boy with shoulder length silver hair. He looked about four or five years old, wearing simple black slack and white shirt, he had no shoes and he was playing with the water.

She walked up to the boy, curious to whom he was. She felt that she knew the boy and knelt beside him, watching him play with the water, splashing it lightly with his small hand. She reached out and started to skim the water's surface with her hand, surprised to find that she has no gloves on and looked to find she only wore a simple gown, a gown fitting for a Queen. She looked up to see the boy looking up at her with a smile on his face that melted her heart. She recognized him right away, "Kadaj."

"Hi Mommy." Kadaj said his voice full of happiness and youth as he stood there, looking eye to eye to Cloud as she remained kneeling.

"Kadaj, honey." Cloud said as she reached out to him and he stepped into her arm, allowing her to hold him. "Are you okay?" She asked, knowing right now, somewhere, Sephiroth was battling with Maleficius Sephirt, who was using Kadaj's body.

The little boy nodded, grinning. "Yeah, I'm safe here. Loz and Yazoo is here too, they went off playing." Sure enough, Cloud heard the two other boys' laugher fill the air and her heart swelled with happiness, knowing they are okay.

"All right Honey." Cloud replied, burying her head into the little boy's neck, taking in his sweet young scent and holding him close to her body.

"Come and play with us?" Kadaj asked as Cloud stood up, holding his hand. Cloud felt her heart break then.

"I can't. I have to go."

"Oh, okay. Will you come back?"

"I don't know."

"All right." Kadaj's innocent broke her heart more and watched as he stepped away, waving at her. "Grandmother says you have to go back. She will take care of us. She's really nice."

She smiled, glad that all was right with her boys and watched as Kadaj walk away, disappearing into the whiteness. She turned, knowing there was someone else beside her. She looked up to find Madoshi standing before her, handsomely with a soft smile.

"Madoshi."

"Cloud. The boys will be all right here. They never were meant to be born or exist. It's not over for Kadaj, he is still tied to his body, and he still feel pain and confusion. You need to do something for him."

Cloud closed her eyes. "I know. I don't want to."

"You did it once for Sephiroth."

She looked up at him, finding him much closer, his hand snaked up to her cheek and caressed it, giving her warm feelings. "Yes." She replied defeated and closed her eyes as he leaned down, brushing his lips on her lips and she sighed. Then she opened her eyes to find Sephiroth standing before her, Madoshi was gone. "Sephiroth."

"Come love... it's all right." Sephiroth murmured and they broke apart as they felt something tug their clothes and looked down to find two young boys, both silver haired with innocent shining in their eyes. They were smiling, hugging their legs.

"Loz, Yazoo..." Cloud said as she knelt beside them, holding them as she had done with Kadaj earlier. "Oh my babies." She murmured as she hugged them and they giggled.

"Mommy, it's all right. We're not hurting anymore." Yazoo explained, smiling.

"Yeah, we can play all we want here." Loz said his voice full of happiness.

Sephiroth knelt down, ruffling the boys' hair. "We're sorry that it had to happen to you two."

"It's okay, we're happy now." Yazoo brushed his father's hand away from his head and laughed, "Grandmother will take care of us until you are ready to come home."

"Yeah. Bring Kadaj home. He's hurting." Loz said with a sniffle.

Cloud nodded. "We promise. Kadaj will come soon." She gave each boy a kiss and stood up, watching the boys laugh and tumble with each other, disappearing within the whiteness. Their voices echoed in the air and faded away.

She closed her eyes and allowed Sephiroth hold her close and everything became still and quiet.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Madoshi, why didn't you tell her where we are?" the feminine woman asked, tired and exasperated.

Madoshi simply smiled. "I don't think it's really necessary just yet. We will tell her when we get summoned. All in the right time, love."

"Mmm. I Hope you're right. She knows now that they are our incarnates?"  
"In a way, yes… Sephiroth has not known yet but she will tell him, love."

"Sure." Megamiki allowed Madoshi to encircle his arms around her, holding her close. They both stood in strong contract; she was almost entirely white while he was almost entirely black yet, and they blended together, complementing one another perfectly. She could feel the love radiating from him and it made her warm all over. She knew, soon they would be free soon, to be rejoined whole with their souls.

Madoshi had more luck in communicating with Cloud because she was more in tune with the astral plane than anyone on the planet right now and saw that he had enjoyed getting in contact with other part of her soul. It had made him smile more and calm that he had ever felt, known he was able to touch and feel all of her soul. But with herself on the other hand, she couldn't wait to get to be reunited with Madoshi completely. It was wonderful to be reunited with him after so long yet, there was part of him missing and that part was within Sephiroth. She was surprised that Madoshi had not completely rejoined with Sephiroth when the silver-haired man had spent time in the astral plane along with the summons, but kept his distance.

"Madoshi, why?" She asked.  
"Why what?" He inquired curiously as he let her go to face her.

"Why didn't you rejoin with Sephiroth, become whole when you two were on the same plane with the other Summonses?" She saw the twinkle in his eyes and knew he would give her a pleasing answer.

And indeed he did, "I wanted to stay behind and wait to be rejoined with you first, together, we will rejoin our souls, love." He leaned down and gave her a passionate kiss.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, pretty please with Maleficius Sephirt's head on a silver platter?_

Hard! Hard, hard, hard! This chapter was hard for me to write. I'm never really good with writing battles! I had to watch Advent Children several times to get the notes down for the battle scenes. I hope you all enjoyed it. Yeah, some things were changed! Surprise! More to come soon!

"This is my paradise, get out!" – Sephiroth. My favorite line here in the whole chapter. I can so feel him!


	48. S4:9: Mother and Sons

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Nine: Mother and Sons

_And I will bless her, and give thee a son also of her: yea, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations; kings of people shall be of her. _

Genesis 17:16, The Holy Bible

Sephiroth was the first to wake. He blinked and realized he was wet. He stood up and saw he was waist deep in the pool that had grown in the church. He glanced around and saw quiet dozen or more children standing around the edge, looking onto him. He looked to the side and saw the Avalanche and Turks standing, smiling at him.

"We were told to come here." A girl said and he looked down to her, she had high pigtails in her hair and she was in the water along with few other children as well, circling him and Cloud. He turned around and saw Cloud floating on her back, her eyes closed. He reached out and touched her face and she tensed under his touch then turned her head to his hand.

Cloud woke and blinked her eyes. She discovered the same thing Sephiroth did; the wetness, the children and everyone else in the church. She smiled at them and stood up with help of Sephiroth by her side.

Marlene smiled from the edge where she stood with Denzel and the rest of the adults. "Welcome back."

"Yeah." Cloud nodded.

Nanaki bowed his head, "There are still children with the stigma. We had just recently discovered that the water cured the Geosigma when the children went into the water to wake you two up."

Cloud looked around and noticed several children circling her and Sephiroth. "Yes. The cure is here… how, I do not know." She walked up to Denzel, wading through the water and held her hands out to the boy. "Come on." She smiled at him.

Tifa bowed beside Denzel, "Hey, let's get you fixed up."

Denzel held his hand to his forehead and smiled shyly as he reached out to take Cloud's offering hands. She took him and helped him into the water. He stood before her, the water reaching his chest. She cupped her hands and lifted the water out of the pool and spilled it over his head, in the fashion of baptizing the boy, healing him of Geosigma. He felt the coolness of the water running down his hair, his face and the heaviness of the illness lifting away from him. He smiled as he felt refreshed and whole. Everyone cheered.

Cid waved his arm, "The last one in is a rotten egg!" He hollered.

Yuffie jumped up and down as she watched the children laughed and jumped into the water, splashing around. Sephiroth and Cloud stood side by side, smiling as they watched the children becoming free from the Geosigma. "It's working!" The young ninja cheered.

Cloud looked up to find Aeris squatted next to two children, in conversation with them and Zack standing near the doorway, watching over them. She smiled at the man and he gave a nod.

Aeris stood up and turned to Cloud, "You see? Everything is going to be all right."

Zack smirked as Aeris joined his side and he slipped his hand around her waist as Cloud turned to the children, splashing the water at them.

Reeve, speaking through the cat said, "We are taking the water to Neo-Midgar and start administrating them to the others who had Geosigma. I'm not quiet sure if there will be enough to go around."

Cloud shook her head. "No. But…" She closed her eyes and everyone became still, watching her in silent. Sephiroth moved and stood behind her, his hands on her shoulder as he closed his eyes, knowing from the depth of his heart of what to do.

She clasped her hands in prayer and from her lips, she murmured, "O' Gaia, bring this cure, out to all the children in the world to heal them all." She brought her hands apart and lifted them high and suddenly, the water started to dance, tendrils rose in spirals reaching up to the sky, disappearing. Then the pool disappeared, drained dry of the water and then, by the last drop, it rose to the air and was gone. She opened her eyes and smiled.

"What happened? It's gone!" Reno asked, gaping.

"Don't worry." Sephiroth smiled as he crossed his arms around Cloud's shoulders and rested his head on her shoulder.

"Now the cure is in the air." Cloud said, gesturing to the sky above and everyone looked up and they gasped as they felt raindrops smattering on their face. The rain started to come down, despite the sky was partly cloudy and sunny. They realized the rain was indeed the water that healed the Geosigma.

Cloud closed her eyes once again, hearing the song that no one heard, it was beautiful as the victims of thousands souls of the Calamity cried out in relief, finally finding peace after thousands of years. They were free from bond and now were able to rest. Jenova was no more and there was only Maleficius Sephirt to deal with. She thought to her old hometown, she could hear the voices of those who had died in Nibelheim Crisis; her mother was among them, thanking her. She opened her eyes and knew what she had to do and it was time for her to finally do so, to grieve for them.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

All over the world, every single person had no trace of Geosigma. All those who had one, heard the others that were healed in the rain stepped out and got healed and the rain didn't stop until the last person was healed. It was a joyful celebration for every one that day.

Except for Cloud and Sephiroth, they both had returned with everyone else to the Underwater Headquarter and went straight to bed, exhausted and tired from the ordeal. They slept though the rest of the day, the night and the next day. Finally on the second day, Sephiroth woke up, refreshed and ready to deal with the world. He figures, he would get used to running around and saving the world with Cloud from now on.

He had gotten up early, dressed and went to Cloud's room and sat on her bed, watching her sleep and he enjoyed simply watching her. He couldn't wait until the day they finally marry and share the same bed, holding each other close. He reached out and brushed her hair away from her face and she moved to his hand, feeling the warmth.

Suddenly, the sound filled the air with periodical rings. Cloud's face scrunched up and batted the air above her face. "Sephy…" Cloud mumbled in her sleep and turned over to bury her head deeper into the pillow. "Kill that annoying sound, would ya please?"

"Hm?" He replied and glanced around the room. He saw her crumpled up clothes at the bottom of the bed and pulled her pants to find the cell phone in the pocket. He pulled it out and clicked it open, "Yes?"

"Damn it! Somebody answer now!" Cid's grouchy voice came through. The ex-General blinked and frowned, glancing at the phone screen, noticing there had been quiet several missed calls.

"Oh, Highwind. Cloud's still asleep. What is it?"

"Sephiroth! What the hell you're doing with Cloud's phone?"

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and shifted to sit comfortably on the bed while Cloud curled up in a ball, covering her head with the blanket. He heard the pilot let loose strings of cursing. "You know, she just asked me to kill the offending noises. It turned out to be you." He said coolly. He nearly chuckled at the dead silence he received from the other end and smirked, "Oh, ha, ha. You can't take me seriously. What is it?"

Another string of cursing came batting his ear and he sighed. He listened to Cid ranting and learned that there was a meeting soon and everyone was trying to get hold of him or Cloud since they both had barricaded the doors and locked the world away while they slept. He nodded as he listened and took out his own phone which he had placed a silence on it and flipped to find same thing, numbers of missed calls.

"Two in the afternoon. We'll be there." Sephiroth said and clicked Cloud's phone shut, ending the call. He eyed the vase in the large room, it was almost as tall as Cloud was and considered tossing both phones in the vase but shook his head, there was no use in getting rid of the phone, and Reeve would give them another one. He slipped his own back in his pocket and placed Cloud's on the nightstand. He reached to her and shook her gently, "Hey, wake up Koibito."

She turned to him and stretched, humming slightly and her eyes blinked open, revealing the sapphire orbs he loved to look at. She smiled at him and sat up, her hair mussed up, the strands sticking out in wild abandon and her face flushed from sleep. He found her gorgeous at the moment and couldn't resist, he took her face and kissed her passionately and she returned the kiss.

"That's nice way to wake up." She murmured as they broke away.

"Couldn't help it. You're gorgeous." He smirked as she slipped out of the bed and went right over to the mirror and she shrieked. He laughed at her as she turned around, glaring at him, trying to brush her hair down. "No matter how you look, you're still gorgeous to me, even under the disguise of a young male Soldier you were."

She blushed and disappeared into the bathroom. "I believe you. Love ya."

"We got to go to the meeting at two this afternoon." He glanced over to the clock in the room. "It's nine in the morning. Two days after we fell asleep."

"Two days!?" She popped her head out of the bathroom; he could see she had just taken the shower.

"We slept pretty long; I guess we are not used to having such ordeal so quickly after coming back from the Lifestream. We both got calls from Dr. Severem and she left text message on both of our phones, she wish to see us soon to give us physical exam."

"All right, let me finish up here. Grab my clothes out of the dresser, would ya?" She asked as she closed the door again. He nodded and got up from the bed and went to her dresser, pulling out clothes for her and laid it on the top of the dresser, in reach for Cloud to grab it from the door. Indeed, her arm shot out and grabbed the clothes. He gave chuckles and went back to the table and sat down, waiting for her.

When she finished within few minutes, she came out, brushing her long hair. "What's our other plan for the day?"

"Nothing much, except we need to eat." Sephiroth stood up and took her hand as he took the brush and set it aside. "Come, let's go to the kitchen and grab something." She tugged his hand and he stopped, turning back to her. "Cloud, what is it?"

She looked up to him and smiled softly, "I just wanted to say thank you." She stepped up to him and wrapped her arms around his waist, resting her head on his shoulder. He dropped his face, resting his cheek on her head while he embraced her.

"I am here, always." He murmured to her head. They stayed that way for a while until Cloud's stomach decided to protest and they laughed, leaving the room to the kitchen to grab something to eat and check in with Dr. Severem.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

They were in Reeve's office by two, Cloud and Sephiroth sat with Zack at the couch facing Reeve's desk and the other started to file into the office, luckily for Reeve, he had a large office that could fit everyone in the room.

Reeve smiled as he stood up and held the folder in his hands. "Sorry, I had to make a last minute meeting; this is going to be short. Rufus is not here because he had to stay in Neo-Midgar. He will be remaining there for his office is in the city while I run the things down here." He glanced around the room and saw everyone's nod in approval and continued. "Well, we keep ending the meeting the last two times around but I'd like to get this over with. Zack," He nodded to the raven-haired man who stood up. "He had been acting as a General for a while now and wish to be demoted."

"Then, who will be the General around here?" Scarlet asked, curious as she stood by Cid. Everyone gave sound of agreement to her question.

Zack took the pins off his collar and held them in his hand. "With things are going now. I am not suited for the positions. I keep running off to help and save the world with you guys; I can't stay behind and run things for the Soldiers in the city. For now, I'm going to remain as an active High Colonel, a rank lower than the General." He turned to Sephiroth and handed the pins to him, "General Sephiroth, if you will."

Sephiroth stood up and nodded, "I accept, only until Cloud and I take up the crown in the future." He took the pins and attached them to his collar. "Thank you." He turned to Cloud and took several more pins from Zack who had more of them. "Cloud will be acting Lieutenant Colonel." She stood up, nodding as he placed the pins on her collar.

Yuffie bounced on her heels, clapping with joy, "Ooh! So you guys really are going to become the king and queen after all? When? Do tell me!"

Sephiroth chuckled as he looked over to the wild teenager, "Not until everything is settled and after Cloud and I figure what to do after that. We still have to take care of Maleficius Sephirt first."

"Speaking of Maleficius Sephirt, we need to discuss about the weapons." Reeve paused and saw everyone's blank looks. "It looked like you all forgot about the last three Weapons that are still around?" He rolled his eyes as nearly everyone nodded in guilt. "All right, here is the information on the weapons. We gathered as much we can about them." He handed the stack of paper to Zack and he started to pass them out. "It's not much, but the three of them, we have stats, their strength and where the most likely weakness each has. You guys are the only ones in the whole world who has the ability to take them down. They are starting to show activity and are heading toward Junon Harbor slowly; especially Emerald and Diamond, Ruby is shaking up the ground over at Corel, causing earthquakes. The more Ruby shakes, the entire world will feel the earthquake and it will not be any good."

Cloud read the file and spoke, "They're much stronger than Ultimate Weapon, why?"

"That's right." Reeve replied. "We don't know yet. Their strength are building, it's as if they're drawing the power from somewhere. We could not find traces where they are drawing the power from. I don't want to scare people again like Meteor had. I am expecting you all to get ready to go in and defeat them all and get it all over with immediately and simply you can. I don't know about Maleficius Sephirt. We've been keeping eye all over the world and there is no trace of him appearing anywhere. He is hiding, biding his time." He looked to Cloud, "I understand you had a connection with Kadaj and the brothers. Can you sense him anywhere?"

She shook her head, "No. Since he pushed Kadaj away, disconnecting him and transformed, the connection was cut. Sephiroth and I can't sense him anymore."

"All right."

"Gaia says Maleficius Sephirt is controlling the Weapons now." Aeris spoke up.

Reeve pursed his lips as he thought, "What do you propose?"

"Let the Turks and Avalanche deal with the Weapons while Cloud and Sephiroth deal with Maleficius Sephirt." She said, looking around to see the others thinking.

"But did Gaia ask for Zack, Sephiroth and Cloud to take care of the Weapons?" Nanaki asked from his place on the floor.

"Yes." Zack replied, "But you guys are strong enough to take care of them. With all of you using your limit breaks combined, you can do it. Truth to be told, each one of you are stronger than most Elites in the past, including you, Yuffie." He laughed as he saw the young girl looked hopeful then had a gleeful look on her face. "With right strategy, we can bring them down."

Everyone cheered, feeling inspired and encouraged and they died down into silence once again as Reeve spoke up. "I guess, that close the Weapons agenda for now. I will have the strategy notes prepared and sent to you and we will meet again on that. Now, onto the Ball, despite the situation we are in, we are continuing with it. I've contacted all the world leaders and informed them that they have nothing to worry and they will be coming. I am depending on all of you on this. We need to continue with our lives, no matter with the interference and show the people that there is hope and faith, not the end of the world kind of doom and gloom."

"When is the Ball?" Yuffie asked.

Reeve blinked at the teenager and noticed everyone was looking on to him with the same thought and groaned. "It's tomorrow night. I can't believe you all forgot." Then everyone exploded into chatters, curses and shrieks.

Cloud laughed and leaned over to Sephiroth, "Honestly, I forgot too. With everything going on, granted I forget things."

"Me too. What are you planning to wear? Do you wish for Zack and I to pick it out for you again?" Sephiroth teased.

She slapped his arm, "No. I'll do it. You go and get your suits and hide out with the guys while I get dragged around with the other girls." At that, Aeris grabbed her arms and lifted her up from the couch.

"Sorry, we have to borrow Cloud for the rest of the day. See you later at dinner!" Aeris giggled and was gone with the other females, filing out of the offices, leaving the men alone, wondering what they should do.

"I guess we all should get our suits and then hide out at Asguard?" Cid suggested and then they all shouted their agreement.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud gaped at the girls in the store in the mall. They were chattering up the storm, pulling dresses off the shelves and cooing over some of the styles and doing God know what. Aeris and Tifa was giggling over some of the dresses while Yuffie kept throwing the dresses she didn't like onto the floor and piling them up in one huge piles and there was another smaller one beside her, the dresses she liked and couldn't decide. Shiva was calmly looking at the elegant gowns near the end and the storekeepers were trying to get them to buy the most expensive ones.

She backed out of the store and shook her head. She couldn't do it. She couldn't be among them, feeling overwhelmed and suddenly, she felt herself stopped and turned to face Scarlet, holding a pretty red gown in her hand. "What's wrong, sweetie?" The woman asked.

Cloud sighed, "I can't do it. I've never been one to be like them." She gestured to the store.

Scarlet laughed, "I see. I think I caught sight of Zack and Sephiroth couple stores down with the other guys. They are planning to slip off to Asguard to drink until dinner." Cloud gave a questioning glance. "Ah, I overheard them when I passed them by. Cid's rather loud." She laughed and walked away, "I won't tell them where you went."

"Thanks." Cloud replied and went to search for the two men she wanted help most from. She found the men store for suits and tuxedos and ducked into the store, peering over the racks and found a silver hair and ravens head. She slipped quietly among the suits until she reached their sides. "Hey."

Zack jumped as he felt his shirt being tugged and looked down to find Cloud crouched beside them, appearing as if she was hiding. "Cloud! What?" He asked.

Cloud stood up and glanced around and sighed in relief. "I had to get away from the girls. They were being too girly for my taste. The dresses they chose were way too ridiculous! You both had better taste for me than them! Help!"

Sephiroth chuckled. "We're almost done here. Zack, is the store owned by the same owner still around?"  
"I think so." Zack thought as he mused. "I remember seeing it across the mall. We should head there."

Cloud sighed in relief. "Lets get this over with and I want out of here!"

The men laughed and continued to search for appropriate suits so they could buy it and get out of the store. Cloud stood around, listening to the others in the store, she had spotted Vincent, Cid, Barret and Reeve in the store. She had spied the Turks in another store on the way, they were arguing over shoes.

"Can you believe that?" Cid snorted with laugher. "She wanted you to wear pink!" They had overheard Tifa calling Barret, requesting for him to get pink cummerbund.

Barret growled. "Shut up!" And he slapped the said pink cummerbund at Cid who ducked.

"Pink!? Oh that looked so dashingly nice on you!" The pilot kept on teasing.

"I said shut up! Do you want me to shove that stick where the sun dun shine?"

"Whoa, watch what you say! No one touch my stick!"

Reeve groaned and whispered to Vincent. "That sounded nasty to you, didn't it?"

Vincent snickered. "Tell them that they're starting to sound dirty."

"Yeah, Cid, Barret, stop it or you're going to make it sound like you're happy couple here." Barret suddenly went deep red while Cid cursed and spat.

"Nice." Vincent commented as he pulled out some suit from the rack and gave it a close inspection. "Think this will do for you?" He held the suit over to Reeve who shrugged and took it.

"What about you? Who's your date?"

Vincent promptly ignored him and trailed around to disappear from their sight.

"What?" Reeve asked to Cid and Barret who were snickering behind him.  
"You missed the whole thing. Yuffie came to him…" Barret started and Cid interjected.

"No! She practically jumped onto his back with her grips around his neck. You know how she did that with some of the monsters back then?"

"Yeah and shouted in his ear, 'You're going to the Ball with me and that's that!'."

Reeve's eyes went wide. "She actually asked him?"

"Yea. Poor bloke."

"Oh, this is going to be interesting to see. Is Lord Godo coming? I haven't heard from him."

Cid shrugged as he found his suit. "Yeah and Yuffie isn't too happy about it. Hey, find something yet?" He called over the rack to where Vincent was poking though.

"I already got my suit. I'm just here because you dragged me away from my book."

"When do you think the bastard twin going to show up again?" Cid asked as he purchased his suit, referring to Maleficius Sephirt.

Reeve shrugged as he was next to purchase. "Don't know. Weapons' coming in closer now. I really hope they'll just wait until after the Ball."

"Ball! Just think they're goin' to wreck it?"

"Hopefully not."

Soon, they finally left the store, satisfied with their purchase and sneaked out of the mall without having their dates to find them and drag them away. With success, they went off and headed to Asgard for some drinks, meeting up with the Turks, minus Elena who happened to join with the rest of the girls.

Cloud shook her head, laughing silently at the men and saw that Zack and Sephiroth were finished with their shopping, already had paid to have their suits packed in the box. Then they started to make their trip across the mall to find the store for Cloud.

"Come on! Didn't you want to get this over with?" Zack asked as he practically had a vice-grip on her arm when they found the said store. Cloud was frozen outside, refusing to go in.

"I don't want to go in! It's too much for me!" She had frozen when she saw the store brimming with gowns and dresses. She was never one to shop.

"No." Sephiroth stood his ground, his arms crossed as he blocked her exit from the store. "We need to get you a gown, and that will be it. It won't take long. Won't it?" He turned to Zack.

"Nope. We always had good luck in finding good dresses for you." Zack replied.

"That's right. We don't want you to look like a slut."

Cloud gaped, "What? When?"

"He's talking about when you went to Don Coreno." Zack replied as he pulled a dress off the rack and held it up to Cloud.

She pushed the dress away. "What? Tifa's the one with really, really short dress and Aeris was wearing a red dress! I had a full skirt!"

"That purple dress wasn't that bad on you, Don did choose you over the other two."

"You told me you didn't like it!" She retorted and strained to push against Sephiroth to get out of the store.

"One dress and that's it."

"Oh fine!" She crossed her arms and glared at Zack who were obviously having fun pulling all kinds of dresses off the racks.

"Oh, that's right…" Zack stopped as he put a small slinky electric blue dress back on the rack. "Wonder if Brenda's still here?" He glanced around the store and grinned. "Yep! Oi, Brenda!" He called out to the woman who was at the clerk.

She came around and came to them and gasped. "Zack! I heard… you're supposed to be dead!" She pointed at him.

He smirked. "Been alive for a while. Hey, we're here to get a dress for the Ball tomorrow night."

"Oh! That was the biggest thing; I keep getting lot of customers asking me for ball gowns. I'm running out!" She tucked a brown wisp of her hair back into the falling bun and pushing the half framed spectacle back up her nose.

"Really? Did you happen to have a tall woman with long brown hair come in here?"

Brenda shook her head. "I have quiet few of them."

"Red eyes?"

"Oh yeah! She picked out a rather nice dress."

"Really? What color?"  
"Mm…" She tapped her chin and remembered. "That's right, a nice off white strapless dress with full skirt and hint of pink flowers. You will see tomorrow night if you're going. I hope you're not buying a dress for yourself."

Sephiroth chortled behind Zack while Cloud looked flabbergasted. "Zack!" She squeaked in surprise.

"Joking, joking… it's not nice to scare this poor kid!" He scolded Brenda while grabbing Cloud in a headlock.

"Hey! Let me go and I want out of here!" She complained.

Sephiroth helped to pry Cloud out of the headlock. "Yeah, we gotta hurry up."

"Why? Duty tonight?" Zack got nods from his friends and he turned back to Brenda. "Well. We're looking for a dress for the same girl when we came in before, remember? Short, blonde and all sweet and innocent?"  
Cloud tried to burn hole into the back of Zack's head glaring. "Hello?" Surprised that the store owner had not noticed her standing there. She figured, standing with two tall men, she's bound to disappear.

Brenda's smile went wide. "Oh yes. Goodness, you're still shopping for this mysterious girl." She turned to Sephiroth. "When are you going to tell your girlfriend to do some shopping for herself? I am rather surprised that she had not even yet complained about your tastes in dress yet."

Cloud rolled her eyes. "Not so far yet."

Sephiroth smiled at Brenda. "She appreciated the dresses we picked out in the past." He smirked, noticing that Brenda had not noticed the woman standing beside him. Granted, he figured Brenda was kind of blind.

Brenda shook a finger at him. "Well, the Ball tomorrow night is going to be a bit difficult because without her present, it's going to be difficult to pick a good dress. You know, it depends on the yellowness of her hair and the complexion of her skin to get a perfect dress."

Sephiroth nodded, still smiling, his hand clasped on top of Cloud's head. "Yes, yes. I know. She will do." He pushed Cloud toward Brenda. And the poor woman gasped, finally noticing Cloud. She adjusted her glasses and peered at Cloud.

"What? Oh my! I didn't see you there. My poor eyesight is not so good. My, my, you're rather very beautiful." Cloud rolled her eyes and stuck a tongue at Zack who was silently laughing behind Brenda. She still had no clues stared at Cloud. "Oh no… I am not sure if I have any good dresses for you…"

Zack, now was laughing out loud. "Brenda dear, before you kill me. You always had a good gown for Cloud in the past. Surely you got something."

"Maybe I do. Now you two, go and sit down." Brenda gestured to the bench near the front and the two men obliged, sitting down and pulling up the magazine that was laid out on the bench. They wrinkled their noses in distaste as the magazine was for women, every single page about women, make-ups and fashions.

Cloud followed Brenda to the back of the store and waited while she pulled few dresses from the rack and shook her head, changing her mind. "Ah, I think I have just the dress for you. I had it ordered a long time ago and it was too expensive for anyone to buy. But I can knock the price down for you if you like it." She gestured for Cloud to follow her into the dressing room. "Wait here, I'll be right back."

Cloud waited while Brenda disappeared and came back with a large bag in her hand. "Here we go." She watched as the older woman slide the bag off to reveal a beautiful gown in indigo blue with ivory lace. She gasped as she held the dress up, it was unique and beautiful. "Ah, it suited you!" Brenda gasped as she adjusted her glasses. "Try it on!"

Cloud nodded and slipped behind the curtain and undressed and slipped the gown on. It fitted her perfectly as if it were made for her. The lace gown went under the indigo gown, peeking out in the opening that split from under Cloud's breast to the floor. The top of the gown was tied together, holding it across her breast and thin straps held it up over her shoulders.

"I'll take it." Cloud replied, smiling, liking how the gown looked on her. "I think I'll need shoes to go with it, and maybe a shawl."

"I have just the right thing for it. What size?"

Cloud replied, "Eight."

"I'll be right back!" Brenda disappeared, wide smile on her face. She came back with matching indigo heeled shoes and ivory stain shawl. "Perfect." She helped Cloud to slip the shoes on and placed the shawl on Cloud's shoulder.

"Great, I don't want the guys to see it yet." Cloud said, "I'll take everything." She smiled and went back to redress in her clothes and handed the gown and shoes to Brenda who packed it in a box and took it out to price it up.

Cloud came out and paid for it and took the box. She turned and smiled at the guys, "I'm done."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

In Wutai, Lord Godo had the invitation to the Ball that was going to hold place the next night at the Underwater Headquarter. He wondered why would the president keep the place a secret then suddenly announce to the world the Headquarter was underwater and holding a ball. He turned the paper over to see his name elegantly scribed out in gold, inviting him.

He had left Yuffie behind, leaving her to decide where she would stand. He already knew she had made her decision, to remain with the Avalanche. But he had another plan to bring her back and have her see to his view that she had to stand for Wutai and defend it from the rest of the world. He wasn't going to give up and allow Wutai fall in the hands of people with the likes of Rufus ShinRa. He snarled as he turned to the window from his office, overlooking the garden.

It had not been a month since he left Yuffie and things were starting to fall apart for him. Cloud and Sephiroth was back and from what he had heard from his spies, they were the one who would become the king and queen that the legend had foretold ages ago and it had made him angry. He would never bow to Sephiroth, allowing him become the king for what he had done in the past to Wutai. He figured Yuffie was being a weak imbecile, forgiving the man and following after him.

He was surprised to learn that Cloud Strife was not a simple Soldier but a woman. He had seen her and granted, she was beautiful, ensnaring the men to fall for her. He wouldn't have Wutai fall to her feet for her beauty. There was no way he would surrender Wutai to two of them, no matter what.

He clapped his hands and a servant showed up, "Pack my things." Then he turned to see his commander step into the office. "Select my best guards, I'm going to the Ball, but I'd like to leave at the first notice."

"Yes, my Lord." The commander bowed and left.

He decided, he would give the two a warning and see how they react. His mind turned to Vincent Valentine and he growled under his breath, "I've found you, and I'm not going to let you take over." He muttered as he left his office.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Vincent looked up to the glass window that revealed the ocean on the other side of the glass. A dark shadow passed by and he felt a chill. The sun was setting and the ocean was slowly growing darker and darker by the minutes.

He stood up and heard the knocking at the door and went over to find Yuffie on the other side. "Yuffie, what is it?" He asked, noticing her quiet expression.

"I just wanted to talk. I got a call from my father. He's coming tomorrow." Yuffie said as she stepped in and went to sit in one of the chair. Vincent sat where he had sat, facing Yuffie.

"We heard. It's going to be only one night. I'll make sure he doesn't ruin the night for you. You have fun at the Ball."

Yuffie smiled and nodded. "Yeah. But what are we going to do with Wutai? Father is not going to surrender. He made it clear he doesn't want Sephiroth and Cloud to take crown in the future."

Vincent sat back, lacing his fingers together. "Don't worry. You know I am Kintaro Vin'Tine of Wutai, right?" Yuffie nodded, knowing the Vin'Tine was the Lord of the most southern of Wutai and her father had taken the rule of entire Wutai when the elder Lord Vin'Tine approached old age. "Lord Godo must suspect by now but I implore you to not reveal until I put my plan in motion."

Yuffie frowned, "What do you plan to?"

"In less than a year time, after everything is settled with Maleficius Sephirt and the Weapons, I am returning to Wutai and rally the warriors; I am planning to challenge Lord Godo."

Yuffie gasped, "No! He has the full power of Wutai, he will crush you!"

Vincent smirked, "Ah, but I've been keeping in touch with some of the warriors, and they doubt your father. I'm letting it to sit for now. Don't worry, nothing will happen until it's time. But I ask you, you are Godo's daughter and the princess of Wutai, if ever, your father gets dethroned, and where will you stand?"

Yuffie stood up and went over to the window and gazed out into the sea. She looked older as her face was set in absolute decision. "I disagree with my father's intention. That means only one thing." She turned to Vincent. "I stand by your side, Lord Vin'Tine." She bowed.

Vincent stood up and went over to her, lifting her chin up with a finger. "Princess Yufi, I am honored that you had chosen. Accept this as a token of my thanks." He dipped his head and brushed his lips on her, kissing her.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Madoshi looked to find Megamiki coming toward him. He smiled and encircled his arm around her waist. "Megamiki." Then he frowned, as she started to become invisible. "Megamiki!" His arm went through her and he realized one thing. They were being summoned. "No!"

"Someone is summoning me." She said as she looked at her hand, seeing Madoshi through it.

"It takes a prayer… damn you Maleficius!" He cursed and felt himself being drawn from the astral plane and disappearing as well.

He closed his eyes and blinked, realizing he had become solid and the air was cold. He shivered slightly and noticed Megamiki appearing by him, shivering. They found themselves in odd place, a small enclosed space of stone walls and slab for window, bringing in cold air from outside.

"Where are we?" She asked as she stepped up to Madoshi for warmth.

He took her in his arms, rubbing her arms to keep her warm. "I don't know." He noticed that they were in their human form, not shining with ethereal lights or anything. He frowned and went over to the door and tried it. "Locked. We're locked in." He growled and clenched his hands as he focused intently. His entire being began to glow black aura, tinted with copper red and suddenly with booming explosion from where Megamiki could see through the slit of the window, several fire balled androids crashed outside their cell and on top of the building.

"Madoshi! It's not working, stop." She said, turning to him.

He stopped, breathing hard. The aura faded from his being and he growled. "What's going on? I don't have enough strength."

Megamiki bowed her head, closing her eyes, "We are being severed from Gaia, and we can't draw power from her." Madoshi then felt it and sighed in frustration.  
"Now, now, before you do anything rash… oh well, too late." They turned to the cold drawling voice and found Maleficius Sephirt standing on the other side of the door, looking at them through the bars. "Oh, you made some nice landmarks outside. Not that I care anyway."

Madoshi snarled as he held Megamiki toward him. "What the hell you want with us?"

"Can't have you going gallanting around. You see, I know you two are Cloud and Sephiroth's souls. I don't want you all to rejoin together, becoming strong. Not just yet. I'll have Sephiroth's strength and power before I allow Cloud rejoin with Megamiki." He glanced over to the woman and smirked, "Hm, Cloud's beautiful and with you, she's going to be much more beautiful."

"Never!" Madoshi snarled, holding Megamiki tight.

Maleficius Sephirt crackled. "Ah, there's not much you can do now. There's no going back to the Middle Land. There was only one summon left with you two, you two are now mortally bounded, like Shiva and Ifrit." He smirked, his eerily white eyes glowed.

"As much I hate to say this." Megamiki spat, "Bastard!"

Madoshi smirked, "That's my girl." He glared at Maleficius Sephirt who crackled and turned away, departing down the hall to somewhere, leaving them alone.

She sighed as she rested her head on his shoulder, "What are we going to do now?"

"It was to be expected. Have faith with Sephiroth and Cloud. We still have some of our powers left; we need to let them know." He closed his eyes, still having mental link with his wife and shared the idea he had with her.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Shiva leaned on the railing overlooking the calm sea from Junon Harbor's bay. "I had forgotten how beautiful the sunsets are." She whispered.

A strong hand snaked around her waist and hot breath tickled her neck. "Yes, but life in the Middle Land was adequate enough because I have something beautiful to look at."

She giggled and turned around in the strong arms. "Don't tease me, Ifrit." She looked up at him. "You're not complaining much about being human."

He shrugged as he swept the stray hair back into her elegant do. "It's not much different. At least I got my powers and you."

She smiled and burrowed into his arms more, taking in the hot warmth.  
The peaceful moment was soon shattered with explosive crashes and screaming. They broke away to look up to find several dark flaming mini meteors crashing down on the land and the ocean outside Junon Base.

"What's going on?" Shiva asked as she ran to the edge of the base, finding Sephiroth, Cloud and Zack with Aeris already there, overlooking the land being destroyed by the asteroids.

Ifrit frowned as he followed her. "Meteors…" His eyes went wide when the land glowed white with green tendrils and soon enough all the craters healed over and unmarred as if the meteors had never hit.

Most of the Avalanchers and the Turks were already by their sides.

"Meteors and Holy…" Tifa gasped, recognizing the all too familiar mini scenes. "What's going on?"

"Someone's using their Materias." Yuffie noted.

Ifrit nodded. "No. It was their call for help. Whoever had their Materias had summoned them already."

"Who?"

"Maleficius Sephirt." Cloud replied with malice, her blue eyes blazing dark cobalt. "He got them now. Madoshi and Megamiki are calling for help."

"We don't know where they are." Reno pointed it out.

Avalanches and Turks had gathered together in the President's office after the meteor's show.

"He's right." Sephiroth said. He was standing by Reeve's desk next to Cloud and Zack, facing everyone. The Turks and Avalanche still stood in their respective groups, opposition to each other.

Reeve nodded in agreement. "The Ball's tomorrow night. Shiva, Ifrit, is there any way you could have them revel their location?"

"No. Meteor is too tired. The call for help had worn him out pretty good. Holy couldn't do anything much. Her power is to counter Meteor's damage. Pretty much, they're stumped and stuck."

"What about the building where Gates was using?" Tifa asked.

Reeve rubbed his forehead. "No. It's deserted now. They've moved their location recently. Apparently they had no use for it because it was destroyed by the brothers. I had sent another group of scouts and they had cleaned the place out."

"Shit!" Barret and Cid cursed at the same time with Reno.

They all heard Cloud gasp and turned to her to find her glowing white, her eyes closed. She then spoke, "It was Megamiki, she just told me something." She opened her eyes to reveal pale blue eyes, brightly glowing, and everyone knew it was the eyes of Megamiki, "Maleficius Sephirt is planning something soon, he will attack soon." She blinked and her eyes returned to sapphire colors. "Once he shows up, we will know."

"What is it?" Tifa turned to Cloud. "Why does Maleficius Sephirt want you so bad?"

Cloud looked away, finding the carpet under her boots interesting. "Nothing."

Sephiroth frowned. That would not keep her quiet. "Tifa, they want the power that Cloud has. He wants her to rule by his side as his queen."

Cloud snorted in irritant. "One way or another." She muttered.

"Man. That's terrible. What about Kadaj?" Tifa asked, concerned for the young man.

"Like I said before, he is safe for now. Loz and Yazoo are waiting for him in the Lifestream."

"Sir! We just got in a new report on the Weapons." A Solider came in, holding a piece of paper that seemed to be ripped off from a printer recently. He gave it to Reeve and stood ready.

Reeve took the paper and read it. "Thank you. You're dismissed."

"Yes Sir!" The man saluted and left.

"The Weapons showed some change. Diamond is resting not too far from here." He turned and looked out of the large bay window into the depth of the sea. "There." He pointed to the great distance of the darkness. Everyone moved and peered though the thick glass that made up most of the wall. "The dark shadow."

"I see him!" Yuffie exclaimed, her finger pressed against the glass. A glint of silver shone for a moment and everyone could make out a small shadow crouched in the distance.

"About five hundred kilometer from here. Doing nothing for now. Emerald and Ruby left the area and is heading toward the north."

"North?" Zack asked, "Why would they go to the north?"

Sephiroth stepped away from the glass. "That's where they came from. They're returning home?" He asked Shiva and Ifrit.

The two Summonses shook their heads as they shrugged their shoulders.

"I see. Reeve?"

"There's really nothing we can do. I'm going to send out troops to keep close watch on them. We will have to continue with the Ball as planned."

"Why don't we just go after them?" Cloud turned away from the glass.

Reeve tapped his nose as he smiled. "Oh, no. I can't look like a fool with missing some of you at the Ball. You all are required to go."

"What if I don't go?" Cloud asked defiantly as she knew she would be forced to dance with some of the Lords.

Sephiroth chuckled and grabbed her collar, pulling her around to face him. "He will pull your rank down. Do you want that?"

"Why should I care, I'm gonna become a queen. What's the point?" She replied.

"You don't want to show them up. We are expected to give a good example." Sephiroth admonished gently, smiling at Cloud's defiant expression, knowing she was playing around.

"Oh… all right. I'll go." Cloud sighed defeated.

Zack chortled. "Great! Hey Reeve, are you going to have the Ring of Dance again?"

Reeve nodded. "We can't leave that out. Can we?"

"You must." Reno quipped. "It was funny the last time with Sephiroth."  
Sephiroth glowered at the red-head.

Barret looked confused. "What happened?"

Reno grinned. "Oh, the Ring of Dance… an old tradition of ShinRa for their Ball, if you get the same partner to dance with three times in a row, highly rare because of how many people are involved… you see…" He jerked his thumb to Sephiroth who was glaring with malice at him. "He danced with someone three times! And that means he found his match for life."

"Who was it?" Cid leaned forward, finding this very interesting.  
"A pretty girl in pale blue gown, golden hair and blue eyes. No one knew who she was then..." Reno pointed to the blonde who was standing far away from everyone as possible, hiding under her bangs, her cheeks was hinted pink.

"Cloud?" Aeris giggled.

"Yep. They make a cute couple at the Ball the last time. Boy, that was years ago!"

Elena stepped into the conversation. "Cloud, I remembered something. Why did you run off?"

Cloud muttered something. No one caught what she had said when she turned her back to them. Zack laughed heartily. "Ah, leave her be."

Reeve stood up from his desk and waved his hand. "Well, that's all for the meeting. You're all dismissed."

Cloud looked to everyone; they had left the office slowly, chatting with one another. Sephiroth and Zack walked out last with Aeris, not noticing she wasn't joining them. She needed to do one thing before she could continue. She followed them silently and made a detour, slipping past them and took off.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The crystalline forest glowed with the usual ethereal light. The lake shimmered, reflecting the lights from the trees and the large conch shaped temple sat beside the lake, shimmering in colors of mother of pearls, everything was peaceful, silent and soft sound of birds sang in the tree.

Cloud closed her eyes as she sat before the monument she had set up. It was a simple black stone, made of marble, its surface smooth, yet there was names etched on the stone, several names in fact. Her hand covered the names on the stones as she prayed silently for the souls that she had lost in the past several years.

She opened her eyes as she heard soft rustling sound of clothes behind her. The soft heavy footstep with familiar rhythmic steps came up behind her. She knew who were standing behind her. "Sephiroth." She said softly.

"Love, it didn't do me any good having you disappearing off all the times. I was worried. We all are." Sephiroth chided gently as he watched Cloud rise from her knees, brushing the blue dirt from her clothes and faced him. Her eyes shone with wet tears. He reached out and wiped them away, "Koibito, what grieves you?"

"Just grieving for my family. I had not had a chance to grieve for them." She said, looking over his shoulder to see Zack and Aeris standing behind Sephiroth, watching them.

Sephiroth nodded softly, taking her in his arm as she rested her head on his shoulder. He looked down to the stone monument set in the ground. He read the names and saw few familiar names, "They are the people of Nibelheim, aren't they?" He asked.

"Yes. From what I remember of those who were lost in the fire." Cloud replied. She gestured to the title on the stone, it titled, 'In memory of Nibelheim'.

"Ah, and the other stone?" He asked, gesturing to the small one next to the large one, it had only four lines. The first line, he read, "In loving memory of Cloud and Sephiroth's sons, their children that shall not have been." He felt his heart clenches at the letterings. "Loz Daichi Strife-Valentine, Yazoo Hideaki Stirfe-Valentine, and Kadaj Katsuro Stirfe-Valentine. Those are good names for our boys." He murmured in approval.

"They never were given their Valkyrie names. I felt the need to give it to them." Cloud said as she knelt, brushing her fingers over the names. Tears spilled from her eyes. "Even though we only know them very short time, I can't help but love them so much. They are our children, children that should have never been born, never to experience so much pain and suffering."

Sephiroth knelt beside her, taking her shoulders to bring her to his chest as she cried. "Koibito, they are at peace. At least Loz and Yazoo are. We will help Kadaj and bring him peace."

"I know. I know." Cloud replied, her voice muffled by his jacket.

"It's almost over; all we have to do is to deal with Maleficius Sephirt. We don't know when he will strike next." Zack said, breaking the silence that hung in the air.

Sephiroth stood up, helping Cloud up and they turned to Zack and Aeris. "Yes. We are prepared for him. We cannot let him try and take the planet."

Aeris smiled, "I've read the tome, there is nothing mentioning in the tome where Maleficius Sephirt will win. Have faith; trust that you will win in the end."

Cloud shook her head, smiling as she wiped her face dry, "How ironic. I thought, killing Dark Sephiroth will bring the end but only to wake up few months later to see that there was more troubles. I truly hope that Maleficius Sephirt will be the last of the Calamity of the Sky people we have to deal with. The rest of them, they're at peace." She gestured with her hand to the sky, recalling how she had felt healing the children of Geosigma. She had heard their voices, the voices of thousands in joy, finally free after eons to truly be at peace. She was glad Gaia had allowed those souls to reside in the Lifestream, seeing they had no where else to go and they were happy.

"You and Sephiroth," Zack said as he cupped both of their shoulders, "are the core to everything in our lives. All of us, the Avalanche, the Turks, the ShinRa, and thousands many other people, the Core of our fate and our future. We believe and trust in you two. I know it is a lot of burden but we are behind you one hundred percent of the way."

Sephiroth smiled at his best-friend, "Yes. We've accepted the fact that we are to lead you all into the new future," He turned to Cloud and saw her nod. "But we are going to need help."

"That's why fate had brought all of us together, to help you as we had been in the past few years." Aeris said as they huddled together, holding each other. Cloud looked over her shoulder to the small tablet stone in the ground and silently promised, _I shall avenge you, my loving sons. _

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s **

_Feedbacks, reviews, pretty please with yummy Reeve Reese pieces? _

_Daichi – Great First Son _

_Hideaki – Excellent and Bright _

_Katsuro – Victorious Child _

_In Cloud's world, only few people have middle names, those who are Valkyrie or descendent of Valkyries has middle name, and they are called Valkyrie Name. Cloud gave her sons their Valkyrie Names to honor them. _

_Yay, someone posted on a forum at The Unoffical Help Desk of a way around to get the chapter posted. The next chapter will be up soon as I finish it. Still a lot needed to be fixed. HUGS!_


	49. S4:10: The Core

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . **

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N . **

Chapter Ten: The Core

_He that committeth sin is of the devil; for the devil sinneth from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that he might destroy the work of the devil. _

1 John 3:8, The Holy Bible

The Grand Hall of the Underwater Headquarter had been transformed into a dazzling ball room, music floated in the glass dome; the fishes swam around, feeling the vibration of the music that resonated through the water from the dome. The entire place was tastefully decorated in the new theme of blue and gold, the new color of Neo-Midgar. Flowers and stashes were tired everywhere in elegant looks. Golden light shone the entire room from the massive glass chandelier that hung in the center of the dome over the room. The floor had been cleaned and waxed to perfection, carefully investigated by Reeve, knowing in the past one year that the wax had been overdone and hundreds had been reported with sprained ankles and broken legs from the popular game of the Ring of Dance.

Pacing back and forth in his office, dressed and ready, Reeve mumbled to himself, "Is everything set? All the food and music here? Are all the guards and Soldiers on duty and posted?"

Katarina Zora, his secretary and date for the night grabbed him and forced him around to straighten his dark royal blue bowtie that matched his suits and brushed away the invisible dust from his straight tailored suit. "Shut up. I checked through everything a few minutes ago. The door had been opened and nearly everyone is in there, except for you and your friends. Goodness they know how to linger out in Neo-Midgar and Junon Base, hiding away in bars until the last minutes. I had a quiet hard time trying to find them, knowing they turned their cell phones off or silent!"

Reeve exhaled and gave a nervous smile, thankful for the wonderful woman before him. "Sorry. Got too much on my mind. Is my speech ready?" He asked and was handed a small stack of note cards.

"Everything will be okay. Come on, let's get down there and mingle. You have about an hour before your opening. Rufus is already there, it's really good to see him up and about walking, fully cured and just in time!"

"Yes," he smiled at her as she did one last time adjusting to his bowties and took her hand. "You look beautiful tonight." He gave an affectionate gaze, taking in the sight of her. She was wearing simple a line spaghetti strapped dress that fell to the floor with a slit up one side to her knee and was in deep purple, almost matching his ties and cummerbund. He leaned and kissed her cheek as she blushed.

"Thank you; you don't look too badly yourself." She replied and they both left his office to head to the Grand Hall together. They could hear the festive music playing, echoing though the corridors.

As they reached the entrance, they found most of Avalanche huddled in group, already arrived, talking and sipping away at their glass of champagne. Reeve caught sight of Yuffie trying to grab a glass for herself but was kept denied by Vincent who pulled the glass away from her before she had a sip.

"Yuffie, forget it. I would not be responsible having you making fool of yourself." The sniper scolded softly as he took a drink for himself and grabbed a cider for the ninja who accepted with protest.

Vincent had dressed himself in Wutaianese traditional robe of deep crimson and black, looking every bit an aristocratic lord. Yuffie looked beautiful herself, a true princess of Wutai, her hair hanging down her shoulder with soft curls and dressed in kimono of pale gold, patterned with peach sakura and nightingale birds and dark green obi tied with gold rope.

Tifa was standing with Cid and Barret, deep in discussion over which monsters were the toughest they had faced in the past. It had come down to the Behemoth and the Red Dragons aside from the Weapons. She wore a strapless gown with full skirt in pale ivory with hint of Victorian lace on her bodice and tiny pink flowers scattered across her skirt. Her long brown hair was tied up in elegant do with pink flowers smattering across the back of her head. Barret and Cid had opted to wear simple tuxedo with matching color bowties and cummerbund to their date's gown, Barret's in dark pink and Cid in crimson. Scarlet came around and tugged Cid to the dance floor, she had on a simple crushed velvet crimson gown, surprisingly enough, not revealing but it showed her assets very nicely.

Reeve smiled as he greeted the group and searched around the large room, seeing nearly everyone who was invited showed up. He spotted Rufus, in white suit, looking handsome talking to some lords. His jacket was knee length and he wore pale yellow shirt underneath with white ties that had gold accent in it. He turned to Katrina, "Dear, I must greet the other guests." He bowed and left his date to stay with Tifa and Scarlet, mingling among the guests, greeting them.

Above everyone, they could see a large glittering silver submarine, Mjlinor, circling once around the dome and disappearing below, carrying more guests. Two more rounds were expected of the submarine to the surface to bring in the last of the guests.

The Turks were found near Rufus, sticking together in their own group. Reno and Rude looked semi-causal in their formal suit, their ties weren't tied but left hanging loosely around their neck and Reno didn't tuck his shirt in. It was expected of them, they never was up to par to the protocol of the dress code. Elena was otherwise, beautiful with her short hair tied up in French twist and dressed in olive green gown that shimmered gold every time she moved. The gown had accented her eyes. Reeve greeted them with a wave and found a group of lords, including Lord Godo. He joined them for a brief chat over political discussion.

Zack, Sephiroth and Ifrit had waited in Zack's quarter, all had already dressed up. Ifrit stuck to his ancient clothing in deep red, gold and dark maroon robes, his wild hair had been tied back in a tight formal tie of a warrior. He looked more of a noble royal from the myth of Wutai. Zack and Sephiroth both wore their formal uniform of dark blue, nearly black trench coat that fell to their ankle and split in the back. Underneath, they both wore their riding boots, had been spit shined until reflection could be seen on the surface. Sephiroth's boots was usual; it rose to mid thigh and was clasped with silver bands while Zack's were just knee high. They both had similar trouser and high collared white shirts. Zack was more bluish in hue while Sephiroth was blackish. Their hairs were also tied up in high pony tails, tied in topknots much like Ifrit.

The original Ragnarok was currently strapped to Zack's hip, sheathed. Sephiroth had Masamune to his hip as well. Reeve told them to keep their weapons close by in case of anything. Cloud's Ultimate Weapon was already secured at the ball under one of the table where Masamune and Ragnarok would join soon.

Shiva came though the door first, beautifully dressed in shimmering ancient gown of white, hinted with violet tints. She looked more of a goddess than anybody. Her bluish hair was tied up in beautiful decorated topknot with the rest streaming down her back in coils and tied off with golden rings at the end.  
Ifrit smiled his rare smile and took her arm into his arms. "Ready?" He asked.

She nodded and turned to see Aeris and Cloud come out of the bedroom together. Aeris had chosen a pale vermilion pink empire-waisted gown and dark burgundy corset hugging her torso deliciously. Her hair was swept up and coiled in twisted coiffure with trailing curls over one shoulder. She also had deep crimson ribbon silk choker emphasizing her pale neck.

Zack grinned as he took Aeris's arm and turned to Cloud and gawked. "Whoa, that's new!"

Aeris and Shiva laughed while Cloud blushed crimson.

Sephiroth looked impressed as he stepped up to her. "I think she look beautiful." He took her hand and kissed gently on her palm, close to the wrist. Her indigo gown flowed from underneath her breast line to the floor, the center split to reveal a lacy ivory gown and the top was buttoned with tiny pearls in the center holding her gown across her breasts. Her long hair had been left down in loose curls and on her head was simple small golden crown, almost disappearing within her hair, yet it shone with contract. She had the shawl around her shoulders.

"I like this gown, it's really nice." Cloud murmured softly as she fought the blushes down, feeling rather exposed.

Zack nodded with enthusiasm as Sephiroth's arm snaked around her waist. "It's cool, really cool."

Sephiroth's baritone laugh rumbled. "Let's go and make our appearance to the audience." Cloud took a deep breath and allowed to be guided by her date.

The six left the quarter and made their way to the elevator that would take them straight to the top floor where the Ball is at.

The blonde fidgeted as she twirled a finger in her hair. Sephiroth looked down and noticed that her hair had been curled softly and bangs framing her face softly with some tendrils falling into her eyes playfully. He took her finger and brushed the stray bang that fell directly into her blue eyes. "Don't worry, you look beautiful." He kissed the top of her head, giving her a small hug. The elevator stopped and the door opened.

**  
LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

Reeve breathed a sigh of relief as he finished his opening speech and the music started to play and the floor was filling up with dancing couples. "That was good, honey." Katrina greeted him as he stepped down from the stage and handed him a glass of wine.

"Thank you dear. I haven't seen the others…"

Rufus came up to him, smiling, "That was a good opening. I was wondering where Zack and Sephiroth are, with their dates. I haven't seen Shiva and Ifrit too."

She turned her head and saw the elevator open. "There they are. Oh my, Shiva look beautiful!" She watched Shiva and Ifrit get off, followed by Aeris and Zack and then Sephiroth with Cloud. She frowned as she narrowed her eyes. "Who is that Sephiroth with?" She asked.

Reeve followed her line of gaze and his eyes went wide as his mouth formed an 'O'. "I believe that is Cloud, my, my, she looks rather beautiful."

Katrina whipped her head to Reeve. "What? Cloud Strife? Isn't she… oh my goodness!" She turned back to find them heading toward them. Nearly everyone within their line of sight turned to stare at the six people walking though.

"Hey Prez!" Zack greeted as they met and turned to Reeve grinning, "Sorry for the late arrival. Did we miss the opening speech?" He pouted as he saw Reeve nod.

Reeve chuckled and turned to stare at Cloud, who was blushing, her eyes downcast. "If I didn't believe it, I believe it now. You look wonderful, fitting to be a queen." He took her hand and kissed it.

She pouted. "Thanks."

Sephiroth swiftly took the Masamune off his hip and placed it under the selected table along with Ultimate Weapon and Ragnarok. "I apologize for missing your opening speech."

Reeve shrugged. "Don't worry about it. It might bore you. At least you all are here."

Across the room, Yuffie tugged onto Vincent's sleeve as she tried vainly to look over the crowd. "Hey, is that Ifrit and Shiva?"

Vincent, easily taller than the youth, nodded. "Yes, they're with Reeve. Sephiroth and Zack are over there, no doubt Aeris and Cloud too."

"Oo… let's go and see them! I wanna see Cloud in dress! In all of my time knowing her, she only wore the stupid ugly uniform! Even though she did look good with the new outfit lately."

Vincent's dark brow shot up. "Oh really?"

"Yeah. Aeris bought a pretty gown and I wanna see too!"

"Let's go. I am getting a bit bored with Barret and Cid's conversation."  
Yuffie squealed in delight and started to drag the sniper across the room.

Scarlet sighed as she rolled her eyes, getting really bored of listening to Cid and Barret's discussion, or rather, arguments. "Ciddy, please watch your language here!"

Cid gave her a look. "Hey, I can talk whatever I want to."

She glared back. "Come on; let's find Reeve and the others. I think everyone else had arrived."

"Oh, all right."

"I'll go find Tifa and join ya'll soon." Barret then left to search for Tifa who had been kidnapped by some group of women to gossip over something he had no idea about.

Vincent and Yuffie arrived and joined the slowly growing circle around Reeve. Sephiroth and Cloud had disappeared a while ago to grab some Makohol that were served at the bar not far away.

"Oooh! You're so beautiful!" Yuffie gushed as she eyed the healer's dress.  
Aeris's cheek tinted. "Oh, Yuffie. You're pretty too. I love the dress!"

Zack rolled his eyes and turned to Vincent. "It's confusing. One moment, on the battle field, they're tough warriors and the next, slipped in gowns; they go all sappy and girly."

Vincent gave a shrug. "I don't know. I had spent most of my time keeping her from trying to sneak in a drink of wine. She's hyper as she was on the field and in the gown; it's all the same for me."

Zack looked offended. "What? You're denying the girl some nectar?"

"She's too young."

"Too young to drink or be your date, eh father?" Vincent's eyes narrowed as he turned around to find a smirking son of his who were handing glass of bluish substance to Zack and Ifrit. "How old is she?" He asked. Zack chortled behind Vincent.

"I believe she is going on to be eighteen soon."

"Come on, Vincent, let her drink some. I drank when I was her age and younger. Ask Zack and Seph here."

The sniper tilted his head to the side, recognizing the voice belonging to Cloud who was hidden behind Sephiroth's form. "Oh?" Sephiroth stepped aside to let her though.

His control, as everyone knew crashed; his jaw dropped as his crimson eyes bugged. "Cloud?" He goggled at the woman before him, familiar with her tough image but the moment, she had transformed into a goddess, none the less.

Cloud nodded, blushing. "This is embarrassing… No matter what, they still can't get used to me."

Vincent regained his composure. "Well, that was surprising and unexpected. You're rather very beautiful and Sephiroth is a very lucky man." He all forgot about Yuffie who came to stand by his side gawking with bugged eyes.

"Cloud! Wow!" Cloud winced at Yuffie's declaration which turned some heads. "I am so jealous. I can't ever be pretty as you. Heck! You were handsome as a guy too!" The teenager gushed and pouted.

Cloud rolled her eyes. "Yuffie," She stepped up to the teenager and brushed the girl's brown hair away from her shoulder, "You're pretty too. You got a hot guy too boot." She winked and giggled as she noticed Vincent blushed slightly.

Yuffie looked up to Sephiroth. "Yeah… but I ain't becoming your step-mom!"

Sephiroth gave a look that looked close to teasing pity. "Aww, I didn't have a mother, why can't I?" He laughed at Yuffie's shocked look. "Not that I want you to be my step-mother. Vincent may be my father, but he is more of a good friend to me now, seeing we are all adults here." He took Cloud's waist and brought her closer to him.  
Yuffie rolled her eyes and batted Sephiroth and went over to Vincent. "Poo, you're too funny." She said sarcastically and then spotted Tifa and Barret coming their way and waved. "Tifa!"

The brunette smiled as she joined them with Barret, Cid and Scarlet in tow. They gushed over how Cloud looked and then Reeve interrupted them.

Reeve chuckled. "I believe it's time soon time for Ring of Dance, try your luck again, Sephiroth?"

There was some more cursing, but softer than Cid's choice of words and Reno, Rude and Elena joined the group and they started to line up on the dance floor.

"Hey, where's Nanaki? Did he come or not?" Tifa asked.

"I am here if you must know. Cloud, you look gorgeous." Tifa twirled around to find the wolf coming toward them with a bowtie around his neck and his mane tamed into something tamer.

"Nanaki!" Cloud cried. "Come and dance too?"

"Ah, no. I'm four legged and I believe it requires two legs to do some complex moves." He smirked and went over to the side and sat down to watch "Save me a dance later, would you?"

Reeve chuckled and dragged Katrina to announce the traditional dance.  
"Let's go, this sound fun!" Tifa gushed as she dragged Barret away to the floor where everyone was starting to form into circles.

Cloud and Sephiroth looked at each other with loving reminiscing and nodded to each other. He held out his arm and they both went to the floor to join the rest. Soon, the two circles facing each other were formed, Reeve and Katrina finally joined them and the music started.

With the increasing tempo, the two rings started to move in synchronized complicated steps, yet everyone went along smoothly, feeling the rapid beat and adrenaline rushing. Then, the music stopped at a heart dropping sentiment and everyone discovered their mysterious partner.

Zack and Reno, who happened to be near each other grinned at one another and greeted their partners in front of them and started to dance away as the waltz music started up.

"Hey, did Sephiroth join the dance?" Zack asked, looking about as he came close to Reno.

The red-head looked around too. "Yeah, saw him with Cloud a while ago joining. Oh! Look… shit! That'd be the fourth count!"

"No shitting kidding?" Zack asked, still looking around until Reno pointed where Sephiroth was some way across the floor. His eyes went wide.

Cloud and Sephiroth had parted and joined the different rings and parted as the music had started. They knew there were no chances to ever encounter each other in the dance, they had their chances before and this time, they would have fun. However, fate decided differently. They both ended up together again.

"May I have this dance?" Cloud gasped at the familiar voice and looked up into the green emerald orbs.

"What chances are there?"

"I do not know." Sephiroth smiled as he took Cloud's hands and they both waltzed away together.

Yuffie giggled as she danced with her father who happened to join the Ring of Dance and ended up her partner. "Cool huh?" She was surprised to see her father at the ball and was told by Vincent to be wary of him. With years of being a ninja under her belt, she was able to cover up her suspiciousness.

"I believe so. It is an interesting game." Godo replied, leading his daughter, he was searching for a good time to tell her something and decided to wait until after the dance and before the dinner.

"Zack told me stories how Cloud and Sephiroth would end up together three times in a row. Can you believe it? Ooh, they're dancing again! That must be number four!"

Godo frowned slightly. "What?"  
"Well, you see, in the Wutai legends, you know. They're the King and the Queen! I can't wait! They've been so good to all of us; even Sephiroth is a really nice guy once you get to know him."

Lord Godo looked over and found the said two dancing together, they looked good together and even he had to admit it. "Look can be deceiving." He said.

Yuffie then realized her father was tense the entire time she was talking about Sephiroth and Cloud. When she heard him and knew in her heart, her father was still against Sephiroth. She was glad the music ended, signifying the dance as over. "It's nice to dance with you, Father." She said a bit stiffly and bowed. She turned and left to rejoin the circle. She watched from the corner of her eyes and saw her father didn't rejoin for the second round of the dance but went off and talked to one of his warrior guards.

Zack came up to her, taking her hand and stood by her, "What's up?" He asked.

"Father is being suspicious. I think he is up to something about Sephiroth and Cloud. He doesn't want them to take crown, we all know that but I have a feeling he is planning something soon." Yuffie replied in soft whispers.

"Really?" He looked over where Yuffie had gestured with her head to where her father was across the room, gesturing slightly with the guard toward Sephiroth and Cloud.

"Yeah. He's telling the guard something…"

"Well, whatever Lord Godo has to plan, he is going to have to wait until after we deal with Maleficius Sephirt and the Weapons. We have enough on our hands, but we will keep eye out on Wutai for now." Zack said as the dance started up. He leaned forward as they kept going around, keeping pace. "You're not supposed to know this, no one is. But, Rufus and Reeve is noticing a lot of Wutaianses Soldiers and commoners lately, we suspect them to be spies."

Yuffie nodded and the dance stopped. She looked up and laughed as she had a female partner to dance with. "Well, we'll talk more about it later. Bye!" She laughed and danced off with the woman.

Zack shook his head and danced with his partner, another woman. He figures he will need to get Sephiroth and Cloud have meeting with Yuffie and saw that Yuffie had traded partner with Vincent and was talking quietly with him. He decided then that Vincent would be included too.

He made his way closer to Sephiroth and was just a person down from him. "Hey!" He laughed out loud then, "Wow, fifth time!?" He asked as he saw Cloud smiling up to him.

Sephiroth shook his head in amusement. "It must be fated."

"How about sixth time?" Zack asked as the music ended and they filed to create the ring again for the last time.

"Fate or me?" Gaia's voice teased in Zack's head.

'Gaia! You did this on purpose?' He asked with revelation.

"Oh, poo. Can't anyone see that they're destined to be together? Haven't the dance sealed it?"

Zack laughed and danced away, losing track of Cloud and Sephiroth somewhere in the ring dance.

To Gaia's meddlesome, Sephiroth and Cloud ended up together again. How anyone would wonder, no one knew. The last music was long and sweet.  
Cloud was just glad to curl up in Sephiroth's arms as they swayed to the soft beautiful music, watching the dark blue water outside the dome with fishes swimming about.

He rested his head on top of Cloud's soft golden hair, basking in the comfort and fullness of her body molded against his body, humming along with the music softly and he decided it was time, he couldn't wait any longer.

Tifa watched the two as she danced with Barret. She had switched partner, returning to Barret. It slowly dawned on her that the two actually completed each other in every way and was glad Barret loved her and she knew she was falling for the ruff and tough man.

Zack had ended up with another male partner and they both decided to sit this dance out. He returned to the table where the weapons were hidden underneath and checked to see if they were there and they were. He took a glass of Makohol and sipped at it, watching the fishes swimming closet to the glass.  
Zack remembered something and smirked like a devil. He strode across the floor when the music was ending. He finally approached his two best friends who happened to be in the right spot of his choice, the center of the floor.

The people around him noticed and drew back, giving the three some spaces. Sephiroth looked ever confused at his best friend when Zack tapped onto Cloud's shoulder. The blonde turned around and tilted her head at him in innocent confusion. Zack chuckled and went down on one knee and took Cloud's hand in his and from the side, Aeris gasped loud.

"Cloud, would you marry me?" Zack asked, grinning at Cloud.

Sephiroth had the look of utter betrayal on his face, his hands balling up in fists. "Why… you…!"

Cloud blinked few times. "Uh…" Zack giggled. "Mu…marry you?" Cloud finally found her voice.

Sephiroth thought differently and grabbed Zack's collar harshly, drawing a fist back, ready to release it. "Whoa! Whoa! Hold on a there! I was kidding! Seriously!" Zack waved his hands at his best friend and laughed.

The silver-haired paused as his eyes narrowed into dangerous slits. "Don't you ever dare to pull that stunt again…" He whispered dangerously and dropped Zack to the ground and then chuckled. "Good one."

Cloud became flabbergasted. "What was that?"

Sephiroth turned to her and then dropped to one knee, just as Zack did. "Cloud…"

Before he could continue, the entire room plummeted into darkness, only the greenish glow from the outside light reflected the ocean, casting aquamarine dim light. Several shriek and scream filled the air. There were murmurs of confusion spreading though the room.

A burst of light exploded in the center of the room and more screams rose.  
The air suddenly filled with malicious laughing and another burst of light exploded to see Sephiroth being clearly blasted away across the dance floor.

Cloud gasped as someone grabbed her harshly around the waist. Zack's yelling registered soon and she turned to see Maleficius Sephirt holding her with laughing malice on his face that could rival the goblins of the north western forest. His eerily white eyes glowed in the dark and she could feel the malice radiating from him. She struggled and fought with her nails but found he was too strong, it creeped her out greatly that he resembled so much like Sephiroth. Using the last resort, she opened her mouth and let out a loud banshee screaming and he winced and his grip went loose for a moment but grabbed hold of her once again.

Sephiroth quickly got up and ran toward them and jumped to grab Cloud away from Maleficius Sephirt and was slammed into the ground where they had stood, there was an invisible shield surrounding them. Then they disappeared instantly and Cloud's scream was still echoing.

"No…" Sephiroth stood up and shook with visible rage. "Nooo!" He yelled, his voice overlapping the echo of his kidnapped love. He soon burst in white light with blue edge and two wings of black and white exploded, spreading from his back.

Zack fell to his knees in shock, his ears still ringing from Cloud's scream.

Aeris ran toward Zack and knelt beside him. The entire room was still dark save for the aquamarine light reflecting from the depth of the sea with silver soft glow from the full moon above breaking though.

She held him in her arms, realizing he was shaking and picked his face up to face her. "Zack… there's nothing you could do. He caught us all by surprise."

He looked at her with horror in his eyes. "But… Cloud… damn him."  
They both turned to find Sephiroth kneeling, visually shaking, both wings curled around his body in tight embrace.

Shiva and Ifrit ran to Sephiroth and stopped as he stood up, his wings fading away. "Sephiroth?" Shiva whispered, stepping forward.

"He will pay." His voice nearly resembled the Dark Sephiroth's malice and emptiness which send chills down the Avalanchers' spines as they gathered around him.

Rufus came to the stage and whipped out the microphone as the back up light blinked, giving the room eerily green glow. "Please remain calm. I am sorry that the party will have to come to end. Mjolnir will be ready for those who need to return to the surface. I highly advise for all of you to return to the surface tonight. I apologize once again." He paused and watched everyone chatted quietly among themselves. "I am going to have Enterprise and Syrinx also brings you to the surface as well. Those who want to go to Costa Del Sol will need to aboard Syrinx."

The Enterprise was the largest and fastest marine fleet for Neo-Midgar, had been a secret project by Scarlet for the ShinRa and had been recently completed. It was designed for both underwater and surface, holding up to three hundred of passengers. Syrinx was a smaller one, also fast, only able to carry up to fifty passengers.

He spotted Lord Godo standing near the entrance and saw him whispering to his guards, gesturing something with his hand as in saying, 'never mind', and turned around, hew as the first to leave. He frowned and turned to find Vincent and Yuffie watching Lord Godo too. He gave a questioning gesture to Vincent and he shook his head and mouthed, 'later'.

Slowly over the hour since the event, Reeve and Rufus had dispatched many Soldiers and Troops to find the problem with the power and got it back on and escort most of the guests and residents from the underwater Headquarter, which it's name had not yet to be announced at the party, to the surface.  
Ifrit and Zack had escorted Sephiroth back to his quarter and tried in every possible way to calm him down. The Turks and Avalanchers gathered in Reeve's office, waiting for the President finished giving out personal apology to many leaders.

"What are we going to do?" Elena asked as she sat on the edge of a couch where Reno and Rude lounged with Scarlet and Cid.

Tifa paced back and forth, taking up half of the room, her dress slightly hoisted and her shoes in Barret's hands. "Cloud's the one who know what to do. She's gone… What about Sephiroth? Where is he?"

Shiva popped at the door. "Ifrit and Zack are trying to calm him down. He's about to blow half of the place apart but settled to destroy Zack's living room."

The eyes went wide all around and they suddenly heard the distant crashing and yelling several floors below the office. Zack has a quarter that was directly under Reeve's office.

"Oy… wasn't that the vase from their room just now?" Yuffie asked as they heard a loud crash and a distinctive Zack yelling somewhat cheerfully that he hated the vase and was glad to get rid of it.

Aeris chuckled. "I believe so. Oh… Look at those submarines." She stood before the window, watching Enterprise making its circle around the Headquarter and departing to the surface.

Tifa joined her side and watched the other submarine arriving from its trip to the surface. "I think we all were taken surprise. What do you think will happen?"

A Trooper burst into the room and looked around panicked. "Where the President?" He asked.

"He'll be shortly." Reno stood up. "What is it?"

"Diamond Weapon is showing off the chart now! He's heading toward Junon!"

"What?" He took the paper out of the Troop's hand and read it. "Oh shit! We have to get up there now!"

"What? There's no way of getting to the surface!" Cid stomped his foot, unable to stomp his staff because he had not had it with him.

"Actually, there's a way." Yuffie stood up and pulled out a small card. "I still have it, the clearance card. There's a hidden elevator from the Headquarter straight to Junon Base."

Barret looked like he had been blessed with Christmas. "Oooh. Das guten!"

Tifa gave him a look. "When did you learn another language?"

The blond pilot snorted, trying to cover his snickering. "There's some Lords talking to Barret during the party… keep talking to him, he'll learn to talk like them."

Reeve and Rufus with Tseng finally arrived and frowned at everyone. "What are you doing here?" Rufus asked. They all snapped into rigid position and the Turks saluted. The President's brows shot to the hairline. "Eh? What's this?"

Reno crackled. "We're reporting to duty, President Sir."

"Shut up and sit down." Reeve snapped as he moved to his desk and pulled out a folder which clearly had a large stamp on it saying 'Top Secret'. He flipped it open and thumbed though the papers for a good while before looking back up at everyone who was watching him with some intensity.

"Right, get out of here and… Damn it!" He cursed as the entire building shook with impact. Everyone could see silver armor of Diamond passing by the window. The alarm went off and blaring, flashing red lights everywhere.

Reeve slipped his head into his hands. "Deal with Weapon. I'm sending Sephiroth and Zack ahead to find Cloud. Turks, help Avalanche to dispose Weapon and do it immediately. We have too many bystanders still transporting."

The same troop came back in the room. "Sir! We're leaking in East Corridor, level eight though eleven, section fourteen to twenty two. We're shutting it down now."

Rufus stood up. "Is everyone out? That's where the guests are residing!"

"Sir, we're evacuating now, Level Nine though Eleven had been cleared out."

Barret jumped from the couch with panic. "Marlene and Denzel! They's there!"

"What?" Tifa twirled around and suddenly remembered that Marlene was staying at Level nine in Section Twenty, where most of Avalanche's quarters were. "Who's with the kids?"

"Elmyra! You know she can't run that fast!"

**  
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In Section Twenty, the corridor was dark, rapidly filling up with several feet of salt water. The Troops had checked though the entire level and declared it empty and set to shut off. However, in a quarter where they had failed to check laid two sleeping children with their nanny, unknown to the troubles.

"Marlene, did you wet the blanket?" Elmyra asked, getting up from the bed and fumbled around to switch the light on, the light flickered and shut off again. "Oh, the light's off."

"No Auntie Em, my blanket's salty."

"Mine too… It's really cold." Denzel said, sitting up in the dark. He moved and found the water was near the edge of his bed.

Elmyra gasped as she put her feet down to find several feet of freezing water sloshing around. "Marlene, Denzel, stay where you are!" She waded over to where Marlene sat on her bed, clutching to a ragged teddy bear.

"Auntie?" Her young voice was laced with curiosity and worry. "What is it?"

The elder woman grasped around and found Denzel had joined Marlene on her bed and they both were holding hands. She grabbed hold of Marlene's hand. "Denzel, hold her hand and follow me." They got out of the bed, sloshing through the freezing cold water. She reached the door and gasped softly, "Oh no, I can't remember the way out!" She peered out in the green lit dim hallway.

"It's this way." Denzel pointed westward while Marlene clutched onto the teddy bear. The water was slowly rising.

"You may be right." Elmyra said and gestured to the water. "It's flowing that way, let's go."

"Level Eleven Locked down. Level Ten shutdown in two minutes. Leve Nine shutdown in three minutes. Level Eight shutdown in four minutes."

"Oh dear! We have to hurry!"

"What does it mean?" Marlene asked, trying to hide her fears.

"Don't worry. We need to get out of here. Oh… where is the blasted elevator…" She stopped and found one, pressing the button frantically and realized it wasn't working. "Oh…" Elmyra was on edge of becoming very frantic and stopped to breath. She can't afford to panic in front of the children.

**  
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"Denzel! Marlene!" Barret shouted as he reached Level Eight, being blocked by several Soldiers telling him he could not pass.

Tifa punched a guy out and pushed the other one out of the way. "Out of my way! You bastards! There are children down there!"

Reeve was behind them. "Hey! Are you sure they're not with the others?"

"We checked. No one had seen Elmyra, Marlene or Denzel along with the others. They're still down there."

Barret growled and grabbed Zack who had joined them. "Where the damn phone?"

The raven haired General fumbled though his pocket and found his cell phone. "Here!"

Barret grabbed it and pressed several numbers and held it to his ear, listening to the ringing. It went on for a while until a soft voice came though. "Oh my dear! Someone help us, we're stuck at Level Nine by the elevator."

Barret cursed. "Em! Stay there! We're coming!" He turned to Reeve. "Is there another way down there?"

"I'll get them." Sephiroth came around the corner and then turned to dart down the corridor.

"Hey!"

Zack took hold onto Barret's arm and took the phone out of his hand. "He will get them out. Trust him. He knows the place inside out. We have to get up to Junon Base. Diamond is preparing to attack. You saw his damage on Midgar."

"Right…" Barret reluctantly agreed.

"Elmyra, Sephiroth's coming to get you guys."

"Thank you." Then the phone clicked off.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

Sephiroth had completed destroying Zack's quarter to his expenses and felt slightly better until Diamond came around. Quietly cursing in his mind, he flew down the corridor and turned corner to skidding and flying down the next level. Two more levels and he would be there. No children should ever suffer the wrath of the evil. Marlene… he remembered the child though Cloud's meeting; a sweet shy girl with cropped brown hair and large brown eyes. She should be a bit older than he remember. And there was the young boy, Denzel, like everyone else, he reminded him of Cloud, seeing her through his eyes.

His uniformed jacket billowed behind him with some dramatic effect. He skidded again on another turn of level. Thankfully Reeve had build this part of building that each level was connected without stairs or elevator if any of the two were out of service. But it was a long way down. He stopped and looked around, there was water filling up ahead and the red light of the alarm was blaring around. The salt filled his nose, it was heavy and he could hear rushing and pouring of the water some distant. The air was becoming chilly.

"Damn!" He heard the countdown for Level Nine shutting off. The barrier was going to close in less than fifteen seconds and he knew Elmyra and the kids was some distant away.

He patted his coat and pulled out a handful of Materias that he always kept by him. "Great… hope they'll come in use." He grabbed the small purple Materia and murmured a spell. "Sorry man, there's no time." He then pulled out a mastered green stone and slipped into his metal wristband's slot, he then slipped a red one into the second slot.

"Level Nine Shut Down. Level Eight shut down in thirty second."

Sephiroth glanced behind him to see the large door slamming shut and clicking loudly, locked. He sighed and pushed against the strong current of water that was rising to his waist down the dark corridor toward where Elmyra and the kids would be waiting for him.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

A string of curse spewed from the dark man as he paced back and forth on the large elevator going up to Junon Base. "Hear that? They locked the level! Sephiroth's going to get it if he didn't get them out."

Tifa grabbed hold of his arm and tugged onto him. "Hey! He will get them out! Here." She pushed several mastered Materias into his hand. "We're going to need that for Diamond."

He glanced down and shrugged as he took each stones and slipped them into his metal arm slots. "Good thing Yuffie kept them all on hand." He muttered, nodding toward Yuffie who was handing out the stones.

"No worry! Always come prepared!" She quipped and handed few powerful ones to Zack. "Hey, does Sephiroth have some?"

Zack nodded as he slipped the stone into the Ragnarok. "I gave him some before he took off." He had Cloud's Ultimate sword strapped to his back, feeling he should not leave it behind in case he or Sephiroth needed it, after all, they three were the only ones in the world who could handle the weapon.

The elevator stopped and everyone turned to the door and swallowed hard. "Here we go." Reeve murmured, holding his own weapon, the Marvelous Cheer Megahorn, finally going to face the battle in person at last. He wasn't too happy when Rufus shoved him along with the others.

"Aw, it's actually fun!" Yuffie assured as she pushed him off the elevator and onto the ground.

He looked up and went pale. Diamond was looming overhead, shaking as it gathered hot white power in its chest. "Are you sure you really need me here? There are plenty of you guys."

Zack chuckled and dragged him along, following after Avalanchers and the Turks. It was a odd sight, twelve people and a wolf in their formal evening attire, armored with their powerful weapons, flanked before Diamond in formation of two V's, the front who were suited for frontal battle and the back for the distanced battle.

Tifa, Aeris, Yuffie and Elena had hoisted their long skirt up by one side to give them more freedom. Most males had ditched their jacket and loosened their ties. Several spells were being murmured and before anybody knew it, clashes of powers exploded and burst against Diamond's short bursts.

**  
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While down in the abandoned Headquarter, Sephiroth turned and finally reached the corridor. "Elmyra?" He called out and waded in the water that went up to his chest. It was becoming harder to get though and he wondered how the children were faring, since the water level was higher than their heights.

"Over here, oh thank god!" Elmyra waved, trying to hold a crying and shivering Marlene over her shoulder and was failing because Elmyra was trying to hold onto the pipe that ran along the ceiling. Denzel was floating beside her, also trying to stay afloat with his swimming skills.

Sephiroth swam over to them and grabbed hold onto the pipe. "It's going to fill up here. There's no way out except one." Elmyra paled. "You don't mean…"

"Yes. The crack where the water came in from."

"Oh no! It's so deep, I can't swim!"

"You won't have to. I am sorry I will have to…"  
Elmyra looked at Marlene who was practically blue and shivering violently. "Is that the only way?" Denzel were silent, listening as he tried to stay brave, he was also turning blue.

"Yes. I promised Barret I will get you all out. Do you trust me?"

"Aeris trusted you, so does Cloud. Yes. If you have to, do it."

Marlene looked up at Sephiroth with her glassy eyes. "Is it going to hurt?"

Sephiroth gave her a soft half smile. "No. Think of it like sleeping." He touched her forehead and murmured the spell. Her eyes closed, her breathing had slowed to stop and finally slumped.

Elmyra choked a sob. "Oh… what is that spell?"

"Death. Very swift and painless. Don't worry. I have Retrieve and Phoenix on hand. It's your turn." He turned to Denzel who gave a silent nod. He did the same to the boy and became limp; he grabbed the boy and slung him over his shoulder. He turned to Elmyra. "Get on my back, I am going have to strap you to me and do the spell. I can only carry two with my arms."

She nodded and went to his back and he used the sash from her robe to tie her to his back. He then touched her forehead that she rested onto his shoulder. She felt his warm hand on her cold skin and suddenly, she felt flash of coolness and then nothing.

He sighed, taking the children under his arms and ducked under the water. He thanked the rigorous training in ShinRa Military for swimming. It was a really long way toward where the water came steeping though. Stopping at the very end of the corridor, he faced a solid wall. There was no air left in the area. _Look like I'll have to blast my way out of here_. He reached into his pocket and searched for a specific stone that would do the trick. _I only have Leviathan. Here goes._ He held the Materia and willed the summoning of Leviathan.  
Soon, he felt something ramming the wall before him and swam back with the children in his arms.

The wall crumbled and gave away, giving in rush of water and Leviathan loomed before him. _Glad to see you again!_

She blinked at him and stuck her head into the hole. _'You too, my dear. Get on my back and I'll bring you to the surface.' _He obliged and swam to her back and held on for his dear life as Leviathan shot to the surface. He was about to lose his air.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

"Damn, come on!" Cid yelled as he blasted another round of Dragon Drive, "Zack, where is Sephiroth? We could use him now!"

Zack gave him a face. "Shut up! He'll be coming soon!" He then swirled his sword around, creating illuminating spell and burst as he jumped high, releasing the infamous Omnislash as Vincent transformed and let loose Chaos.

"We need to combine all of our best Limit Breaks. He is starting to weaken." Chaos's disembodied voice echoed over the loud blasting of several spells hitting Diamond.

"Right." Zack agreed as he landed back on the ground. "Everyone… ready?"

Everyone fell into formation of a large W before Diamond, silently concerting as they called up their powerful Limit Break. The Turks surprised everyone by showing their own ability of having Limit Break coming out forth from their dominant state. Tifa, Elena, Rude, Cid, and Red jumped up and released their physical blows upon Diamond while Barret and Reno powered up their spell casting and let it loose as the first had fell back. Yuffie and Reeve came in next, releasing their weapon upon Diamond.

Zack came in next, bringing up Omnislash and jumped. He saw a flash of ebony and silver joining his side with Masamune. "Seph!" He grinned as Sephiroth winked at him as he drew out the Ultimate sword and unlatched it, loosening several blades. Sephiroth took the base with several attached and Zack took the second base with the rest of the blades. They both yelled together, "Omnislash!" and their swords danced together in synchronized dangerous blows, giving their most powerful attack and fell back, watching Diamond stagger and crack, finally with blinding light it exploded into millions of stars and was gone.

Aeris stepped forward, holding her Princess Guard above her, twirling it around, whispering a small rhyme. The air about her shimmered and glowed, spreading outward, enveloping everyone, healing them all.

"Ooh… I've forgotten how good that felt." Tifa smiled as she stepped up to Aeris. "Thanks. It's too bad you couldn't mend the clothes." She fingered her tattered skirt that was streaked with dirt.

Aeris returned the smile. "Don't worry; we can always get another dress." She turned to Zack to be embraced by him in a protective hug.

Sephiroth watched the two and turned away, stalking off to the distance where he had left Elmyra with the kids. "Thanks, Levi." He whispered as the sea dragon disappeared under the surface. He knelt before the girl and placed a hand over her forehead, whispering a spell. He couldn't retrieve them then because he had to join Zack in delivering the final blow. He knew Zack couldn't do it on his own and he could tell that his friend was already becoming tired.  
The light shone from above, dancing on their faces and they blinked their eyes open.

He smiled and repeated the spell on Elmyra, rousing her to life.

"Oh, that was odd." Elmyra muttered, rubbing her head. "So that was death like?"

Sephiroth chuckled as he leaned back against a tree, tired. "I guess." He closed his eyes and breathed in the salt air.

"Uncle Sephy, are you okay?" Marlene asked, crawling into Sephiroth's lap and facing him, brushing his bangs away.

He opened his eyes and smiled softly at her. "I am fine."

Denzel shook his head as he settled next to Sephiroth. "No. You are not. You're sad."

He looked at him with wonder. "Really, is that so obvious?"

"Yeah. I think it will be okay." Marlene rubbed his cheek in a cute affectionate way.

Barret arrived, staring with strange look on his face at his adoptive daughter and son sitting in Sephiroth's lap. "Yo?" He knelt beside them. "Thanks for getting them out."

Marlene turned and placed a finger on her lips. "Shh. Uncle Sephy is sleeping. He's really tired and sad."

He glanced over to the silver-haired warrior, finding him asleep. "Yeah, come on… why are you wet?" He picked up the girl.

"He got us out." Denzel said with tone saying, 'Duh!'

Elmyra took the children and chuckled nervously. "Yes. It was wet down there. Not to forget cold. Let's find somewhere to get warm." She retreated away.

"Huh?" Barret blinked and winced as Tifa slapped his head.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

"Bastard!" Cloud spat as she yanked herself free from Maleficius Sephirt and slammed to the cold stone ground rather harshly.

"Oh, do be careful, I don't want you to hurt yourself…" He grinned at her and gave her a leering look. "You have nothing to worry about from me." He knelt down and caressed her face. He snarled as she snapped away from his touch and grabbed her face roughly. "You will listen to me."

She spat in his face. "Never! I do not belong to you or anyone!"

"We will see about that when everything's over." He blinked and went motionless for a moment before smiling a chilling smile that made Dark Sephiroth's malice a simple mischief.

"What did you do?" She asked, whispering as she scooted back against the stone wall of her small prison.

"Keeping your friends busy." He drawled as he stood up. "Don't worry, you're not alone." He turned and left the small room with the door slamming shut and with sound of locks falling in its place.

"Huh?" She asked as she stood up, brushing her dress and then scowled, realizing it wasn't the matter. She turned and saw two familiar figures. "Megamiki?"

Megamiki was sitting on a single cot with someone hidden in the shadow, a shadow in the shadow as it seemed. She looked up and gave her a weak smile. "Cloud." She looked weak and dimmed of her etherealness.

Cloud felt pang of sorrow. "Megamiki… what happened?"

"The cell around here… Maleficius is drawing our power away from us, making us weak. You will feel it soon. Madoshi got it worse because he had used most of his strength to summon the call for help."

Cloud snapped her eyes to the dark corner and saw the pale skin shining dimly in the dark, "Madoshi… Yes, the meteor showers. Yes, we saw it." Cloud slumped to the floor next to the cot and watched the dark handsome face of Madoshi ashen pale and breathing raggedly as he stumbled to the cot. "Is he going to be all right?"

"I don't know. The place..." Megamiki replied, whispering as she returned her attention to her husband.

"Right. Maleficius Sephirt will not get what he wanted from me."

"Oh, it doesn't matter any more." Megamiki smiled at her and rose to cross the room where a basin and pitcher of water was set. "Water?"

"No thanks. Had something to drink before the whole thing."

"All right. It's here; always constantly refilling itself… it's laced with Mako. The only thing we can drink if we want to survive."

"Mako… Damn bastard." Cloud muttered, looking away. "Not much it

would do to us, after all, we have Mako for blood."

"True, yet it still tastes foul." Madoshi chuckled weakly from the cot.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

Sephiroth's eyes opened, the whiteness blinded him for a moment and soon, he gazed around. He recognized the surrounding as soon it became vivid. He was back in the Northern Cave, where Cloud had at one time given Dark Sephiroth the Black Materia, just before the Weapons were released. The ice surrounded him and glowed in mystic color, swirling and dancing softly.  
He turned and met the blue eyes glaring at him.

"Cloud!" He reached out and stopped, realizing that Cloud was in her blue faded uniform, holding the large weapon of Ultimate Weapon. His eyes trailed down from her eyes to the weapon and watched it, falling into an almost trance and then suddenly with burst of realization, the sword was swaying rhythmically and in familiar dance.

"Cloud… no…" He stepped back, feeling his long coat swish around his legs and looked down. He was back in his usual uniform from before, Masamune in his hand, ready as well.

He looked back up at Cloud. She was crouched, her body moving in rhythms, dancing slightly on her knees as she clutched the massive sword in her hands. Her face was set maliciously, glaring with the cold eyes.

"Cloud…" He called out again, holding his hand out as he dropped his long odachi.

Suddenly, Cloud stopped her trance and stood up, her serious face melting into somewhat of a fear and horror, also holding her hand out.  
"Sephiroth…" She blinked and looked around, suddenly hugging herself, her clothes had changed into the familiar evening gown she had wore to the ball, slightly tattered at the edge, also soaked and splashed with mud. "I am so cold… its freezing." She kept rubbing her arms and sighing, her breath came out fogged.

"Cloud!" Sephiroth made move to embrace her and found his arms went though as if she was invisible. "Cloud? What is happening?" He asked as he tried to brush her tinted red cheek but his hand went though again.

She looked up at him, her hand at her cheek. "Maleficius Sephirt has me. Megamiki and Madoshi are here… Madoshi is dying… weak. Megamiki is holding on barely. I would be next but Maleficius Sephirt is keeping me alive."

"Damn him." He whispered sadly as he stood, unable to touch or hold her. "I will get you out soon. What can we do about them?"

Cloud shook her head and looked up, her brilliant blue eyes shone. "There is something I didn't tell you, because I never found the time. They are part of our souls. Madoshi is half of your soul while Megamiki is half of mine. We are their reincarnates. I can help Megamiki; rejoin her soul with mine but Madoshi need to do that with you too. Maleficius Sephirt wants me and Megamiki to join but I won't, it will give him the upper hand. He wants to absorb Madoshi but he can't until Megamiki and I are joined. So that's why you need to come."

"No wonder." Sephiroth murmured at the information. "I'm coming soon."

"Hurry… It's really cold here…" The scenery around them changed and suddenly, Sephiroth found himself in the cell where Cloud had been held. This time, she was alone. She turned and glanced out of the small barred window. "He moved me into this room… colder… We're in the mountain… I think… the northern crater is just over the hills." She pointed though the bars.

Sephiroth moved to her side and looked out. "Yes… you are far from the Icicle Inn… I know where… this place." He turned and growled. Maleficius Sephirt had entered the cell, the door locked behind him with malicious smile on his face. He gave a leering look over Cloud and stepped forward.

Sephiroth growled louder and stepped in front of Cloud, yet Maleficius still made move, as if he wasn't there.

"Don't bother…" She whispered behind him. "You're not here… Wake up…." Her voice was fading and suddenly, he became transparent and faded to the background, but his sense of presence was still there, he was back in Cloud's mind again, like those times before, he was watching everything from behind Cloud's eyes and hearing from her ears.

Maleficius finally reached the other side of the room and grabbed Cloud's arms. She gave a small shriek and he slapped her hard across the face.

Sephiroth winced as he felt the stinging pain across his cheek. "No! Stop!" He shouted but found it was useless. He fell silent, watching the world though Cloud's eyes.

Maleficius Sephirt pressed his lips hard onto her lips, biting, causing her to bleed and tore away the robe, whispering in her ear as he trailed down the unwanted kisses down her neck. "You're mine and always will be. Accept me and be my queen. Join with Megamiki!"

She winced and turned away, only to be roughly pulled back. A forceful kiss found way to her lips and she unwillingly gave in. Sephiroth screamed and shouted but it all fell to deaf ears and everything fade away to blackness.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

"Seph!" Zack struggled as he held down trashing Sephiroth. Finally, the man woke up, shot up to the sitting position and eyes wild, looking around. Zack stepped back with soft gasp, recognizing the blazed hatred in his friend's eyes. "Seph?"

He stood up, rigid and hands clenched and unclenching. "Cloud… Maleficius Sephirt is going to pay." His voice was low and ominous.

Avalanches and Turks stood around had taken another step back to give the man a room. They took another step back as they heard his voice that sends ungodly chills down their spines. His eyes were blazing green with such malice and hatred, that he looked very powerful and dangerous. His body was tinted with blue and green hot aura, sizzling and sparkling light lighting around him faintly.

"Seph…" Zack bravely stepped forward. "He will… did you get in contact with Cloud?"

Sephiroth blinked and turned to Zack, not even faltering in his rage. "North Crater… The old Chocobo Bill's house."

Reeve stepped forward from the crowd, standing next to Zack, feeling it was the safest distance to be closer to Sephiroth in this state. "Mjolnir is ready."

Sephiroth nodded. "You all go. Zack and I are taking the Chocobos."

Reeve's jaw dropped. He knew Cloud's breed of chocobos was the easiest the fastest, even faster than any all-terrain vehicles that Scarlet could come up with.

Zack's eyes went wide. "But there's only one we can ride…" He was speaking of Golroth, the fastest golden bird.

Sephiroth turned his back to everyone and held two fingers to his mouth and gave a shrill whistle. After a long moment, out of the tree lines came darting out was Silver, the black sleek bird. He knew of the bird, remembering from Cloud's tale of the bird.

"But no one can ride that bird!" Zack protested. He was right, only Cloud was able to ride the bird. The black chocobo stopped few feet before Sephiroth and gave an objective wark after looking around the group, its ebony eyes blinking.

Sephiroth stepped forward, his hand touching the dark golden beak and caressing. "Cloud is not here. Take me to her, help me." He spoke softly, staring into the large eyes. The large feathered head bobbed and the black bird crouched low enough for Sephiroth to slide onto its back without any problem.

Zack stood there with amazement on his face. "Whew… you're damn lucky. Cid here tried to ride the bird and got kicked in the chest at one time."

Cid snorted as he rubbed his chest in memory of the pain. "Damn bird…"

Sephiroth gave a tired half smile and turned the bird around. "Come on, Zack, get your bird."

Soon, Zack and Sephiroth sprinted off to the northern horizon, speeding off in the darkness.

"They'll be there by sunrise. We will be along shortly after." Reeve announced as they boarded the submarine ship.

**  
LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

Zack bobbed his head against the golden head of the chocobo, blinking and groaning slightly as he nearly dozed off, going at the bird's top speed, nearly three hundred miles per hours by the speed, almost as if they were just flying over the surface. Their fast scaly legs and claws were unseen, being a blur underneath. To fall off at this speed, you're a goner.

Sephiroth gave a commanding whistle and soon, both birds came to stop over an island. "Zack, drink this. We have a long day ahead." He handed his raven haired friend a vial.

Zack took the vial and took the stopper off the top and sniffed the content. "Ooh…" He wrinkled his face. "What is this?"

Sephiroth gave him a glance before turning his eyes back to the ocean ahead of them leading to the Northern Continent. "New mixture. Scarlet just had a whole batch given out recently to Soldiers. I'm surprised you had not heard of it yet."

"Whatever man… I'm too busy to pay attention. What's in it?" He asked as he swallowed the whole vial and sputtered as the taste hit his mouth. "Ugh."

Sephiroth gave a tired chuckle. "Megalixir with all of the Sources potions. Only take it when you're tired and headed into a big battle like this one. It's designed for those who have Mako."

"Whoo!" Zack crowed as he perked up. "I feel like I'm on the edge!"

Sephiroth shook his head and drank his own vial. "Let's go."

"I got a question to ask ya." Zack sped up his golden chocobo and kept it astride the black one. Wind whipped their hair as they rode.

"What?"

"What's going to happen when we get there?"

"Be ready for Emerald and Ruby. I am going after Maleficius Sephirt."

"What about Holy and Meteor?"

"They're with Cloud. Cloud told me that they are our incarnations, but they hold part of our souls. We need to rejoin with them to become whole and we can be able to defeat Maleficius Sephirt. Cloud tells me Maleficius Sephirt wants to absorb Madoshi's power but couldn't until Cloud is joined with Megamiki. She's holding back as much she could for us."

"Shit…"

"That's right. We're nothing but bugs to him until we are whole again." Sephiroth deadpanned.

"Geez, the way you tell a joke sound so dark…" Zack muttered as they both reached the shore of the destined land. It was very, very late into the night and morning was approaching with promise of a pretty dawn up ahead.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

Cloud spat and scraped at her skin, trying to get rid of the feeling. "Uhg…" She looked around the room and recognized for the first time where she was really at. "Just great…"

Wincing as she stood up, her dress was thrown across the room with her tattered jacket. She felt very dirty and used. The cold was biting her skin and she groaned slightly as she kneeled to gather her dress up and slip it back on. The zipper was broken but she wanted to feel more clothed. Pulling the jacket on, she still felt naked and exposed.

Pulling it tightly around her body, she moved to the door and peered though the slot. It had only been an hour since Maleficius left her alone after having time with his personal 'darling doll' as he called her.

"That bastard…" She sneered as she stepped back and fell down at the corner, huddling her knees to her chest and closing her eyes, trying to wash the horrid memory away.

Maleficius Sephirt had been very careful, stripping her clothes away harshly and leaving her to biting cold of the snow that fell though the open window of the small cell that once was a chocobo stable. The straws were old and wet, provided useless to create any warmth aside from the dry stone floor across the room. He made sure she felt everything of his touch, kisses and threatening promises. But it had left her shivering and feeling dirty inside. No, he had not gone to the full extent, as he had wanted to, leaving her intact for later.

"Later. When everything is over, you will be mine, mind, body and soul." His whispered promises left echoing in her mind along with the distant screaming rage of Sephiroth.

"Well, that was a mistake…" She whispered to herself as she huddled tighter into a ball and allowed the tears flow freely from her eyes. "He's coming…"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA **

Maleficius Sephirt's white eyes looked up and scanned the mountainous horizon. The area around where the small hut was located provided the terrain dangerous and difficult to reach. The jagged mountain with hidden danger underneath the innocent snow and glaciers threatening to swallow anybody who dare to cross whole. A favorable spot for the strongest and fastest Chocobo to come and hide away, where all the rare Sylkis Green are, sweet and strength boosting plant that ensures speed, intellect and stamina for those who eat it.

"Ruby…" His voice whispered against the wind as his mind touched the massive ancient red monstrosity of Gaia's creation. "Stand guard. You'll have toys to deal with soon."

Across the mountains, though the screaming blizzard and down the slope of the Icicle Range into the soft warm promising forest and green lust grass field, the massive reddish Weapon lumbered out of the cold salty sea onto the field and stood there, waiting.

"Emerald, stay where you are. Assist Ruby when needed." He commanded to the green Weapon who held strongest attack, easiest the powerful monster of Gaia's.

He turned and smiled as the whipping wind swished around him. "Ahh, just a good day to die." His eyes watching over the horizon where no normal people can see.

He watched Sephiroth and Zack emerge over the silent black sea on the south coast, coming toward them. He turned and returned to the cold hut which he held Megamiki, Madoshi and Cloud imprisoned.

"Soon, you will be mine, along with the world." He knelt and gave Cloud a lingering caress on the cheek while she grimaced and spat at him. He gripped her chin harshly with scowl on his face. "You will come to accept me, no matter what." He snarled as he stood up.

"How many times have I told you that I will never?" Cloud whispered low and menacingly as she stood back up, back still pressed to the wall. He grabbed her and dragged her into the other room where Madoshi and Megamiki stayed. They both stood up, wavering and watched warily as Cloud fought against Maleficius Sephirt.

He simply smiled and lowered his head down to kiss her with force. Megamiki gasped and turned away. The blond resisted with what's left of her fighting strength. Her fists pounded against his chest for a while until she stopped.

He drew away, ghost of smile playing on his lips as he watched her hands fall to her side and her eyes pale and almost completely white with no traces of her usual shines.

Megamiki's head sunk, closing her eyes in perpetual sorrow, "Oh mother… help us all."

Madoshi took her hand, "Have faith, love… I shall see you soon." He leaned over and kissed Megamiki's lips, tasting the tears upon them. He sat back and waited for the worse, glaring at Maleficius Sephirt with hate.

Cloud's hand rose and rested onto Maleficius Sephirt's chest, her voice impassively, whispering, "I'll always be yours." Then she held her hands out, her head thrown back as she started to call Megamiki toward her.

Megamiki opened her eyes and gave a sad smile to Madoshi. "Soon…" She started to fade and the mist of her being swirled and disappeared within Cloud's body, causing her to jerk and glow white, her soul becoming whole.

Maleficius Sephirt grinned as he watched Cloud; she stood stock still, her eyes pale, almost white with hint of blue irsis. She was in his control, with the full power of Holy. He turned to Madoshi and wagged his finger, "You're next." He shot forward and grabbed hold of Madoshi. He used his strength to absorb Madoshi even though Madoshi wasn't of his soul but the power was useful.

Madoshi shook, fighting the strength that sucked his being away. "Damn you…" He cursed and faded away, his being swirled in black mist and absorbed right into Maleficius Sephirt.

Across the mountain, Sephiroth reared Black and gasped as if something stuck him, "No…" Feral rage burned as he threw his head back, his voice echoing across the snowy peaks, "No, Clo-ouud-dd!"

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s **

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, with yummy Sephiroth in the shower!? Oh wait, he's mine. (Holds back Sephiroth and tosses you the rest of the crew and also keeps Zack and male Cloud as well). Tee-Hee. _

_Odachi – long, long katana. Masamune is the good example. __J_

Second version – Hikaru, here you go. Its more believable now.


	50. S4:11: The Crisis

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S .**

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N .**

Chapter Eleven: The Crisis

_And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself._

Revelation 19:11-12, The Holy Bible

"My love, your mother will banish us to separation forever…" Madoshi whispered in the dark of the night, only the moon illuminated the two forbidden lovers.

"I know. Alexander and Jenova are with my sisters now. They will be safe. If mother ever finds out about those two, there is nothing to worry; Mother has soft heart for the children. What would you suggest if ever, we were to separate and never meet again? I don't think I can live with out you." Megamiki murmured softly as she held onto Madoshi for her dear life.

Madoshi growled softly as he held Megamiki close to him. He knew that Megamiki had done the right thing, taking their twin children, only babes to the women in the Nibel Mountain, to be safe from her mother's wrath. He agrees that he could not live without the lovely woman and surely, he would die from his immortal life. Then, it hit him. "Megamiki!" He pushed her away, still holding her as he looked into her lovely face, brushing the stay platinum blond hair from her face. "If ever we get banished and separated for eternity, I will die that moment." He said, smiling.

She gasped; affronted that he had so little hope. "Madoshi! How could you!"

"No!" He laughed, "Think about it, if you die too, we both will be reincarnated, surely, we are drawn together by our souls because our love is too strong. I have much stronger faith than you think I have." He smirked at her.

Her eyes went wide at his revelation, "Madoshi… yes. I'm sorry I didn't think you had faith. Yes… I would die too… I love you too much to be separated. Let us do this if it comes to that. Not even Mother or Father would ever separate us for eternity." She smiled at him and leaned up, kissing him.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Megamiki thrashed in her Father's hold, Ouranos was too strong but he held sad face as he held his beautiful daughter from escape. Gaia was enraged and he knew better to not cross his wife, he watched as Gaia shout at Madoshi who stood not too far, staring at them with inexplicable hate. Madoshi was glowing black aura, tendrils licking out as he shook with unfathomable rage.

"No! Madoshi!" Megamiki shouted, reaching out to Madoshi.

Gaia narrowed her eyes at her daughter, "You betrayed us! Our own daughter! With him! He is the bane of our universe! And you know better than to sully your pureness with him! Banished, you both, forever!"

"Noooo! Mother!" Megamiki shouted as her Mother waved her hands in pattern and murmured a spell. She felt the pain and bucked as her father let her go; she looked to her father and saw a tear from her father's eyes. She smiled despite the pain and looked to Madoshi who stood apart, gasping in horror. "Madoshi, I love you… I shall see you again soon." She closed her eyes and pulled out a beautiful dagger with white hilt. It was a gift from Madoshi, if needed, she would use it even though Madoshi hoped it would never come to it, but alas, it did.

Gaia opened her eyes as she finished the spell, watching her daughter become banished, to become a Summon, a slaved being, however, it was too late as she saw her daughter stab herself with the dagger. "Megamiki! No!" she shouted and turned to Madoshi. "What did you do?" Megamiki fell to the ground, bleeding profusely and swirled, disappearing.

Madoshi growled softly and lowly he said, "Never will you separate us for eternity. Our love is too strong. The dagger…" He pulled out his own, a black one with silver and black hilt. "It's coated with poison enough to kill a god." He reached with his free hand to the sky and used his power, searching out in the universe for the closest and the largest object, "For this, I shall avenge Megamiki." He clenched his fist, as he had found something nearby, and loud whistling noise swelled in the air, they all turned and looked to the sky, a large hunk of rock, aflame with orange and red flame much like Madoshi's crimson cloak came hurling down. It struck the planet and Gaia gasped loudly as she clutched her shoulder. Ouranos ran to her side and saw that her shoulder had been shattered, bleeding heavily.

He turned to Madoshi. "Why?"

"If you love Gaia so much, you would know how much I love Megamiki, I cannot live without her; she is my soulmate, my love, my life." Madoshi said his tone flat and even. He brought up the dagger and Gaia gasped, she shot her good hand out and murmured a quick spell. The spell wove around and covered Madoshi. They saw him plunge the dagger into his heart and he collapsed before he disappeared.

Gaia rolled her eyes back and fell down, fainted. Ouranos knelt beside Gaia and brushed her brown hair away, "Oh, Gaia…" He murmured and looked over to where his daughter once was and there sat a small tiny white stone. He looked over to where Madoshi was and a large black stone was there, with both stones, lay the daggers. He rose and gathered the stones and the daggers. He closed his eyes and nodded, he felt his daughter and Madoshi's souls in the stones; however, weak and spent, part of their souls had escaped in attempt of death, ripped apart.

He opened his brilliant golden eyes and looked to the cosmo. "I hope you find each other once again. For it won't be immortal life you will have. Hopefully by then, Gaia will forgive you two." He glanced to the dagger and lifted them to the space, letting it float suspended before him. "My gift…" He murmured, "When time comes, you will learn to love and protect." The silver and black dagger grew long and transformed into a beautiful odachi, deadly and dangerous, "Madoshi, one day, Masamune will return to you and you will use it for a different purpose." He turned to the white dagger and waved his hand, it grew large and shimmering, into a beautiful large broadsword that shone with all colors in its sheen surface. "Megamiki, with strength you find, you shall rule with Ultimate Weapon." The two swords disappeared and he turned to Gaia, still sleeping and lifted her up. "Oh, Gaia… you have a lot to learn before you meet them again someday." He murmured and laid a kiss on her forehead and turned, they disappeared in flash of sparkles and light.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Across the mountain, Sephiroth reared Silver and gasped as if something stuck him, "No…" Feral rage burned as he threw his head back, his voice echoing across the snowy peaks, "No, Cloouuddd!"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud's hand rose and rested onto Maleficius Sephirt's chest, her voice impassively, whispering, "I'll always be yours."

Maleficius's lips curled up. "It's not so hard, isn't it, my love?" He whispered by her ears and looked into her now pale iris-less eyes. He laughed, feeling renewed and stronger, with the strength and power of Madoshi in him, he felt like a god.

She slowly nodded her face devoid of any emotions as she stared blankly. "With the Dark Lord, a queen stands by, not dark but beautiful and terrible as the dawn. Stronger than the foundation of the planet, all shall love us and despair!" She said softly, yet loud enough to declare. Her voice was hollowed, yet edged with hardened immortality.

"Could anything be more perfect than this?" He whispered, trailing a finger down her face.

She blinked once and looked up at him and replied, "No." Her hand snaked around his neck. "Nothing can be better than this, Milord, love." Her face inched closer and she gave him a passionate kiss.

Meanwhile, across the frozen northern continent and under the sea coming toward them in the great submarine of Mjolnir, the pink-clad healer of Avalanche snapped her head up from a silent prayer, her green eyes wide with surprise and horror. "Oh no…" Her eyes turned toward the rounded window and gazed toward the surface unseen, yet the light shifted and changed drastically from lightness to ominous darkness. And above the ocean surface, the clouds gathered, darkened and spread to cover the entire Planet. Thunder rolled and rumbled silently across the distance.

Deep in the Junon's Base's sanctuary, Marlene looked up to the small window on the high wall and her childlike frown burrowed. Denzel stood by her, clutching her hand.

Elmyra noticed this on the child's face. "Child, what is it?" She felt the odd forbearing and feared she wasn't the only one who felt it.

Marlene looked up to her Nanny, her face as if in a moment, she had no native innocent, but aged wisdom that children sometime possess. "Something's wrong."  
True to her words, all over the world, children of all ages stopped playing or laughing their joyfulness and stared northward, feeling sense of dread and sorrow washing over them. The younger children ran to their mothers and started to cry.

The men and women felt worried and watched the northern sky with concern and fears. There was no sign of flaming ball in the sky, yet the thunders rolled and echoed its deep clashing, giving warning of what to come. They wondered what would be brought this time.

In Wutai, on top of the Pagoda, Godo stood with Gork, Chekhov and Staniv, his counsels, all staring northward with deep concern on their faces.

"This surely is a battle for Sephiroth and Cloud alone." Godo murmured.

Chekhov turned his head to Godo and sighed deeply. "The prophecy had truly come true."

Gork snorted and recited the old prophecy that the Wutainese held for eons since the beginning. "Gaia's Children come forth and walk the Earth. King of Kings will redeem Queen of Queens with his everlasting love upon the tears of sorrow."

Godo frowned. "Sephiroth and Cloud…" He looked up and gasped softly as wash of strange emotions that seem to spread though everyone like shockwaves.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Tifa glanced to her side to Aeris after feeling such wave of emotions. "What is it?"  
Mjolnir steered in wavering motion, skillfully avoiding the jagged rocks and the massive walls of several icebergs under the chilly northern sea. The Sierra was following closely above the sea upon the command of Cid Highwind who rode the Submarine among his friends.

"Cloud… She just left us all, somehow…" Aeris announced quietly, everyone watched her as she stood up from her seat, moving to the small rounded window.

"She's dead?" Cid shot from his seat, eyes wide.

"No. I don't know… Sephiroth had cast such a powerful spell."

Barret was next to rise from his seat, worried etched on his dark face. "What the hell that means?"

Tifa placed a hand on his shaking arm. "Something had happened. Maleficius Sephirt got to Cloud, am I right?" She turned to the healer.

She nodded, her russet hair bouncing slightly. "I think so. I am feeling so many different feelings now… It's confusing. There is massive feeling of anger and sorrow… Something big is going to happen soon… you all felt it."

Yuffie looked away. "Sephiroth… Gods help him. I mean, not Sephiroth," She looked up to everyone. "Maleficius Sephirt. Gods help him… He's gonna get his ass kicked." Everyone else nodded somberly, they couldn't help to feel anything otherwise but dread and sorrowfulness. Then, Yuffie frowned.

Vincent noticed, "What is it?"

"King of Kings, Queen of Queens … Tears of Sorrow. Why?" Yuffie stared up at his crimson eyes.

"Yes, the old tale of Wutai… You're right, it's curious to why… Aeris?" The sniper turned to the healer.

Aeris gave her a gentle motherly smile as she laid her hand on the youth's shoulder. "We will know soon… But we have to concern of the two Weapons waiting for us. But I suppose we have little time…" She closed her eyes and clasped her hands in prayer. "You all know of Madoshi and Megamiki." She hear their murmurs of agreement and continued, "Something I've just learned from Cloud recently, she had broadcasted her concern to Sephiroth but not only Sephiroth had received but Zack and I too because we are also Valkyries." She opened her eyes and met with everyone's curious stare. She smiled softly, "Megamiki and Madoshi, at the time when Gaia caught them and in anger, she banished them for eternity to separation, to become summonses, the moment the spell was woven, they both killed themselves, however it didn't work for them and Gaia, they were trapped forever with part of their souls as Summonses. The other part of their souls went on, to become reincarnated so they'd find each other and be together again." She sighed.

"You're saying…" Reno asked, curious. "Sephiroth and Cloud are the reincarnation of Madoshi and Megamiki?"

"Yes."

"Holy mother…" Reno started and was kicked in the shin and he became silent.

Aeris nodded, "Cloud had recently absorbed Megamiki and became whole but the problem is it was under Maleficius Sephirt's control. All there is left, a being with the power of Megamiki and Cloud combined, but Cloud retreated, hiding her own soul.

Sephiroth felt this strongest because he is Cloud's soulmate. He was supposed to be rejoined with Madoshi but Maleficius Sephirt absorbed Madoshi instead. Maleficius Sephirt has the upper hand now. And in the end, as it just happened now, Sephiroth knew and is in anguish, losing Cloud and part of his soul, he released this spell, as we all felt it. It is how powerful he is, I believe," She closed her eyes and frowned as she allowed the memory of Valkyries come to her, "It's called Diffundolororis. Spell to expunge heavy grievous sorrow outward."

"Shit." Cid muttered and Reeve came down from the cockpit. "Everyone; get ready. Ruby is waiting ahead, Emerald is not far behind." He hoisted his dark blue jacket of the old Turk uniform, at one time; he had trained to become a Turk and carried out the duties for the President for a short while until he changed his profession to work in the Department of Urban Development.

"Right! We're ever ready!" Yuffie shouted, jumping up and dancing some sort of her personal cheerleader routine.

Vincent shook his head in amusement and grabbed the girl by her arm to pull her down. "Shush up, you're going to hurt yourself before the battle."

She rolled her steely earthen eyes at him and huffed. "Like if you cared…" She stuck her tongue out at him.

He raised an eyebrow. "Don't do that unless you intended to use it." He whispered; causing her to go bugged eyed.

"Hey!" She squeaked, flushing crimson and he chuckled in reply.

"Sir, we've reached shore." A Solider in blue uniform appeared from the cockpit.  
Everyone turned; all Avalanches and Turks alike gripped their weapons, loaded up with the Materias suitable to each and looking grave serious.

"Let's kick his ass." Reeve muttered as he led them out of the coach and onto the firm terrain of the Northern land.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack yelled after Sephiroth before they reached the top of the Cliff that led down to the center of the Northern Crater, "Hey! Wait up! Don't go nut on me again!" That did work; Sephiroth reared Silver and turned the bird around, glaring at his friend.

"Hey, I had to say it to stop you! You were going nut anyway!" Zack shouted over the howling wind with hands up in defensive stance. "What's with blasting us all with that kind of spell? I am sure everyone's felt it all over the world, it's damn powerful." The birds steered and moved closer that the two men were side by side. Zack took hold of Sephiroth's shoulders, looking into his face.

"He took Cloud." The silver-hair's eyes fell to the snowy ground. "I'm sorry… I have to release it. It's called Diffundolororis, an ancient Valkyrie spell."

The raven-hair's face twisted into utter confusion. "What?"

Green eyes met neon violet and he shook his head. "Forgive me. I did not see it. I have failed you all. I've lost Cloud."

Zack shook his head. "No, Sephiroth. You fought bravely so far. You have kept your honor."

Sephiroth looked up and stared into the violet eyes then pulled onto Silver's rein, attempting to move away. However, Zack stopped him and he shook his head, waving the raven-hair's hand away, "Leave it. It is over. The world of Gaia will fall. And all will come to darkness, and my kingdom to ruin."

Zack's eyes widened slightly and under his breath, he remembered. "King of Kings… So, it's true. You've truly accepted the fate eve before you have your kingdom." He closed his eyes then and sighed deeply before looking into the green depth. "I do not know what strength is in my blood, but I swear to you I will not let the Promised Land fall, nor our people fail."

"Our people?" Sephiroth asked, confused then realized and nodded, "Our people."

Zack reached and pulled out Masamune of its sheath and pressed it into Sephiroth's hand. "I will follow you to the end, my brother, my captain, my king." He leaned over and kissed Sephiroth on the forehead, his hand had clasped over Sephiroth's forearm in a warrior's shake. "I got to go and get Aeris. We're going to need her help." He drew away slowly, leaving Sephiroth alone to himself. "Go and get her back to all of us. You die, she dies, and we all die."

"Yes, go." Sephiroth murmured and watched Zack turn Golroth and darted down the cliff and heading toward Aeris.

Zack looked back as the golden Chocobo sped off. He saw Sephiroth watching him up there on the top of the cliff, a dark figure against the gray raging storm. "Be at peace, son of Lucrecia Jenova." He whispered and turned back, intended to get Aeris and come back soon as he could. _'I am coming to help you, Aeris. We need your help as well.' _

He felt her replying and knew she was near, "_Good. The Weapons look a bit of a trouble for us. Is Sephiroth all right? He had cast Diffundolororis Spell and we all felt it." _

'_Yes, he mentioned that to me. How the hell did he do it?'_ He snorted and felt her laughing at him.

"_It is not commonly known to anyone but of those of the true Valkyries. Sephiroth was able to cast it because he is the King. For him, it's some of a relief for him to cast it. He will not have been able to feel anger he needed to use up against Maleficius Sephirt if he was in sorrow which would cripple him. I have a feeling that once he sees Cloud, he will be very angry now."_ Aeris replied.

'_And that's a good thing?' _

"_In a way. Can you feel Cloud?" _

'_No, I can't anymore.'_

"_Neither do I, I doubt he could either." _

He understood then. Sephiroth had to release the mass of emotions to feel the anger and use the strength against Maleficius Sephirt. It seemed to be the only option. Aeris was right, upon seeing Cloud, it will intensify it more. He then truly felt sorry for Maleficius Sephirt. He urged the golden bird to hurry and join Aeris and the others. He had sensed though her that the group was having some difficulty with the Ruby Weapon.

Apart from Zack riding toward the battle, the small shack stood lonely and cold, abandoned. Maleficius Sephirt and Cloud stood in the large vast land of the crater; it had filled up and was covered several feet with snow, leveling the land around the crater. Maleficius Sephirt had changed his clothes from Sephiroth's old General outfit into elegant ancient robe of black with green accent with ancient bronzed armors shielded his shoulders and his long silver hair tied up on high pony tail. Cloud stood by him, donning in beautiful deep blue, almost black gown that accented her figure with black and silver breastplate and her golden hair was tied in elegant coiffure with long strands hanging loose, flying in the wind, they looked like the Lord and Lady of the underworld. She stood by him impassively, her eyes staring to the horizon.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The massive red monstrosity of Gaia's creation loomed over the large group of warriors. He looked every bit scary as Diamond and Ultimate Weapons; however, he was redder, which made everyone unsure about his power hold for them, being red and red meant evil.

The formation between Avalanchers and the Turks spread in loose double Vs, almost creating the formation of W like they did before with Diamond, however, those who were magically potent were placed in the front with the up close range battler.

"Aeris, ya ready with Phoenix ?" Elena asked as she held her fists out ready, her bangles lined up with several powerful Materias ever provided by the former ShinRa Co. The healer nodded as she held her Princess Guard in hands; ready and facing the ever malicious Ruby Weapon.

Reno, Rude and Elena charged into the battle first, yelling headfirst as they attacked the monstrosity with their best physical ability to the torso where they would draw the vulnerability out of Ruby.

Reeve had gotten the sparse information on the two Weapons with little help of his observation team and Zack's knowledge of them after meeting Gaia. Ruby apparently would be a bit easier than Emerald which they knew were hiding and waiting for his turn. Ruby was tough and invulnerable if he doesn't make any first attack. Their only plan was to invoke him. So, that's what they were doing now.

Barret and Vincent stood on the side, nearly outside the formation and unleashing round of bullets upon the armor. Yuffie kept throwing her mini magical burst shuriken that she came up with spells of the Materia, having the little metal dagger carry over the spell and bursting into powerful explosion upon impact. Ruby swayed and started to dig its large two limbered-three talon claws into the ground.

"Oh shit!" Elena screamed as Rude and Reno ran back, getting out of the way, but they weren't fast enough as the pillar of talon shout out of the ground, lashing upon them and knocking them out with strong attack.

Aeris gasped and winced as she watched from the farthest point. Everyone made agreement that she was only to be used for her best ability, the healing power. She knew it was her turn. She moved a foot back and braced herself as she started to twirl her Princess Guard rod into a mystifying dance. Though her death the first time and her time spent in the Lifestream, she learned few tricks and became more potentially powerful and being a Valkyrie helped.

The rod twirled and swayed in patterned circles about her as the ground around her became glowing golden and pink. The spell she murmured sounded like a song and soon, the glow spread wide and reaching its goal.

Rude, Elena and Reno, thrown to the side horribly, wounded and broken, bleeding to death while the other dodged and attacked with their most powerful spell. Ruby was giving them a hard fight. Yuffie had chosen to look at the Turks and went pale, staggering in her attacks. She staggered slightly and turned some shades of green. "No…"

Vincent heard her and grabbed her by the shoulders, harshly whispering into her ear. "They'll be okay. Focus on Ruby for now." The young ninja whimpered and nodded as Vincent returning to firing at the Weapon with his revolver which she realized was a gift from Lucrecia.

"You love her, didn't you?"

He turned and gave her a wild look that was unreadable. Must she choose this time to ask such question? "What?" He lowered the gun in confusion.

Yuffie screamed then when a stray talon whipped and smashed into Vincent, flinging him away from the battle field. From where the ninja stood, she had heard bones breaking. She ran toward him and knelt beside him. "No! I'm sorry! I am so stupid!"

He coughed and blood spilled from his lips as his crimson eyes locked on her steel earth eyes. "Shut up girl…" Then, his eyes closed.

The healing spell of the Great Gospel enveloped the Turks and healed them, binding them into shield and barrier as they got up. "Oh man, thank Gaia for giving you back to us." Reno grinned and scowled as he noticed that his electro-rod wasn't so lucky. "Now I have to do the spells… ugh." He pulled out several Materias out of his pocket and started to weave the most powerful combing spells and let it loose upon Ruby.

Aeris smiled at Reno and turned to cast more spell but was stopped as she heard scream over the roar of the red Weapon. Her green eyes darted to find Yuffie hunched over Vincent and went wide. "No… "

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cid called up Sierra and dropped several thousands mini torpedoes upon Ruby and hollered with joy as he noticed it had made some actual impact, wounding the large massive Weapon. He had a large bleeding gash on his face but ignored it as he flicked his finger upon the monster as it staggered backward.

"Bad move, my friend." Reno murmured and walked several feet back. "He's going to give us a final attack."

"And that is?" Cid asked as he turned his head to the red-head.

Barret grabbed the pilot by the shoulder. "Shut up and move back!"

Tifa scampered toward Aeris who were focused into dancing and yelled over the spell that was weaving around the healer. "Aeris! You better have some Planet Protector left in you! We're going to need it!"

Aeris looked up, her green eyes shining with unshed tears and nodded before changing the steps and the pattern of her spell weaving dance. She gave a last glance toward Vincent and Yuffie, out of reach from the battle; she knew she couldn't help them now, no matter how much she wanted to.

Elena clutched onto Tifa's arm. "We'd better hurry up!" She pressed some Materia into the woman's hand.

Tifa looked down and understood, also noticing something similar in blond Turk's hands. "Right."

They both started the incarnate of the Shield magic and suddenly, with a loud disorientated boom, Ruby had unleashed its powerful magic, the Ultimate Dark Shadow onto the scattered and wounded part, consuming everyone into dark mass of toxic cloud.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA  
**

Maleficius Sephirt stood on snowy ground of the Northern Crater, with a weapon similar to Masamune rested at his hip. The wind caused his hair and robes to whip about with dramatically. His pale eyes narrowed in mirthful glints. He knew what was happening to the party battling against Ruby and felt them weakening. One had died, several were wounded badly.

He turned to the side as he felt a presence coming toward him and smiled at the sight. Cloud walked up to him, her eyes completely devoid of any irises, but glowing pale blue as her whole being glowed pure golden white. He frowned as she came close. She was supposed to feel warmer, but she was ice cold. Cold and solid like gold. He shrugged, knowing he had her now, she is his queen and nothing else mattered.

Standing together side by side, they looked every bit of the royalty, suited up and ready for battle, or so, the war. On the rim of the crater, a figure upon a dark Chocobo appeared and came down them at blinding speed, only to stop before them about some yards away. It was Sephiroth.

If the sky could get any darker on somebody's mood, it had considerably become midnight storm as Sephiroth laid his eyes upon Cloud. His hands slowly clenched into tight fist by his sides as he glared. Such anger and despair surrounded him that he inadvertently became his ultimate Limited Break form; the One Winged Angel. Two wings spurted from his back with drastic effect that it ripped though his trench coat, one black, and one white. The balance of which he is; the dark and the light, the power of both worlds, a gift given to him by Gaia and Ouranos. Masamune was already in his hand, throbbing with energy, thirsty for revenge.

The trio stood facing each other, the wind whipping about them, being the only sound that created frictions. The air seemed heavy and tense as the thunder rolled above them and thunder clashed on the outer rim of the Crater.

"Sephiroth, you've come." Maleficius spoke, his booming voice mingling within the surrounding sounds of the raging storm.

Sephiroth's lips turned into a sneer. "So have I. I've come to take back what's mine."

"Oh, it's too late." Maleficius held a hand up and Cloud took it, stepping closer to him.

Sephiroth felt aghast but never showed it on his face as he stared emotionlessly, only rage truly masked in his eyes. He stared at Cloud, boring his green eyes into her pale blue eyes. "Cloud. Come back to me."

Maleficius frowned as he noticed that Sephiroth was completely ignoring him and staring intensely at Cloud. He then turned to find Cloud flinching slightly, her masked face slipping. "No!" He growled and grabbed hold of her shoulder and suddenly, Cloud became rigid and stony.

Sephiroth became livid, the storm raging more violent around them. He had finally cracked through Cloud and then, Maleficius had to bar him out then.

"I feel like I need to warm up. Will you spar with me for a while before the rest come around, if they ever get out alive?" Maleficius asked with a mockingly tone.

The silver-haired warrior gripped his Masamune. "Bring it on." Cloud stepped back to some distance, giving room for the two men to lunge at each other. As soon they jumped from their standing place, they flew up in the air and met midway as their swords clashed against each other and the thunder clapped in time with the clashing swords, it seemed as the lighting bolts were really coming from the two swords clashing, not the skies. Their bodies twisted into deadly dance as their black robes flapping harshly against their legs and the winds, only to be drowned by the thunderstorm.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Zack had long gone, the golden Chocobo sprinting across the mountain toward where the other battle had already gone underway.

Upon arriving at the scene, he gasped as he witnessed dark black dense matter of clouds swallowing everyone. Aeris was in the middle, her silver staff twirling about in a mystic dance, casting a powerful shielding over the fallen group. Something else caught his eyes and he involuntary gasped out loud. Yuffie was kneeling, her body crouched over Vincent and the sniper appeared to not be moving or anything. He knew then, he had been killed.

He knew he had to help. He stopped the bird with a jerk and whipped out several red stones and started to weave a complex spell of Combined Summoning. The ground shook and rumbles as well the sky. The Earth and Heaven opened up and with powerful force explosion, several Summonses appeared.

"Well, about time!" Hades muttered darkly as his dark robe billowed about him.  
"Let's get this thing kicked." Typhoon crackled and twirled with mischievous malice, eyeing the red monster.

"Shut up, Typhoon." Kjata muttered and stomped his hooves on the ground.

Shiva and Ifrit looked up from within the dark clouds. "Good, they're here. Let's join them." Ifrit helped Shiva up and they both pushed their way though the dark poisonous surrounding and joined with group of Summons.

Ramuh gave them ancient smile and bowed his head slightly. "Good to see you again."

The trilling sound caused them to look away to find Phoenix appearing in her majestic bird form of flaming feather and colorful jewels of rainbows.

Zack smiled at the sight of the Summons appearing everywhere and called out to them, "Hey, you know what to do!" He quickly moved to Phoenix and pointed to the two outside the battle field. "If it is possible?"

The fire bird cocked her head toward the ninja and the sniper. Her ember eyes blinked and a tear rolled. She thrilled softly, 'Yes, he had not left yet and is holding on, for he has hope in his heart.' She flew over to them and swallowed them in flames.

Yuffie yelped in surprise as she was enveloped in flame that didn't burn her. "What?" A trilling sound caused her to look up and she choked, nearly laughing. "Oh it's you!" The bird bowed her head and a tear fell upon Vincent and suddenly, she left, joining the rest. "Oh! I am so sorry! I shouldn't ask that stupid question!" She flung her arms around the tall man as he opened his eyes.

He gave a dry chuckle. "I forgive you for that. I'll tell you later. We have to help." They stood and ran back to join the rest of the party.

The twelve knights of the Knight of Round marched forward and started to surround Ruby and soon, several of spells and magic swirled about Ruby, causing chaos and confusion as the other Summons started to contribute their powerful attacks. Volley of fire, ice, water, wind, thunder and earth started to smash upon the armor of Ruby. Soon as everything hit Ruby, the monster started to stagger and wavered.

Avalanche and the Turks looked up to find the black toxic cloud gone and the massive red towering monster falling backward into the sea with thunderous boom and disappeared as the wave crashed down where the body had fell.

"Whoo! Great job!" Cid yelled as he waved toward Zack.

Zack gave him a wary look and yelled back. "You all get back! I'm sending Bahamuts for Emerald. Rest of you, put in your most powerful attack you can muster up!" The Turks and Avalanchers gave their silent agreement and checked though their weapons and armors for any powerful attacks they had and got ready as Emerald lumbered out of the sea.

"SHIT!" Rude yelled, causing everyone to look at him in surprise for uttering some words. "He's powering up!"

As all eyes turned to the massive green monstrosity that replaced Ruby, his large shoulders started to blink some odd lights in pattern and everyone gulped hard as they held their place.

"Aeris!" Zack yelled as he ran toward her.

"Zack!" She turned to him. "I can only bring forth the shield, but it will only protect us all at half rate."

"Do it, love. I know you can do it."

Phoenix landed and transformed into her human form beside Aeris and laid a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I will help you."

Aeris looked up at the tall woman's narrow face and smiled, finding comfort in the dark ember eyes. "Thank you."

The legendary bird woman stepped back behind Aeris and held her hands out; channeling her power though the healer as the young Cetra started her spell dance for the Planet Protector.

Zack spied Yuffie nearby and grabbed her and shoved her to stand beside Phoenix . "Hey, you still got Clear Tranquil?"

Yuffie immediately understood and stopped to ask, "You want me to combine with hers?" She pointed to Aeris who was still casting the spell.

Zack nodded vigorously. "Do it now!"

"Right!" Yuffie quipped and grabbed her Conformer to do a short little dance she usually does with the weapon, twirling it in front of her, gathering the energy she could draw from Gaia.

Nanaki and Cid joined Aeris by casting their strongest Shield magic and soon, everyone was covered in different shielding magic that woven together in brilliant colors.  
Reno cursed along the line with Barret as Emerald started to shake violently and unleashed its powerful attack, the Aire Tam Storm. Blast of water shot out of the chest of the giant green monster and hit the group directly on with massive tsunami waves. Everyone was blown off their feet and crashed backward into ground, having torrent of water wash over them.

"Ooooh… that was bad…" Yuffie drawled as she picked herself up and grinned widely as she found that the shield magic had worked and jumped joyfully. "Yay! It worked!"

Zack scowled at her and smacked her on the head. "Shut up girl, already do your attack!"

"Eeep! Sorry!" She flicked her bangles out and muttered a quick spell of Comet Two while Zack conjured up the three great Bahamuts.

Cid, Vincent and Barret's voice overlapped each other as they spoke the weaving spell of Freeze, Tornado and Flare. The surrounding around Emerald started to shake and sprout with several ice storms, tornadoes and blinding lights as the heaven above him opened up to reveal three larger than life dragons swooping down with its mouth wide open and roaring as they shot their Mega, Tetra and Giga flares upon the green bulk of armors.

Tifa and Elena joined together and conjured up Comets and soon the skies opened again after the dragons to bring down torrents of flaming balls battering upon the head and shoulder of Emerald. The last green Weapons had no chance to attack as it was brutally beaten down by the group of Summons casting their elemental attacks and all kinds of spells cracking and breaking though their armors.

It started to stagger and wavered, then all the sudden, the cracks in the armors started to connect the others and glowed black before becoming brilliant white.

"Take cover!" Vincent yelled along with Reno and everyone ducked, shielding their heads as Emerald exploded, its armors scattering everywhere at full force and disappearing upon impact. The powerful gust of wind wiped the group across the land harshly.

The god, Ouranos watched the entire scene and looked to the pink clad woman. He blew a gentle wind to her and smiled, satisfied that he had helped a little bit.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud watched the two counterparts clash against each other and suddenly, she started to wince at a nagging pain in the back of her mind. It was becoming irritating and getting worse. "Ow…" she whispered as she held her hand to her head and sighed.  
Her pale blue eyes closed and suddenly, she found herself into an unfamiliar place and saw the two Sephiroths battling each other, they both were wearing some ancient clothing of royalty, however one of the Sephiroth had two glorious wings of an angel, both black and shining with silver, the other one had reddish black horrendous wings that compared to Chaos' wings.

She frowned slightly as she watched the two beings dance in a furious battle, none giving up. There was something different about the two; they had no solid lines, but a glowing being that created up their form. The one with angelic wings had a pure white orb shining in his chest as the other had a black reddish orb that also held a small white orb.

They were the soul beings. She then knew she was the same as them and looked down to find her glowing form in golden light haloing about her. Her dress was long and flowing, similar to the dress she was wearing and she noticed soft white feather fluttering by her and looked to see where it came from.  
She also had wings too, golden white ones.

As the two battled on, she turned around in confusion and asked out loud, "Where am I?"

Then, as the question faded away, somebody appeared, almost ghost-like before her. It was herself, as Cloud Strife, the Solider of ShinRa, Buster Sword strapped on her back, wild short blond hair sticking about everywhere.

"I am the real you." She spoke, she gestured to her chest where a golden orb glowed. Her eyes glowed pale blue, the eyes of Megamiki.

"What?" She looked down to her own chest and found no orbs or anything of the likeness but emptiness. The other one was her real soul being, parted from her own consciousness to talk to her.

"Look, they're fighting for you. You are the selected one, the one to bring forth a peaceful new race, the children of Gaia, the race she had dreamed of long ago, before Cetra or the Calamity of the Sky even came on this planet."

"No, I never wanted this! I want a simple life, just to be with Sephiroth, marry him, and live a normal mortal life."

"And you turn yourself away from all of that, only to choose the darker path."

"No! Not that either. I don't know what to do! I am lost…" She whispered to her self.

The other one shook her head and took the Buster Sword off her back and held it as she swayed into a familiar dance, a small smile playing on her lips. _"Estuans interius ardente veritate…_" Another being started to glow beside her, three small orbs took forms.

"No, don't! Don't do this!" The angelic Cloud clutched her ears to block the song being spilled from her counter part. "I don't want any of this! I don't deserve this!"

The other Cloud who wielded the Buster Sword started to move in a strange and familiar dance. _"Sors speciousissimus Et omnis…"_ The small three forms became three young boys; they joined in with the song, becoming louder and harder to ingore.

Cloud looked up and gasped as she recognized what her counterpart and her sons were doing. The dance of Omnislash, the unique powerful technique that not even Sephiroth or Zack could match. It was her own Omnislash dance, unique and different. The sword morphed from a ragged old Buster Sword into a beautiful gleaming crystalline Ultimate Sword. "Stop this! Don't do this to me!"

But the other Cloud ignored her and kept on spilling the song out of her lips. Sephiroth and Maleficius Sephirt kept on battling on the side, completely oblivious of what was going on with Cloud and the spiritual Cloud.

"_Veni, veni, venias,"_ The sword started to sway and circle into mesmerizing pattern as colorful light start to swirl about her.

"No! I will not come!" She shouted back.

"_Concessi me ascendi facias!" _The solo line hit high note, reverberating through Angelic Cloud being, shaking her to the core.

"Nooooo… I will not!" Cloud kept screaming as she fell to her knees, crying and clutching her head as the Soldiers Cloud kept on dancing, swirling faster as the colorful light started to twirl in dizzying pace about the two.

"_Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa_!" The blade danced on and disappeared within the colorful swirl of the light, leaving the blue-clad Cloud standing in the midst, her arms raised heavenward. _"Concessi me ascendi facias, Generosa!" _

The angelic Cloud looked up, her face tear streaked, _"Veni, veni, venias,"_ Her voice started to whisper, her hand reaching out toward the other Cloud who smiled back, her blue eyes shining with joy. _"Gloriosa, Concessi me ascendi facias, Generosa!"_ Her sons gathered around her and hugged her, singing along.

Their voices merged together on the last line as the warrior Cloud reached out and grabbed the angelic Cloud and pulled her into the swirling mass of lights and they both merged together and vanished in blinding light. Their faces could be seen with grateful smiles before they were gone from the dark plane of the souls. _"Seraphim, Seraphim!"_

The three boys looked at each other and smiled. "Go, Mommy, go." They cheered and disappeared.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Oww… I should have broken ribs and mangled legs…" Tifa sat up and rubbed her head, finding herself without any starches or bruises, yet her clothes were torn and shred, leaving only enough to modesty.

Barret stood and cracked his neck. "I thought I'd died." He held a hand out to help Tifa up.

"I remembered the pain, I should have broken body!" She accepted his hand.

He shrugged. "Then Phoenix did her work."

They both looked around and found their group helping others to get up; they all were in pretty much the same state as they were, unmarred or unhurt, only damages had gone to their clothes. Phoenix had truly helped them by keeping them safe and unharmed along with Aeris' healing power.

Zack grabbed Aeris and hoisted her up on Golroth and turned to yell at Cid who was nearby, helping Elena up, "Hey, get everyone on Sierra. Go to the Northern Crater, Sephiroth will need our help. He's going to need the Summons' powers."

Cid cursed a blue streak and turned to grab a small radio that was strapped to his headband instead of cigarette box. "Right… he tells me to get Sierra and fly back to the blasted place that started all of this… damn blue balls…" He muttered before yelling into the radio box ordering the crew upon Sierra to get their asses over as soon as possible.

Yuffie saw the gold bird streak off and turned to Vincent. "What's going on?"

The sniper had heard everything. "We're going to help Sephiroth. We are to summon the Summons."

"Oh, right on! Zack left me some Materia." She opened her hand to reveal several red stones. "We're going to see if everyone has them."

Soon as the airship arrived, everyone quickly boarded and stood on the deck, all of them each had the red summon Materia ready in their hand, the spell ready on their lips. The Summons had disappeared after they defeated Emerald, only to wait to return to help Sephiroth.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"We're going to need your help." Zack murmured into Aeris' neck as he held her to his chest.

Aeris shielded her eyes against the whipping wind as the bird darted over the jagged peaks of the mountain. "Yes." She reached into her jacket pocket and held out the pearly white and black stone. "Ouranos left me this after the battle with Emerald."

Zack looked down and frowned. "What is it?"

"The Final Summons, it's the Seraphim Summon."

"What?"

"The Final Summons. I don't know if it will work now, since Cloud is on Maleficius's side."

"Whatever will works. We will have Cloud back. I am not going to let Sephiroth give up." The bird warked announcing their arrival as they stopped on the edge of the crater.

Aeris gasped. "Oh my!"

The scene before them unfolded like a raging storm, Sephiroth and Maleficius Sephirt was battling each other at the extent, furiously clashing and dodging each other's blades. The low whining roar revealed Sierra arriving in the sky and lowering on the edge of the Crater and soon, the Turks and Avalanchers spilled onto the snowy ground by Aeris and Zack. The two Summonses soon joined them afterward.

"Is that Cloud?" Reno asked as he pointed to the glowing light on the other side of the Crater.

Aeris narrowed her eyes and nodded. "Yes, it looked like it. She's becoming her ultimate final form. She's fighting her own battle within and is losing." They watches her fall to her knees, clutching her head as if she was in pain.

"No…" Shiva held her hand to her mouth, her eyes wide.

"We got to help." Zack declared and held out the red stone of Bahamut Zero.

"Let's do it!" Yuffie yelled and held her red stone of Knight of Round.

Cid and Vincent held out Neo Bahamut and Bahamut while Barret and Tifa held up Typhoon and Leviathan.

Shiva and Ifrit had Hades and Phoenix ready as Elena, Reno and Rude clenched their hands around the summon stones of Odin, Titan, Ramuh.

Nanaki raised his head, for the red stone of Kjata was attached to his feathered mane and Reeve stood beside him, holding out Choco Mog. Aeris took out Alexander and gave everyone a confident smile. "You all know the combined Summon Spell?" Everyone gave their affirmative agreement and then they all started after Aeris and Zack.

"Deme eder E b'dna Htrae Nopu Klawaia G foner Dlih'C!"

Then, each member shouted the name of their Summon, letting the red stone blast the colorful light of each element.

"Bahamut!"

"Neo Bahamut!"

"Bahamut Zero!"

The three dragons descended from the sky in swooping rush and hovered on the outer rim of the crater, watching the two silver haired warrior combat each other, still oblivious of their surrounding.

"Ramuh!"

"Odin!"

"Alexander!"

"Typhoon!"

Each appeared in their own way, Ramuh appeared as thunder struck the ground, raising the ancient man with electrifying beard. Odin came down galloping from the moon upon the majestic beast horse, Sleipnir and Alexander swirled in mass of colors and formed into a grand knight of a man. Typhoon crackled and twirled in chaotic storm and stood aside, laughing malice as he waited to have his turn in attack.

"Titan!"

"Kjata!"

The ground shook and rumbled as Titan lumbered and boomed into existence, growling softly and soon was joined by thunderous hooves of Kjata.

"Leviathan!"

"Knight of Round!"

The rain fell and took form of a great blue ancient sea dragon twisting and hovering nearby the three Bahamuts and the heaven opened to have twelve great knight with billowing cloaks and feathered helmets descend and tap right on the snowy ground of the Northern Crater.

Then, "Hades!" Dark mass of cloud swirled and roared into flame as the long billowy robe of the underworld Lord appeared, his black eyes glittering from the depth of the hood.

Finally, " Phoenix !" Beautiful song trilled though the air and the legendary resurrection bird appeared in her dazzling golden and colorful jeweled feathers lined with dancing flame before turning into a woman with colorful robes like the former form.

"Let's go!" Ifrit and Shiva soon joined the rest, the Ice Goddess waving in return to the group who had summoned them all.

"Join your powers." Phoenix told everyone and soon, everyone held their hands, heads up heavenward and with blast of magical spiral of lights coming from them shot skyward, illuminating the sky.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"So, you got help, but still, you all are no match for me and my lovely Queen!" Maleficius Sephirt chuckled as he landed a hard blow upon Sephiroth, causing him to fall backward and out of the battle.

Sephiroth gasped, having wind knocked out of his lung and glowered at his counterpart. He felt part of his body break during the fall and realized it was his wings that had broken beyond appearance. "Never…" He whispered as he watched Maleficius and Cloud join together at hands and they soon gathered the energy from the Summonses, absorbing them for their own.

"Pity, the power was given to you, but I get it all, I have everything!" Maleficius let out a booming laugh as he threw his head back and let the power consume him.

Sephiroth felt smaller and weaker as he watched the two glows brighter with immense powers, gifted from all of the Summonses. _"Shh… You know what to do."_ The faint form of a woman, mixture of Megamiki and Cloud knelt beside Sephiroth.

He glanced up into the beautiful woman's face, surprised to see Cloud's eyes, a tear falling down his cheek. "I've failed everyone. I've failed, you Cloud."

"_No."_ She smiled in return and wiped the lone tear away. _"Hope is not lost yet."_ She looked away and raised her hand to gesture toward Cloud, who was glowing brilliant golden light beside Maleficius's blackness. _"Say the words and I will be redeemed." _

He closed his eyes and felt his soul stir, hearing Madoshi speaking, _"You can do it. For us all, for yourself, and for Cloud. The power of love is the ultimate power in the universe, use it." _

Sephiroth took his hand and got up. "I'll try."

"_You will not try."_ She whispered stepping back and disappearing, her voice lingered_. "You will do. Say the words."_

Sephiroth nodded and turned to Cloud, dropping Masamune to the ground beside him. Cloud and Maleficius Sephirt was still absorbing the powers, rising from the ground, slowly ascending. His lips moved slightly first, unsure of which words and felt his heart swell with great sadness and he knew it was the sadness of the world, crying for him. "No more pain, no more sorrow, no more." He whispered and smiled at Cloud, focusing only on her, for that she was his entire world, his only center as he poured his love and heart into the words that flowed from his lips. _"Hikari no asa, kibou no kaori ga  
Afurenagara yokogao somete iru" _

Soon as the words left his lips, in the ancient language of Wutainese, the sky calmed down slightly from raging storm to pale overcast, his words drowning out the sound of thunderclaps that echoed around the Northern Crater. The Summonses lowered their hands and head to watch Sephiroth take a step forward, his broken wings dragging behind him.

"_Nigiri shimeta yubisaki hanasazu, Mirai no door: futari de akete yukou"_ Sephiroth continued, remembering the lines from the depth of his heart and soul, his eyes never leaving from Cloud's features. Her eyes remained blank and emotionless.  
_"Shiawase no kane no oto ga sora ni hibiku, Maiorita tenshitachi uta o utau_" His wings started to mend magically and restore to it's full glorious form, spread behind him high and proud as his hair and coat start to sway in the wind, whipping about softly. The skies slowly became lighter and the storm started to die down, leaving behind faint echoes.

"_Ah, eien ni kono ai wa tsuzuku, Shinjiru koto anata ni chikaitai_" His voice, deep with tenor became louder and clearer with more confident. Cloud's eyes blinked and started to become darker. Maleficius Sephirt turned his head, scowling as he noticed the change in Cloud, shooting dagger-glare at Sephiroth.

"No! Leave her be!"

Sephiroth simply ignored him and stepped another step forward, coming closer as he continued. _"Kujikesou na yoru mo atta kedo, Kimi no egao nando mo sukuwareta"_

Maleficius broke free from Cloud and lunged forward, his sword raised to plunge into Sephiroth. "I said, leave her be!"

Sephiroth kept on ignoring him and held a hand up and an invisible barrier erupted, deflecting the sword out of harm's way. Maleficius Sephirt growled as he was being flung aside.

"_Kotoba yori mo taisetsu na mono ga, Kokoro no naka hitotsu ni tsuujiatte" _  
Cloud kept on blinking and started to shake her head in confusion, her hands raised to clutch her head. She started to fall to ground slowly and fell to her knees. Sephiroth kept moving toward her, he was still some steps away from her.

Maleficius snarled in rage and reached out for Masamune, which happened to be by his side. He picked it up and chuckled. "Fool! You poorly left your weapons in plain sight of your enemy!" He shouted.

Yet, Sephiroth ignored him, focusing completely on Cloud, in desperate hope for her to break free from the depth of confusion. _"Arekuruu kanashimi ga osou toki mo  
Futari nara daijoubu: norikoete yuku" _

Maleficius Sephirt became more irritated. "Listen to me when I am speaking to you!" He snarled and popped out of existence from where he stood and appeared behind Cloud, glowering down at Sephiroth who started to kneel before Cloud. He winced and growled, "Stupid boy, leave me be!"

Then from his mouth came a young voice of Kadaj, "Never! You leave mother alone! Father, keep going!"

"No!" Maleficius Sephirt yelled and pushed the soul of Kadaj back where he came from and looked to Cloud, kneeling on the snow, clutching her head.

"_Ah, eien ni kono michi o aruku, Mou nido to saegiru mono wa nai Mirai e tsuzuiteru"_ Sephiroth reached out and took Cloud's hands away from her head. She looked up, her eyes returning to normal, bright blueness shining with love.

"Sephiroth…" As his name left her lips in soft whisper, she gasped and then coughed, dark red liquid spilling out from the corner of her mouth. Her eyes went wide and she looked down, seeing the blade protruding through her chest.

"If I couldn't have her, then you can't." He replied.

"Damn you…" Sephiroth growled, his eyes becoming narrow silts as he glared up at Maleficius Sephirt, who were standing above and behind Cloud, holding Masamune with malicious smile on his face.

Aeris gasped loudly and squeezed her eyes shut as she threw herself into Zack's arms and buried her head into his chest. The raven haired stared out with horror on his face. Everyone else stood on the outer edge of the battle ground of the Northern Crater, each had their own grief and horror masked on their faces as they all watched on. They were all too shocked to think or react at the moment Cloud had been stabbed.

It had been a Déjà vu, once again, someone they loved and cared deeply for had been slain by the very same Masamune, though the very same fashion, for the very same reason, to eliminate the obstacle into getting to Gaia.

It had been very foolish thing to do. It had happened once and had been foiled. However, the last time around, the very person who foiled the plan is the person who is at the receiving end this time.

"No…" Tifa whispered as she clutched onto Barret's jacket, staring wide eyed. "It can't be… it's over?" Barret frowned with concern and dismay as he held Tifa.

Yuffie fell to her knees, her hands tightly clamped over her mouth trying to suppress a violent sob that strained to get though her lips. Her vision became blurry and painful. _No, no, nonono… it can't be…_

Cid stood there, shell shocked. His javelin fell silently to the snow by his side. He was speechless, once again as his eternal cigarette vacated his lips. Vincent closed his eyes and buried his head into his golden claw; a tear dripped free and fell unnoticed into the snow.

The Turks, however was different at the reaction. They were shocked and surprised at the whole revelation and wondered thousands of things in their minds. But most of all, the thoughts were the same as everyone else_, 'Is this it?'_

In the Avalanchers' minds, it was like a scene replayed, yet different. Their hearts ached and gripped with pain of horror and shock, only to be slowly bled to grief and anguish. Yet, somehow, a shimmer of hope always remain as Cloud remained sitting up, Masamune still sticking though her chest, her gown slowly turning crimson, creating illusion of blackness upon blue. Her eyes still flickered and shone with life, locked upon the face of Sephiroth.

It had been the longest moments as everyone watched on, loss to think or even react.

"_The Final Summoning, use it."_ Aeris looked up and looked about to see that had said it to her and then saw no one had and the only explanation to which the voice belonged to, Gaia.

Zack looked down, tears streaking his face; his cheeks splotched red with anger. "Aeris?" He asked as she moved away from him and took out the strange marbled black and white stone. It started to glow, from the white part turned golden as the black emitted blue aura.

"The Final Summoning." She whispered as she held the stone, it was about the same size as the other Materia, small as the large marble, easy to fit in any slots of the armors or weapons. It felt powerful in her hands. "I have to summon."

Zack wiped his face on the sleeve of his jacket and nodded. "I understand. It's our last hope, isn't it?" She gave him a sweet smile that was reserved for him.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth rose to his feet, glaring with hatred that no one could match. His whole body was tense and taunt, ready to spring. His wings shook slightly. His lips curled up into a horrendous sneer for he couldn't find any words to spat and only settled to growl slightly.

Maleficius Sephirt stepped back, his hands letting go of the Masamune. His smile still plastered on his face as he matched Sephiroth's glare, taunting and challenging him. He felt more than wondrous, full and every fiber of his being crackled and snapped with energy he had absorbed from all the Summonses.

He threw his arms back and with a loud slapping flap, two deep crimson accented black leathery wings burst open from his back. His wings were nothing like Chaos, but they were the wings of the Prince of Darkness. The sights of his wings send chills down everyone's spines as they watched on, feeling dreading horror.

With one hand, he reached back for the Masamune and with odd scraping and grating sound it withdrew from Cloud's back. She gasped softly and groaned, swaying free from the sword, the pale snow growing rapidly crimson around her.

Cloud looked up and met the green eyes of her heart. He quickly looked up and she knew he was going to avenge for her. Clutching weakly to her chest as the warm blood oozed out and she looked down. It was an odd sight, the blood poured green from the open wound and flowed, turning instantly red and staining the gown. _Gown? What the hell am I wearing this gown for? Why Sephiroth has two white wings instead of one and how the heck did I get stabbed by the Masamune? That was Aeris's scene, not mine! Damn it! _She cursed in her mind.

She chuckled slightly and felt lightheaded and realized she was losing too much blood. She lifted her head and forced herself to look about, her ears straining to hear though the roaring of the white noise in her ears. It bothered her. "… Sephiroth…" She murmured and met his eyes to find confusion there and pain. "Don't look at me like that. What the hell is going on?" She whispered.

He frowned slightly, keeping an eye on Maleficius Sephirt few feet behind her, also confused and amused at her comments, he realized she was coming to her senses. "Cloud…" Before he could continue, he watched her eyes roll and she slumped to the snow.

It had all crashed at that point. His emotions solidified and turned into deepest and most powerful one of all, anger born from aguish and pain. He screamed then, his whole body snapped.

The Turks, Avalanchers and Summonses winced and drew back as his scream echoed across the Northern Crater. The sky crackled and the very air sparked with tense.

"Oh, shut up and already let me kill you." Maleficius Sephirt drawled as he twirled Masamune like a baton in his hand. As Masamune stopped twirling, he leapt and drew the sword back to plunge into Sephiroth.

But Sephiroth was ready; he dodged and pushed the darker counterpart aside with powerful force, adding in magical blast which he drew from some unknown sources. The devil with his face yelped and crashed into the snow with violent crunch and tumbled.

Zack's eyes went wild as he watched the scene. "What is this?"

Aeris shook her head. "It's the battle of the Archangel and the Prince of the Darkness… such irony is here."

"And we are witnessing this…" He replied and frowned then, "What about 'Seraphim'?" He pointed to Cloud where she laid in her own blood. He chuckled weakly at his own weak attempt of joke.

Aeris lifted the small black and white stone in her hand. "I don't know, but I have a feeling… 'Seraphim' will be reawakened. You may be right on this one."

Zack nodded and stepped back to give her room. He saw Phoenix from the side smile at Aeris as she held the stone out in fashion to cast the spell.

Sephiroth stood as he watched Maleficius Sephirt pick himself up and face him. He drew his hands up as if to ball something. The glow grew within his hands and formed as it crackles with electrifying sparks.

"So, you have some trick up your sleeves." Maleficius sneered as he held the Masamune toward Sephiroth, willing his power throb though it. It reverberated and hummed.

From the sideline, Aeris lifted the glowing golden and blue orb of the Final Summoning, no words spilled past her lips but her heart sang with prayer as she hoped with all hopes. The strange black and white Materia throbbed with heartbeats and it grew louder and stronger in her hands.

Apart from Aeris' summoning, Sephiroth and Maleficius Sephirt was intently focused in their own battle against each other. The Masamune throbbed and crackled with dark energy while Sephiroth kept conjuring up pure energy, both releasing torrent of magical spell upon each other, only to clash in thunderous explosions.

Finally, the Masamune broke and was thrown aside as Maleficius took up to conjuring up magical spells from his palms, raining the dark magic upon Sephiroth, inflicting some bodily damage. Sephiroth groaned as he strained to pick himself up after being violently battered across the snowy field that turned marred and tainted from their battling. He pried his eyes open, the greenness taking in the scene around him. The Summonses stood tall and regal, watching with impassive faces on the outside edge along with the mortals, Avalanchers and the Turks.

A vision flashed before his eyes for a mere second and then he knew. This very place would soon become the holiest spot on the entire planet. Then the Ancient City came in view, full with life, bustling with people of all ages. He saw himself and Cloud together and it felt so peaceful. Could that be the true Promised Land, the Beyond?

He watched as Maleficius Sephirt's hands glow and pop with crackling energies, becoming brighter and stronger. From the distance, he felt the power and smiled sardonically to himself, he had no energy left. He was battered and wounded, his soul torn to shred and he felt no hope but welcome the last wash of peace as he predicted his death to come.

His arms unfolded and spread, baring his self open to welcome the final blow. Everything around him fell deaf to his ears; all he heard was eerily silence. The air was biting cold but he never noticed. The blood steeping out of his wounds stained his skin and robe, sickly warm, yet he did not feel it. All he felt was the utter calmness.

The light, how glorious and beautiful as it shined down from heavenward, he blinked and watched upward as the golden tendril of light shimmering down to him. The embrace felt so warm and comforting, sweet and familiar, so much like Cloud's afterglow, like vanilla and hazelnut honey. The scent of the golden blond haired woman with such spunk enveloped him. The hands caressing his cheeks felt stingily hot and so good. _This must be what death felt like._

'_No, you're not dead yet love.'_

He snapped his eyes open to see the face staring back at him. "Cloud?" She giggled in return. He blinked owlishly and racked his brain to find what was wrong. One, Cloud's dead. Two, Cloud doesn't glow with such golden light. Three, Cloud's an angel?

He blinked once again. _Yep, she's an angel._

She gave an exasperating raspberry and rolled her eyes. _'Angel, please.'_ Her ethereal voice was full of sarcasms and he nearly laughed. _'You better snap out of it. You must stop Maleficius Sephirt for me and for Kadaj.' _

"Yes, for you and Kadaj." He whispered with such longing and saw the soft love in her brilliant sapphire eyes. She moved about and settled behind him, her arms circling around his neck in lovingly embrace. He felt his body wash in warmth and suddenly, he no longer felt tired and actually felt refreshed, just like after waking up from a good night sleep.

Then, with a lighting reflex, he shot his hand out and the dark ball of crackling energy bounced off from an invisible shield. Maleficius Sephirt never looked more pissed across the field.

"What the hell?" He shouted, pointing to Cloud who floated serenely behind Sephiroth in golden light that flickered like flame about her. He gasped and clutched his chest as he saw Sephiroth drawing the power from him, taking Madoshi's soul and absorbing, rejoining with his soul, becoming whole, the power of the Summonses followed, draining him. He staggered and stood, feeling weaker as he glared.

Aeris smiled from where she stood. The summoning had worked and she was very surprised that it was Cloud. As the spell had taken in place, Cloud had disappeared from the ground, only to reappear from heaven as an angel.

"Whoo… now that give us an upper hand!" Zack cheered. Avalanchers and the Turks watched on with refreshed hope and joy.

Cloud made a face at Maleficius Sephirt and blew a raspberry. "You think you're going to kill me. It takes more than that! Moron!"

Maleficius sputtered as he stared bugged eyed at her. "Shut up you little bitch! You could have everything as my queen!" He was astounded to hear such immature remark from her.

Sephiroth rolled his green eyes and sighed. "Enough with this." He raised his hands and light shot from his palms. He felt Cloud's hands snaking forward onto his arms, her body molding between his wings against his back and her head on his shoulder. He then felt her energy rushing forward and overlapping his own. The light glowed green and blue from them, then brilliant gold, intertwining with silver.

Maleficius Sephirt stepped back in shock and threw his hands up to shield, his mouth open in silent scream as the light hit him completely and enveloped him until it exploded into burst of brilliant firework. The entire Crater went up in brilliant blinding light and dimmed afterward, leaving everyone blinking and wondering.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Yuffie blinked and rubbed her eyes and waited until the spot finally disappeared from her eyes. "Oh man… I thought I was going to be blind for sure!" She looked up and giggled as she saw the dazed look on the sniper's face next to her.

"Damn… I'm never smoking again." Cid muttered as he patted his blue jacket and fished out a cigarette box.

"I thought you just said…" Yuffie pointed out as she turned to find the pilot take out a drag and light it up.

"Shut up. I was just saying…" He drew a long drag and exhaled. But, once again, the poor cigarette fell out. "No…" He raised his arm to point, his face going pale. The youth turned to look and gasped softly.

Down in the center of the Crater where Sephiroth stood, he had turned around to catch Cloud who slumped against him. The etherealness illusion had disappeared; they both looked wounded and ragged from the battle. Cloud's gown was once stained with blood and the wound evidence from the Masamune, except this time, she was wearing the golden and white gown of a Valkyrie. She slid to her knees, still being held in Sephiroth's arms, coughing and breathing dangerously slow, her eyes still locked with his eyes.

Sephiroth held tightly onto her as he went down to his knees. "Cloud…" He dared to whisper, staring wide eyed.

She smiled, looking very pale and drained. "Sephiroth… It's over." She looked over to where Maleficius Sephirt was and lay on the ground, breathing hard and raggedly was Kadaj. "Kadaj… Sephiroth, bring him to me."

Sephiroth nodded and stood up, watching Cloud as she remained kneeling, holding on her own. He went over to Kadaj and lifted the young man in his arms. "Kadaj, son." He said softly as he watched Kadaj's face set in bliss, pain forgotten.

Kadaj murmured, "Father?"

He turned and went back to Cloud who gestured up for Kadaj. He knelt and laid the young man in her arms and she hugged him close.

"Kadaj…" Cloud murmured as she brushed her face against his silver hair, it felt just like Sephiroth. "You don't have to hang on any longer."

Kadaj blinked and looked up to the sky, unseeing. "Mother… is that you?"

"You can let go now, love." Cloud whispered, brushing the silver hair away from Kadaj's face. She watched as the green eyes blinked and close as Kadaj reached up to the sky. Tears fell from her face, splattering onto Kadaj's. "Everyone's waiting if you're ready." She said.

Kadaj's body rose as if someone lifted him up by his hand and the green and black tendrils swirled from his body and he disappeared slowly, leaving last sight in Cloud and Sephiroth's mind forever that he died smiling.

Cloud's arms slumped down as Kadaj was gone and she swayed. Sephiroth rushed to her and held her up. "Cloud… Please," His voice cracked and broke, "Don't leave me…"

"I won't…" She lifted her cold hand up to his face and caressed. Her head tilted backward slightly and the Valkyrie helmet toppled a bit. He reached and slowly pulled it off to let her long golden hair spill to the snow.

"Cloud, love… we've gone though so much, please don't leave me."

She shook her head. "I won't… I promise. I'm so tired." Her eyes closed and a smile on her lips. "I just need to sleep. Stay with me…" She whispered faintly.

He nodded, shaking as he held her close to his chest. The golden gown was warm with blood but the wound seemed to close slowly, the bleeding had stopped. "Always."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_

_Endless Love, Endless Road_ - Tidus' song to Yuna in FFX

The song Sephiroth sang to Cloud to break the spell Maleficius Sephirt has over her. The reason why Sephiroth sang this song because in their souls, it was the first song Madoshi sang to Megamiki, winning her love eons ago. It will be featured in Madoshi & Megamiki. For their situation, it's just perfect, sweet as well. I thought to put it here after all for you all to know the translation.

_A morning of light: as the scent of hope overflows  
It tints your profile _

_Without letting go of these tightly grasped fingertips  
Let's open the door to the future together_

_The sound of the bell of happiness echoes in the sky  
Flown-down angels sing a song_

_Ah, this love will last forever  
I want to swear to you the things I believe in_

_There were discouraging nights, too, but  
Countless times I was saved by your smiling face_

_Something even more precious than words  
Is understood deep in our hearts_

_Times when raging sadness preys on us  
We'll be fine if we're together: we'll overcome it_

_Ah, we'll walk this path forever  
Nothing will ever stand in our way again  
It continues on to the future_


	51. S4:12: New Beginning

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . **

**. S A G A . F O U R : A D V E N T . C H I L D R E N . **

Chapter Twelve: New Beginning

_And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athrist of the fountain of the water of life freely. _

Revelation 21:6, The Holy Bible

_"Cloud, love… we've gone though so much, please don't leave me." _

_She shook her head. "I won't… I promise. I'm so tired." Her eyes closed and a smile on her lips. "I just need to sleep. Stay with me…" She whispered faintly. _

_He nodded, shaking as he held her close to his chest. The golden gown was warm with blood but the wound seemed to close slowly, the bleeding had stopped. "Always." _

Zack knelt beside him, soon, the rest had gathered around. "Seph? Is she?"

Sephiroth looked up to his best friend and shakily nodded. "She's alive…" A half smile flittered across his lips, yet he looked very distraught. "Kadaj is finally at peace."

Aeris fell beside Zack to her knees and placed her hand out to Cloud's chest where the wound was. "She's healing herself. Luckily, I have no power left to heal or cure for now, I am sucked dry."

Sephiroth frowned and looked about to the other member of Avalanche and Turks. Some of them held out Materia and showed that they were dull and powerless. "No more?" Several, most shook their heads. The Materia had lost their powers and none left were useable.

He turned to the Summonses, looking with slight of hope only to find them staring back. "All of our powers are gone. We all had used the last of it. This is it." Phoenix explained as she gestured to the rest of the Summonses.

Hades hugged his long time wife around the waist. "That's right. We're like you all now, mortals. Ah, things for a god to deal with, our time has finally come to end."

"Mortals?" Barret asked as he glanced around, noticing the other Summons that usually had different form are now in human forms.

Hades looked as he could pass off as Madoshi's brother with pale skin and deep black eyes, yet he was older. Phoenix was no longer glimmering and shimmering as she usually was, now simpler with spun orange, red and gold gown and her hair cascading down her back in long orange red, streaked with graying. She looked about in her mid-forties, yet still beautiful. Everyone realized they were Madoshi's parents, seeing where the Meteor God had gotten his features from.

The beasts, Typhoon, Kjata and Titans now stood as strong broad torso men. Everyone else was attired in ancient gown and robes. Ramuh looked more of a wise old man, gripping on his staff, standing tall and proud. Odin was a shocker; he was no longer a ferocious god but a young boy about five years old and holding onto the rein to a though bred horse next to him.

Leviathan stepped though the crowd to join Ramuh, her gown was billowy pale blue and teal, her gray hair tied up in braided coiffure and her eyes were watery blue and mysterious. Soon, everyone noticed that the rest of the Summonses were actually in mortal forms.

"Wow… so, that's it?" Reno asked as he shouldered his broken electro-rod that he couldn't let go of, glancing around and his dark blue eyes went wide as he found twelve men in knight attire standing outside the crowd and realized they were the Knight of Round.

Elena stared with amazement as she took it all in. She held up bunch of colorful Materias in her hand, they all weren't glowing but sat dull and cold, devoid of its usual energies. She then turned to Yuffie. "Well, here you go, I don't need them anymore."

Yuffie let out a whimper and stomped her foot. "Not fair! Now I get them all and they're useless!"

"Yes, this is it, my children. It had come to end to start anew." Everyone turned to find Gaia walking toward them. She smiled, looking tired and ancient. She stopped and looked down to Sephiroth who still sat with Cloud in his arms. "Everything had come to end to start a new beginning. Anger fades into forgiveness and love prevails in the end."

Everyone gasped as a man appeared next to Gaia. The goddess turned to the man and smiled. He was tall and regal, his hair white like snow flowing down his back and his eyes eternally black and he wore a robe that was celestial, like the cosmos printed onto the fabric, shimmering every time he moved. The sun flared and the comets shot across the surface. Gaia smiled at him, taking his hands, "Ouranos…"

"I see that you've finally forgiven, seeing that Cloud and Sephiroth are the incarnation of Megamiki and Madoshi." He gestured to the two and went over to their side, touching his hand to Cloud's forehead. "Mm, she's healed now." He stood up and watched as Cloud flutter her eyes open. Sephiroth helped her up and they stood together, holding each other.

"Hai, I've done wrong in the past. I understand why you won't heal me for so long." Gaia said softly as she clutched her once wounded shoulder. "I was blind to love and now, my own daughter taught me so much in the last several eons. Forgiveness comes with healing." She turned to Cloud and Sephiroth, "They deserve each other." She nodded to them and then turned to the Summonses, "They have choices to remain or go on to the Beyond as they were intended to long time ago." She held her hands out and eyed the former Summonses.

"I chose to go." Ramuh was the first to step forward.

"Me too. I am tired and I do need my rest now." Leviathan soon joined Ramuh's side again.

"Not me. I want to stay." Odin quipped, causing surprise on everyone with his youthful voice. He laughed, his brown eyes dancing as he stroked his horse's muzzle. "What do you think, Sleipnir?" The sleek chestnut beast gave a loud agreeing snort.

"Very well." Gaia smiled motherly toward the young boy. "I am sure someone here will take you in. Any one else?"

"You know I enjoy being in this body. I'm staying." Shiva spoke up and looked up at Ifrit lovingly. "It's up to you, love."

He shook his head. "No. Where you go, I go."

"Aww, that's so romantic." Phoenix trilled softly. "I'm going. I am tired, enough death and rebirth for me. Hades?" She looked over to the dark haired and pale man who nodded in return.

"Yes, love. Our son will live the life he wanted." He held up his hand and she took it and glanced to Sephiroth and Cloud as they both joined Ramuh and Leviathan's side.

"They're together?" Elena whispered to Yuffie who was gawking.

"Now you think of it, it makes senses… balances. They're Madoshi's parents."

"You may be right."

Kjata and Titan stepped forward and said no word, yet their actions showed clearly that they were going to go to the Beyond as well. Typhoon shook his head and remained where he stood, grinning madly.

Everyone turned their head to the loud "Wark!" and saw Choco-Mog, beautiful golden plump chocobo pawing the ground. The Mog hopped off and joined Gaia's side and soon, the golden chocobo darted off and disappeared over the edge of the crater into the wilderness.

"He'll be coming to the Beyond soon. He wanted to live the remaining life he has now." Gaia explained. "And that will be it?"

Everyone turned to the twelve knights and one more joined them, it was Alexander. The main one, in deep red cloak stepped forward, drawing his sword out of his sheath and knelt before Cloud and Sephiroth with the sword standing tip end into the ground, "I am going to the beyond to join my sister, Jenova the Valkyrie. They have decided to stay and serve you. Milord, Milady." Then, all of the knights knelt and bowed their heads.

"I guess…" Zack looked confused and shrugged.

"Okay…" Sephiroth pursed his lips and wonder what he was going to do with thirteen knights as he glanced to the men.

"What about the Bahamuts?" Vincent asked as he noticed the three dragons weren't present.

Gaia turned to Zack. "You have the Materia." He soon gave them to her and she held them out. "Bahamuts come out and choose."

The stone glowed bright and shimmered as the three dragons appeared, white, red and black, hovering high above them in their true dragon forms, their wings beating loud against the air. They all bowed their head together and lifted up to soar higher and high in the sky until they disappeared.

"They regarded their servitude to the King and the Queen." Gaia smiled as the red stones disappeared from her hands.

"Uh, that's it; they're the King and Queen now?" Tifa turned to the ethereal woman.

"Why, Sephiroth and Cloud will have to receive coronations, if the people accepts them, dears." She laughed softly and stepped backward once. "I wanted my own children to roam the earth, to care for each other and nourish though years to come. My dream had finally come true after thousands of years, now I can rest and watch. The Calamities of the Sky is no more, but in the end with the Geosigma, the children all over the world now are the people of the Valkyries, including you all." She lifted her arms, dragging her long heavy robe with them and with elegant swirls, she disappeared on the spot. Ramuh, Leviathan, Phoenix, Hades, Titan and little Mog waved as they disappeared then.

"What does she mean?" Rude asked, turning back to Cloud and Sephiroth.

Aeris smiled as she answered. "The cure for the Geosigma changed everyone, altering all of our genes to become the true children of Gaia, Sephiroth and Cloud is to be our King and Queen, to open a new door to the future. All of us," She gestured to herself, Zack and everyone, "We are the subject of the new future."

"Wow, that's intense." Reeve murmured. Then, as if something clicked in his mind. "Hey, I guess we all better get started!"

Zack's eyes went wide with horror as he spun toward to his best friend. "Already! Don't you think we had enough?"

Sephiroth bobbed his head slightly. "I had enough for today." He laughed as he looked to Cloud resting on his arm. "There is one more thing." He said as he knelt before Cloud, taking her hand. He touched the ring on her finger and slipped it off and held it up. Everyone went silent as they watched the two. "Cloud, before Maleficius Sephirt took you from my arms, even before the Nibelheim Crisis, I was going to ask," He sighed as he looked into her blue eyes, smiling, "Will you marry me?"

Cloud nodded, grabbing hold around him and said, "Yes, yes! I will marry you!" He drew back and placed the ring back on her finger, "I'm sorry that you had to wear this for so long, never knowing the ring's intention. I've never asked before, I just slipped it on your finger the night before Nibelheim Crisis and everything fell apart after that."

"Better late than never." She laughed and they kissed and the room erupted in cheers.

"Whew, almost five years later, he finally asks her." Zack murmured.

"Five years?!" Reno asked as he stared at the couple kissing. "That's way too long. Think they will wait longer for the actual wedding?"

"Nah." Zack laughed. "Ah, hopefully it would be soon this time around… I guess we all are tired of waiting." He sighed, tiredness registered on his face.

Aeris took his arm and patted it with assurance. "It's all right. We all need to rest after a long day." He then looked a bit better as he sighed in relief.

"So, you're the entire new race. Children of Gaia sound long…" Yuffie pursed as she thought about it. "Yeah, Neo-Cetra!"

Sephiroth and Aeris shook their head.

"Why not?"

"Forget it kid." The silver-haired general patted Yuffie on the head after standing up. "It's better if you just think about my father." He pushed her slightly into Vincent's arms. "Let's go."

Zack held his hand out to Aeris who took it and they both started to follow Sephiroth toward the Sierra airship that had came around and landed nearby.

Yuffie glared after them as she stood up from Vincent's hold and turned to him, "He didn't just do that!"

He laughed at her and trailed a finger down her face, "Yes, he just did." He took her chin and leaned down, kissing her soundly, shocking her. He took the advantage of her shock and slipped a tongue in her mouth, kissing her thoroughly. When he finally broke free, he smirked at her dazed expression, "Yuffie, to your question earlier. I loved Lucrecia, but not anymore. You are the one I love now."

She blinked at him and then smiled brilliantly, looking every bit a beautiful woman, not the immature teenager everyone knows. It made Vincent's heart melt, "Vincent! I love you too!" She grabbed around his neck and he held her as she hugged him. Then she finally stepped back, looking up at him with curiously, "What are we going to do with Wutai?" She asked.

"We will deal with that when we comes to it. After all, there is one thing your father does not know; I am the Lord of South Wutai." Vincent said as he slipped his ever present bandanna off and on his forehead was a red mark in the center, signifying him of the South Wutai.

She gasped at him, "Oh! But, Father has all the power of Wutai."

Vincent smirked, "Not really." He walked back to the airship, his arm wrapped around her tiny waist, "As your Father may believe that, but many warriors doubts his leadership and is starting to revolt. They've gone and came to me, asking me for commandership. In short, I have the power of all South Wutai now."

He paused before they entered the door, "Princess Yufi, seeing you are the Princess of North Wutai, where do you stand?" He asked, bowing to her slightly.

She stood back, her back rigid and she placed her hands together in front of her, standing formally before him. "I, Princess Yufi, disown my own house, the house of Kisaragi to stand by the house of Lord Vin'Tine." She bowed and he smiled at her.

"I am honored, my love." He held his hand out and she took it, smiling back as they stepped onto the airship.

Rude and Reno watched as they followed behind the ninja and snipers, "Geez, how many more royalty we have among our group?" Reno asked.

Rude shrugged and inspected his sunglasses and cursed, "Not another one!" He held it up for his friend to see.

Reno cracked up as he saw a crack down the lenses. "Aw man! How many glasses was that?"

"This week alone? I believe this is the ninth one." Rude said as he tossed it behind him.

Reno paused, causing Rude to roll his eyes and look back to the red-head. Reno asked, "Hey, if Vincent has the red dot, does that mean Tseng is…" He was interrupted.

Rude nodded, "You're an idiot to not notice, all Wutaianese who has the mark is of the south Wutai, and, yes, many of them are in ShinRa because of Lord Godo."

"Ohhh, no wonder." Reno murmured as he followed his bald friend onto the airship.

Shiva giggled as she walked with Ifrit behind the Turks and turned to Ifrit, "This is going to be fun!"

Ifrit nodded. "I'm curious, how could Maleficius Sephirt absorb Madoshi, knowing they are not of the same soul."

Shiva shrugged, "Maleficius Sephirt was powerful. I think it was after Maleficius Sephirt absorbed Jenova, removing Cloud's gene from Kadaj, turning him into a cloned version of Sephiroth."

"Ah, I see now. Maleficius Sephirt was in every essence like Sephiroth except the soul and he was able to absorb Madoshi. Good thing Sephiroth took it all back."

"Yeah, I wonder how strong Sephiroth is now…" Shiva idly wondered as she rested her head on Ifrit's shoulder as they stepped onto the airship.

As everyone boarded the airship, Sierra rose in the air and made a turn and circled the Northern Crater. Everyone was on the deck, watching from the bay window, taking in the sight below them. The Northern Crater looked battered, scars of the battle was evidence across the ground but then, green and white tendrils rose from the center and swirled around the crater, covering the ground and then faded, leaving a white immaculate ground, as if it never was touched.

Sephiroth smiled at Cloud as she drew her hands back. "Why?" He asked.

"Couldn't leave behind the scar of the battle, it's not right." Cloud said, smiling up at him. "I have the power of Holy now."

"Mm." Sephiroth laughed and rose his hand and as if he were pulling something down, everyone gasped at the spectacle of the sky filling with meteor showers, falling down to the earth with brilliant dazzling show. "And I have Madoshi's. This is fun."

They stood together, watching the dazzling meteor show falling to the ocean as they flew across, heading back to Junon Harbor.

Tifa smiled as she rested her head on Barret's chest, overlooking the sunset that settled on the ocean as the meteor shower finished. "What's going to happen now?" she asked.

"I don't know. I think I'm gonna stay in Neo-Midgar in case anything comes up." Tifa giggled softly and he looked down to her, frowning, "Now, what you laughing about?"

Tifa withdrew from his arms, looking up at him, "You owe Cloud two thousands gils."

"What!? That's for Marlene's schoolin'!"

Tifa laughed hard, "Oh, you forget! We are so rich; we can afford schooling for all children in the orphanage!"

Barret became silent and then started to laugh, "You're right… you're right… we can." He chuckled and fished out the two thousands gil bills from his pocket. "I guess this belong to Cloud." He looked up and saw Sephiroth and Cloud. "Yo' Cloud!"

Cloud looked up to Barret and they came to their sides. "What's up?" She asked. Barret handed her the bills. Tifa was snickering behind her hands. "What's this?"

"I owe you two thousands gils. Payment for blowing up reactor five."

Cloud frowned and then it hit her, "What!? That was two years ago! You owe me some with interests!"

Barret laughed, "No, deal's a deal!" And Tifa burst laughing again.

Cloud rolled her eyes, "Not like I need it anymore…" She looked up to Sephiroth and smiled, "I own the world." She let the money go, flying in the air as the wind took it to the sea. They all turned and watched the money disappear from the deck.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

In Midgar, where the church stood, the flowers bloomed in the crater, filling the place with its beautiful scents. Zack looked up to see Aeris coming down the aisle, a beauty among the ruins, wearing simple white summer gown and in her hands held the yellow and white flowers. He smiled at her as she approached him. He took her hand and they turned to the old man before them. Sephiroth and Cloud stood on either side of the man, standing in as the witnesses.

"Zachary Jules Donovan, say your vow to this beautiful bride." The man said.

Zack smiled as he turned to Aeris, "I promise you that I will be your loving and loyal husband from now on. I will share with you all the life's joy and sorrow, pleasure and pain, until death parts us and rejoins us forever and ever."

Aeris glowed with happiness as she heard the man say, "Aeris Gainsborough, say your vow to this man."

She spoke, tears welling up in her eyes as she met with Zack's loving gaze, "I promise you that I will be your loving and loyal wife from now on. I will share with you all the life's joy and sorrow, pleasure and pain, until death parts us and rejoin us forever and ever."

"And in the power of Gaia, you are now husband and wife." The man said as he wrapped white ribbon around their joined hands and it shimmered. "You may kiss the bride." He told Zack and watched with happiness in his old age as the two young couple kiss, forever joining their souls together as one. He wiped the tear from his eyes and stepped back, turning and leaving the couple to themselves. He wondered why they had chose to elope and in this place of the entire place in the world. He figured it was special to the two of them. He smiled as he saw the other couple, Cloud and Sephiroth stand together, arms in arms, watching the newly wedded couple and wondered when they would finally tie the knot.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The three little boys stood together in the front of the Ancient Temple, facing the mirrored lake. They giggled together as Kadaj, standing in the middle held something in his hand, a small tiny glowing orb.

"Kadaj!" Loz started, grinning at his brother. "What are we gonna do with this?"

Kadaj looked to Loz and smiled, "I'm gonna give her my soul." He said and touched his chest and withdrew his hand, a white orb came from his chest and he brought his hands together, joining the two orbs together. It became one, slightly larger.

"Ooh! Me too!" Yazoo said, grinning. He touched his chest and brought out small white orb and brought it to the orb in Kadaj's hand. Loz grinned wide and did the same.

The orbs became one and pulsed as if it had a heartbeat. Kadaj brought the orb to the sky, "Go, little sister… make Mommy and Daddy happy." The orb rose and flew off in the sky, disappearing. The three brothers looked at each other and they faded away from the scene.

On the small tombstone, the names glowed brightly and the light faded, leaving behind white flowers growing around the stones, much like the one in the Church.

The boys' laugher filled the air.

_Estuans interius ira vehementi _

_Burning inside with violent anger _

_Estuans interius ardente veritate  
Burning inside with brilliant truth _

_Sephiroth, Sephiroth!  
Seraphim, Seraphim! _

_Sors immanis Et inanis  
Fate – monstrous and empty _

_Sors speciousissimus Et omnis _

_Fate- Beautiful and whole _

_Veni, veni, venias  
Come, come, O come _

_Veni, veni, venias,  
Come, come, O come _

_Ne me mori facias _

_do not let me die _

_Concessi me ascendi facias! _

_Let me rise above! _

_Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa  
Come, come, O come, Glorious _

_Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa! _

_Come, come, O come, Glorious _

_Ne me mori facias, Generosa  
do not let me die, Noble! _

_Concessi me ascendi facias, Generosa! _

_Let me rise above, Noble! _

_Veni, veni, venias,Gloriosa _

_Come, come, O come, Glorious _

_Veni, veni, venias, Gloriosa  
Come, come, O come, Glorious _

_Ne me mori facias, Generosa  
do not let me die, Noble! _

_Concessi me ascendi facias, Generosa! _

_Let me rise above, Noble! _

_Sephiroth, Sephiroth! _

_Seraphim, Seraphim! _

_The End. _

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s **

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!? _

_Seraph & Seraphim coming up next. _


	52. SS:1: Unfinished Business

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S .**

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M .**

Chapter One: Unfinished Business

"I am telling you! My name is not Zack Fair! Where the hell did you get that name?" Zack shot at the poor woman at the desk who was gasping and stammering.

"Zack, honestly, it could have been a mistake." Aeris said smoothly and smiled at the woman. "Zack, is there anyone else you know with your name in the Soldiers?" She brushed the straying sand off her pink and red full bathing suit, yet it was cut proactively to show her curves with a white sarong around her waist.

Zack turned to his wife of a week, "No! I'm the only Zachary in the entire Soldiers!" He was also wearing something for the beach, in dark blue and black swim short and white tank and simple black flip flops on his feet.

"How strange." Aeris murmured and leaned onto the counter, "May I see the paper?" The woman nodded and handed the paper to her. Aeris scanned down the paper and giggled. "Ah, Zack, there is your name. There has to be a mix up. Look." She pointed to another name, "They mixed up your last name." She turned to the woman. "His last name is Donovan; I am sure that person's last name is Fair, if you will call him up and ask."

"I'm sorry for the inconvenience, with everyone booking here at Costa Del Sol in the past week, it's been crazy." The woman said and took the paper, scribbling down the correct name for Zack and placing the strange last name that had belonged to someone else.

Zack smirked, grabbing hold of Aeris' waist and nuzzled into her head, "You're the best. Poor bloke who has the last name Fair… it sound so… so…"

"Fairyish?" Zack turned and glared at a sniggering Cloud dressed in blue bikini with pale blue and white wrap around hanging low on her waist. Sephiroth stood next to her grinning, wearing nothing but a black swim trunk that hung low on his hip, showing his full muscular chest and eight packs.

"Shut up!" He growled and smirked as he turned fully to them. "So, you're eating here too?"

Cloud nodded as she leaned her head on Sephiroth's shoulder. "Had to book ahead of time." Sephiroth explained.

"Yeah, lucky you, you're practically famous and everyone would bow down to you, give you all you want, you guys are gods!" Zack whined.

Cloud rolled her eyes and stepped away, pulling Aeris away from the men, "I can't stand being brought up in conversation about being a god or the ruler. We haven't even gotten the coronation yet and it's already driving us batty." She murmured softly.

Aeris smiled, "Zack is rather annoyed, everyone he meets, they ask about it all the time and it's driving him up the wall, seeing he is the best friend to the next King of the world." She patted Cloud's hand as they stepped outside in the warm sun of Costa Del Sol. Everyone had decided to flock to the sunny beach for a week long vacation.

Cloud sighed softly as she closed her eyes to the sun, allowing the warm breeze wash over her face. "Too bad, we're going back tomorrow." She said.

"I know. It had been a nice break." Aeris said wistfully.

"I told you! You should have threatened Rufus and Reeve to allow us a month, No! A whole year long break!" Zack said as he and Sephiroth joined the women outside.

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and slapped Zack on the head. "Shut up! At least this time around, we're going to get a break now and then. There's no danger in the world… the Calamity of the Sky is gone for good and all is just right."

Zack nodded, grinning. "Yeah… Say, let's hit the beach and swim before we come back to eat later…" He stopped as a young cadet in swim short and tank top ran up to them with a paper in his hand.

"Sir! Telegram from Neo-Midgar. It's from the President!" The cadet handed the paper to Zack as he saluted and bowed to Sephiroth.

Zack frowned and looked at the paper and cursed, "Shit! No way!"

Sephiroth took the paper and read the telegram. "You're right in that train of thought. I guess we said too soon."

Cloud took the paper and sighed, "Wutai's declaring war upon Neo-Midgar."

Aeris gasp, "What in world for?" She asked.

"Lord Godo Kisaragi is still adamant against Sephiroth taking crown. He wishes to declare war on Neo-Midgar for allying with Sephiroth since they want him for the treasons he had done in Wutai War." They turned to find Vincent Valentine joining them, wearing black tank top with red swim trunk. His hair was tied up in high pony tail, revealing his handsome pale face, looking every bit like Sephiroth save the coloring.

Sephiroth turned to Vincent, frowning, "Why? Wutai war was twenty years ago, surely they'd forget about it."

"Yeah, after Sephiroth helped to save the planet recently." Cloud added.

Vincent shook his head, "I regret that Godo is rather stubborn. He harbors grudge more than anyone on the planet and he desires to see Sephiroth pay for his crime, or rather, die."

Cloud gasped softly and looked to Sephiroth, worried crossed her face as she clutched his hand. His face set stonily, "I suppose the vacation must end, after all, I have a lot of work to make up for my past."

"Seph, it's not your fault. It was the ShinRa who made you do this." Cloud said.

"Yeah." Zack agreed.

"I know. This is why Rufus ShinRa must help me in gaining favor from the rest of the world. Don't worry Cloud," He smiled as he turned to her, "We will get married and we will be crowned King and Queen, with everyone's favor, including Wutai." He turned to Vincent who gave a curt nod.

"Ooh! So have you decided when the wedding date is?" Aeris asked, clapping her hands.

Cloud gave a weak laugh, "Honestly, we haven't decided."

"Six months from today." Cloud gasped as she looked to Sephiroth.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. I am not waiting any longer. I can't wait to have you to become mine for real." He smiled at her, "Six month from today, we will be married, no matter what." Cloud smiled at him and nodded as Aeris clapped her hands in joy and Zack grinning.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The vacation came to an end the next day and everyone had flocked back to Neo-Midgar, by the airship, Sierra. To Rufus' annoyance, they all had decided to take a week long break and went to Costa Del Sol the day after the Northern Crater battle. Aeris and Zack had eloped, getting married in the old church with Cloud and Sephiroth as a witness before they were off on the vacation and they had been happily married for the entire week at the beach. Everyone else just scattered across the beach, enjoying the sun, the peaceful knowledge that the world wasn't going to end any time soon and not worrying about being called upon to fight something every single minutes.

But life like that had to end for people like them, they had burden to the world, helping everyone to regain their lives and start their future anew after the destruction happening the last few months. Tifa and Barret decided to stay in Neo-Midgar, help Elmyra run the Orphanage. The Turks went back to work for Rufus, protecting the young President with their lives, dressed in somber navy suits and sunglasses, strapped down with guns and weapons, playing the roles of the tough and rough Turks. Cid had been given the title to run the Air Force as a Commander Chief for Neo-Midgar, he gets the chance to have Scarlet work with him, creating new prototypes of weapons and vehicles, starting their relationship all over again anew. And Nanaki, the wolf was often found going from one of the member to another, helping out in every way he could with his wisdom. He was often called upon as the Orphanage babysitters when Barret and Tifa had to go out and help the World Regenesis Organization.

Vincent and Yuffie, both was given a quarter to live in Neo-Midgar, close to the others, yet their purpose was different this time around. They both were entirely focused on the Wutai, helping the Wutaianese who had lost their homes and lives in Midgar in Neo-Midgar. Vincent was gathering up all the Southern Wutaianese warriors and men, searching for those who would be loyal to him for their upcoming plan with Wutai. Their operation was a secret, only those of Avalanche and Turks knew, including the President.

Zack, with help of Sephiroth started to work with few of the top ranking Class Three Soldiers, bringing up their levels so they'd become the next Elites for Rufus. Zack wanted to delegate his duty as a General to one of the Soldiers so he'd be able to leave and join Sephiroth's side after the coronation. Sephiroth agreed to help, knowing he would want Zack to be by his side while he ruled the world with Cloud in the future. And while at the same time, Reeve had sent Sephiroth on mission trips all over the world, meeting with the people and leaders, apologizing for the former ShinRa's wrongdoing and gaining their favor, and getting to know them.

Cloud, while all that was happening, helped out in Neo-Midgar, helping the others to build, deliver and take care of the children in the Orphanage with Aeris and Shiva. Ifrit was often found helping either Zack or Sephiroth, becoming close friend with them. Odin had fallen under Cloud's care and was often keeping her busy on her feet with a mischievous little boy who loved to cause havoc wherever he went.

Which brings us to the story two weeks after the final battle in Neo-Midgar finding Cloud screaming at Odin in the middle of the street. The young boy was smirking, holding a brush behind his back, dripping pink paint. "Odin! I can't believe you went and did graffiti in the street!" Odin smirked as he rocked back and forth on his feet. "What in the world did you paint?" Cloud asked, exasperated and glancing at the gray street painted bright pink. It was hard to tell since the painting was already large and the other culprits had taken off, leaving Odin caught by her.

"Oh my!" Cloud looked up to see Aeris standing on the top of the building, having caught several children hiding up there. She was holding Denzel by the collar, glancing down. "They painted a rather large moogle."

Cloud sighed and closed her eyes, rubbing the bridge of her nose. She wondered how they found so much pink paint to use and the way of paining so much before getting caught. "Pink moggle?"

Odin giggled. "It's so boring, there's nothing to do and the cities gray and drab." He quipped as he waved the dripping pink brush around, splattering the pink paint as it went.

Cloud leapt out of the way, not wanting pink paint over her dark blue outfit. "Watch it boy!" She yelped and grabbed the brush and shook it in front of Odin's face. "You could have asked me to give you all something to do. I think it's time for you all to go to school! I'm going to take this up with Barret!"

The children had gathered around behind her with Aeris, standing in front of the orphanage. Their eyes went wide as Barret was mentioned and some shouted no, knowing Barret was tough with punishment. Cloud turned to them and stood with hands on her hips, the brush hanging dangerously from her hand, still dripping the amazing never-ending paint. "Yes! We've been rather lenient with you all! Odin!" She turned and grabbed the young boy by the ear, causing him to yelp. "I don't care if you used to be a god, you're five years old and you're going to school too! You lot!" She pushed the young boy to join the rest of the children. "Are going to clean this up!" She gestured to the large image of pink moogle on the street. "Go and get the cleaning supplies." She watched the children stand there, looking about. She raised an eyebrow and shouted, "I said NOW!" They scattered and ran back in the building and soon, they all came out with all sort of cleaning supplies. She went over to Aeris and watched with the flower girl as the children started to clean up.

"You're good with them." Aeris commented.

"No." Cloud replied. "I'm good at punishing them. It seems all I can do. I'm not so good with affection and hugs and all the play times."

Aeris laughed, "That will come in time. Odin seems to be attached to you and Sephiroth. He's a quiet handful."

Cloud nodded, sighing sadly. "Yeah." She watched the five years old boy laughing and quipping with the others about something as he cleaned. Since the final battle, the mighty and powerful god had decided to remain as a mortal, becoming a young boy and she had no heart of abandoning him to the orphanage, taking him in as her own son. But it still pained her that she couldn't have her own child. Sephiroth also knew this and expressed that he was glad to be with her, no matter what. He told her he'd adopt every child in the world if it would make her happy. But he knew it wouldn't because none of the children would share his and her blood. Odin was close enough, he was a pure Valkyrie and they fell in love with him the first day he stayed with them.

However, as two weeks went by, they've learned that Odin was quiet a handful, a mischievous brat that had thirst for life, always getting in sort of troubles every minutes. Yet he was still a loveable boy who had the uncanny ability of making everything seem all right despite the situation he always gets into. He made Sephiroth smile and cracks up after getting himself in trouble and Cloud exasperated and confused to punish him or forgive him afterward.

Cloud slapped a hand to her face as Odin dumped a bucket of soapy water onto the other kids, soaking them. He was one of the youngest of the lot, and everyone didn't mind him but loved him and included him in every activities every single time he and Cloud came around to the orphanage.

"At least they're busy. I am surprised that ever since they've lived together after Meteor, they didn't break out in a fight or anything. Tifa was worried that it would happen but it had not."

"They love each other; they've all shared the same experience, except for Odin. When you go through traumatic experience, you tend to stick together. I see it all the time in Soldiers." Cloud said softly as she watched the children cleaning the pink mess they made. She had noticed that all of the children she had come across had slightly glowing eyes, knowing they were victims of Geosigma. Several adults who had Geosigma also had the sign of slight glowing eyes.

The scientist had told her and the others that those who had Geosigma did show that their genes were altered, closer to resemble the genes of the Valkyries. They would live their life to the fullest, healthy and when they copulates and conceive, their children will breed out the old genes, creating stronger foundation of Valkyries genes, they predicted in two generations or three, everyone on the planet will be all Valkyries, given that the children's genes were already altered fully now.

Cloud looked over to Aeris, who was smiling radiantly, sitting on the steps of the building, watching the children. She had her hands over her belly and it hit her then that she realized the flower girl was expecting already. She swallowed hard and turned away, watching the children again, the paint was all nearly gone, yet there was hint of pink stain on the street. She supposed they had enough of cleaning up and went to the side of the building and pulled out the hose. "All right kids, time to clean up!" The kids cheered and lined up before her, standing like Soldiers she had taught them in the past two weeks. The summer had come around and the days were long and hot. She had resorted to allowing the kids play outside all day and they usually come back, dirty and she didn't want them to bring in the dirt in the building.

She turned the knob and started to spray the children with water; they all laughed and stood in their place, getting soaked from head to toes, cleaning the dirt and grimes off them. They squealed and screamed as the cold water blasted over them. She smiled at them and turned the knob, shutting the water off. "All right, you know the drills." She said with her best commanding voice and the girls filed to the right side of the building while the boys went left, stripping their clothes off and leaving them in the basket as they enter the building and went up to their rooms to dry and dress up for dinner.

Aeris came from the girls' side, holding the basket of wet clothes as she met with Cloud behind the building, hanging up the clothes to dry. "Cloud, are you all right?" She asked as she noticed the blond looked serious and quiet.

Cloud nodded, "Yeah, I'm fine." She said a little bit too flatly.

Aeris placed the basket down and reached to grab Cloud by the shoulder, not minding the other woman was nearly half head taller than she is and had the strength of an Elite Soldiers. "Cloud, something is bothering you." Aeris said her voice left no argument.

Cloud looked to the green-eyed woman and sighed, "I guess, I'm still not really over it."

"What?"

"Not being able to have children. It's…" She went quiet and Aeris gasped.

"I'm so sorry, am I being too obvious?" Cloud looked up again and nodded. "I just only found out few days ago… I wasn't ready to tell you… I don't know how you'd react."

Cloud shook her head. "Aeris, it's okay. I should be happy for you, not getting upset with myself instead." She smiled softly and gave the shorter woman a hug.

Aeris smiled as they hugged and Cloud stepped back, turning to finish hanging the wet clothes. She watched the blonde from the corner of her eyes and knew it was still bothering Cloud on the inside and sighed, wishing that with all of her healing ability, she would help Cloud to be able to carry a child of her own but knew it wouldn't be possible. Cloud was healthy and there was nothing left to heal except for her spirit, she was still grieving for her three other sons, grieving for all of the people in the world and all that had happened in the past few years. It was too much for her to handle, Aeris knew and suspected Cloud will finally break down if one more thing were to happen and prayed to the gods above that Cloud will be given time to heal before the next thing to come face to face with all of them.

Yes, Zack had been right, they should all had taken a longer vacation, to forget, to heal and get over the experience they've gone through, especially Cloud and Sephiroth but it seems, they couldn't be given longer vacation, the world was on their shoulders.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

In Lord Godo Kisaragi's office, the four men sat around a low table, sitting on cushions, drinking their sake and going over paperwork. Godo had several scrolls in front of him and he was holding a cup of sake.

The younger man of the council of Kisaragi's House spoke up, "Reports had been flowing in the past few days, and everything is over. The team of Avalanche, along with Turks and some of the Summonses on their sides had defeated the evil that was the cause of the ShinRa, the illness are cured."

The elder of the four, Chekhov, an aged warrior grumbled, "Yes but the children have signs of Mako now. Our healers' reported that they are like Soldiers, their bodies changed, they are not pure anymore."

Staniv, a man slightly younger than Godo frowned, "But it is according to the prophecy that the world will change, becoming Children of Gaia. The events in the past few years had proven the prophecy come true." He argued.

Godo remained silent as he listened to Staniv and Chekhov starts to argue about the prophecy, what was right and what was ill. His mind wandered away as he recalled about Wutai's history. Long ago, the country was united and true, as one, strong and stable. Until ShinRa rose to power a little over a hundred years ago and the royal family found the ShinRa to be a threat, however, it was divided, that one side agreed that they should take up arm and bring down ShinRa before they could rise to the height of their power and destroy the planet. The other side disagrees and wishes to allow ShinRa to rise and fall, as it was said in the prophecy.

However, as Godo knew, the prophecy was the foundation of Wutai, creating the culture and religion of the Wutai, anticipating the peaceful time to come, yet the half of the royal family saw in a small part of the prophecy that the peace brought would destroy Wutai, bringing it down to nothing and their proud culture and history will fade away to nothingness and they would be mingled with the rest of the world, becoming impure. It was the cause of division of the Royal House, becoming the house of Xin'Tine, which took the south of Wutai and the House of Kisaragi, who took the north. For a generation, the two houses bickered and held bitterness against each other and then, one fateful day, the ShinRa saw this and used the chance to exploit the weakness.

When ShinRa happened, it brought both houses together in a reluctant agreement to rejoin and fight against ShinRa, to protect the country from the world domineering company that wanted Mako and more. The two houses came together and agreed that the son and the daughter from both families will marry and rejoin the house and they signed a scroll to abide the agreement.

From the Kisaragi family, Godo Kisaragi was born and the Xin'Tine family soon was expecting a child, however, a son was born to Grimoire Xin'Tine. It was a great disappointment and the Kisaragi House demanded for Grimoire to have another child, however, it wasn't possible, for his wife couldn't have another child late in her life. It had caused another disruption with the family and the war happened.

ShinRa invaded and Wutai fought to keep them out. They stole and pillaged the country, crippling the people of Wutai. The son of Grimoire ran away, feeling the pressure from the war and the pressure of ShinRa, like many southern Wutaianese did. Grimoire, in his grief, gave up and surrendered the south to Godo, who was at the age of thirty took rule and assembled the entire Wutai, all of their warriors and fought back the best they could.

Godo's face darkened as he recalled the memory that ended the war. Thousand of his warrior had died, laid strewn about the bloody battlefield along with the ShinRa's warrior, their blood mingling, steeping the land of Wutai. And the Elites came in, a small band of super-soldiers, created by the scientist of the ShinRa, using the maddening method of Mako to increase their strength, speed and inhumanity. It took several hundred more to bring all nine of them down and then, Godo was faced with a young boy of eleven years old, his hair black like midnight and his eyes, blazing green.

He was shocked, appalled when he met the boy, staring at each other across the battle field. The boy was the image of Kintaro Xin'Tine, the exact image. He knew then, that the runaway son of Grimoire Xin'Tine had bred a son and the boy was on ShinRa's side. He was deeply insulted that the ShinRa had decided to use the boy as the last resort.

Up on the hill, the boy stood, dressed in black suit, his hand held the simple katana that glinted in the early dawn of the morning and his eyes glowed, heartless and cold, void of any souls. Godo remembered how he had felt then, they had sent a monster in a body of a child and it was then he knew, he had to do everything he could to save Wutai, to preserve their foundation, their purity. Damn the house of Xin'Tine, the Kisaragi will rule Wutai whole.

He screamed then, signaling the entire warrior that stood to kill the boy on the hill. He watched as the boy came running down the hill, meeting the hundred of warriors, and to his horror, the boy had simply went through them without a slice upon his skin, but felled them all under mere twenty minutes.

Then, when the entire warrior had been left to die, he was facing the boy in the middle of the bloody field. They faced each other, the boy cold and emotionless and he was quaking inside, keeping the mask of a stoic warrior on his face. The boy stalked slowly toward him.

"Stop there. We surrender." Godo had told the boy and dropped his sword and held his hand up. Wutai was worthless now, there was no use for the country to ShinRa, the land is sullied, soaked with blood and nearly all the warriors are dead, all there was left the women and children.

The boy stopped and tilted his head as if he didn't understand him. Godo was puzzled; he had spoken in the language that the ShinRa spoke. Then the boy spoke, his voice low, "Surrender?"

"Yes."

"The word does not comply. Mission: kill the leader." The boy said and it shocked Godo. His eyes went wide as he realized the truth to the depth of the boy's eyes. There was no sign of a soul within the boy.

He fingered the small stone in his armguard, "You're a monster." He whispered and he rotated the stone, activating it. He shouted as he shot his hand to the sky, causing a red beam to shoot out, "Neo Bahamut!" Then he watched in mild interest as the boy looked up to the sky without care.

The sky exploded and a gigantic dragon swept down, aiming to attack the young boy. Then, as before the dragon came closer, he took a flying leap upward to meet the silver dragon. His sword clashed upon the face of the dragon, disrupting it's attack and it clawed and snapped at the boy. Godo watched in mild horror as the boy twisted his body in graceful moves much like the street performers of acrobats.

The boy glowed bright, brilliantly white and his sword grew in length of six feet, his inky black hair came free from its tie and became ghost white, his body stretched and grew. With the burst of light, Godo shielded his eyes and then the light faded, the dragon was slewed and exploded in the sky, sending shockwave everywhere around.

He looked up to see the boy but found a silver-haired man coming down, looking at him. He threw his sword and he gasped as the blade hit him in the center of his chest, pinning him down to the ground on his knees. He coughed, blood spilled from his lips. He glared up to the green-eyed, silver haired man who landed on the ground before him, looking very imposing and god-like. "I said, we surrender…" He clutched onto the sword that was clean into his chest. "You're a monster… a freak. Who are you?"

The man tilted his head to his side and his eyes blinked. His voice sent shiver down Godo's spine, cold and emotionless, "Sephiroth." He said and glanced around the battlefield. Godo struggled to remain awake as the pain was coursing through his body. He watched this Sephiroth look around and return his gaze to him. It was then, that moment he saw something in his eyes and he fell over, closing his own eyes, blacking out from immense pain. He felt his chest lurch as the sword was removed from his body and heard his voice, "Masamune."

Godo touched his chest in memory, recalling the pain and ever since then, he had the scar on his chest from the said weapon, Masamune. After the war was over, he had woken up expecting to be dead but found that ShinRa had retreated and left Wutai alone and he became the Lord of Wutai. It was a bitter years of rebuilding the country. It was a bitter time when his wife gave birth to his one and only daughter, Yufi. It was a bitter disappointment to learn his daughter had a wild rebellious streak in her and ran away often and became a ninja, rather than a princess.

He had kept track of Sephiroth ever since, learning that the man had become the ShinRa's most powerful Solider, the only one in Elites and the General of the entire army. He had expected for Sephiroth to return with his army and destroy what was left of Wutai but he didn't. He then learned that Sephiroth disappeared in the fire of Nibelheim. It was a day he had waited, expecting for Sephiroth to reappear, to prove his godliness. But he didn't.

It was a long two years before Sephiroth finally showed up and went wrecking havoc across the world. To his surprise, Sephiroth was aiming for ShinRa rather than Wutai, killing the President, the Soldiers in his wake and then he learned that Sephiroth was aiming to destroy the entire world. Godo sat back, watching as the small band of group called themselves Avalanche to chase after Sephiroth as well the group of Turks with the new President of ShinRa. It was as if Wutai didn't matter to them anymore.

He was upset and furious that his daughter had chosen to join the rag-tag group of Avalanche. But when she returned to Wutai with armloads of valuable Materias that was once stolen from Wutai during the war, he had learned it was in the possession of Avalanche and agreed to allow his daughter continue travel with the group. He figures, she would serve her end of usefulness in extracting revenge for Wutai killing Sephiroth with them and told her to return when it was over with all of the Materias.

But he did not expect for her to not return. She remained with Avalanche, helping ShinRa to rebuild. He was furious and betrayed by his own daughter. Everything was falling apart. Sephiroth returned to life, as if the Lifestream spat him out and he wanted to rule the world, even with the woman that once was the leader of Avalanche who wanted to kill him in the first place. He could not make a head or tail of everything but one thing he knew, Wutai was finally in danger again, from Sephiroth.

He had plan for Yuffie, with less than a year time, she would return to Wutai and marries a man of his own choice to protect Wutai. The contract had stated between the House of Xin'Tine and Kisaragi that the daughter and son would marry and he could not allow this to happen, it would mean, if Sephiroth is truly the son of Kintaro Xin'Tine, he would have to marry Yuffie and Godo knew he cannot have that to happen. The contract, in his consideration is nullified. He will choose a man loyal to the Kisaragi's cause and have Yuffie submit like a proper wife to the man.

He heard Gork tell the two other men to silence from their bickering and blinked, he realized he had zoned out of the conversation between Staniv and Chekov. Then the young man turned to Godo and asked, "Well, what do you plan to do?"

Godo gave a small smirk, "I don't have much to plan. Yuffie will return home in less than a year time and she will be married to a man of my own choosing." The three other men nodded silently, knowing it was a tradition among the Wutaian family that the father of the house would choose the husband for his daughter. "As for Sephiroth, I will find a way to stop him from becoming a King. He will not take crown as long I breathe."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud stopped before Asgard, the elite pub/bar in the area. Aeris had told her to meet at the bar. She wondered why would the flower girl want them to meet at what was the guys' usual gathering spot. Shrugging her shoulder, she entered the bar and saw Aeris at a booth with gaggle of other women. She groaned slightly under her breath and plastered a fake smile on her face and went over to the table.

She felt out of place, wearing her usual dark outfit while the others were in their summer dresses, brightly colored.

"You're late! What held you up?" Aeris asked as she scooted over to give room for Cloud to sit.

Tifa chuckled as she answered for Cloud. "Sephiroth, I bet?"

Cloud blushed red, "No!" as she caught on what Tifa was implying. "I was in meeting with Rufus and Sephiroth; we were discussing over Sephiroth's traveling plan. It's too bad he had to go so soon."

Aeris nodded, "Yeah, Zack told me about that. Are you going to be able to hold that up?"

Cloud shrugged, "I can handle it… he will be gone for a week at a time, this whole thing will last close to two months. Reeve already planned everything out, and if everything goes as planned, Sephiroth and I will take crown after the wedding."

The women at the table squealed in delight, causing the other people in the bar to glance their way. Cloud sighed as she rested her head on her hand as she met everyone's eyes. Aeris, Tifa, Shiva, Yuffie and Elena were at the table, looking excited and jumpy.

Elena smiled, "I heard there's another banquet in about a month, is that true?"

Cloud nodded. "Yeah, it's for the world leaders, to bring everyone together and sign an agreement and get to know one another and appoint the knights to each one of them. Sephiroth wants each knight to guard and protect each country in the world and report to him in the future for anything."

"Wow, sound like everything is getting all set up." Yuffie quipped then frowned, "I hope Godo won't do anything stupid… He has been real quiet lately."

"Yeah, I hope so too. I read up the history on Wutai War and boy, it's not good. Isn't Vincent going to try to handle this?" Cloud asked, curiously at the girl.

The teenager shrugged her shoulders, "I'm not sure. Vincent is away for the weekend, he told me he has to meet with some other rebels from south Wutai that hidden away in the past twenty years. All I know, he is gathering force."

"That's not good." Cloud frowned. "I suppose Vincent and Sephiroth are on it."

"Yeah, they are."

"Good."

Shiva pulled out a large binder that was decorated with lace and frills, it was full of dog-eared notes and post it here and there and slammed it on the table. "Enough of political talks. Let's talk wedding!" She grinned as the others agreed and Cloud rolled her eyes. She had seen the title on the binder; it said 'Sephiroth and Cloud's Wedding Planner'.

"All right, let's get to business!" Aeris said, clapping her hands while Shiva popped open the binder, there was scribbles of notes, scraps of fabrics, colors and flowers as well.

"We need to decide the basic things, like; theme, colors, location, what you want for the banquet, what kind of wines and so on." Shiva started and pulled out a sheet of paper and a pen with flower taped on the top. Cloud eyed it with bemused expression.

Cloud sighed and ticked her fingers, "Uhm, Theme, wedding, colors, white, silver, gold and black. Location, I don't care. Food, I don't care either. Wine, Nibelung Wine and Strawberry Vintage."

Shiva was already scribbling on the paper, "Excellent ideas on some but come on! Cloud, you got to have a dream wedding of something of sort."

Cloud leaned forward on the table, her arms resting on the top, "Shiva, my dream wedding was shot down even before I ever dreamed it up when I was three years old, which was when I decided to become a boy for good."

Tifa gasped, "Oh, we're so sorry! We didn't mean to bug you so much; we wanted the best for you."

Cloud shook her head, "don't worry. You guys dream me up a nice one; just don't go over board on this."

Aeris laughed, "It's hard to not to. It's a huge wedding; basically, I think we are looking at the guest of three thousands to more." Cloud groaned and thumped her head on the table and muttered something under her breath. "I think she said, Lord, help me."

The others tittered as they started to chat up storm, throwing ideas for the wedding, drowning Cloud into the wedding planning.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Vincent walked into the smaller conference room and found Sephiroth with Reeve and Rufus at the table, going over papers that were strewn across the tabletop. Sephiroth was intently writing on one of the sheet. His eyebrows rose at the sight, "Hm, where is Cloud?"

Sephiroth replied without looking up, "She had to go to another meeting with the women. I suppose it's about the wedding. She dreaded that meeting and rather to be here."

Vincent laughed, "Ah, no wonder why Yuffie disappeared. So, what is going on?" he asked as he sat down next to Sephiroth and peered over what his son was writing on. It appeared to be some kind of speech. He frowned and lifted another paper nearby and looked at it. It was indeed speeches, rather for each country. "Hm…"

Sephiroth groaned and dropped the pen he was using and sat back, cracking his back with stretching. "They're being slave-drivers." He gestured to the young President and his cohort. Reeve and Rufus gave a grinning smile as they nodded. "They want me to write rough drafts of speeches that I would give to each place I will be visiting soon."

Vincent nodded as he read one of the drafts that appeared to be for the Southern Isle country. "Hm… they are strong and good… You have good diplomatic skills in you. I'm surprised you thought you don't have the ability." He placed the paper down and looked over the other and found them to be similar to the first but each was written to state to fit in each country and their cultures.

"I just don't." Sephiroth said. "All my life, I was all about war and power. This is different."

"You may not notice, but in diplomat, it is good to have military strategy and skills to use in winning allies than making enemies, the skills are the same but used for different reasons. All you need is good reasons to make allies and use it."

"Hm. That makes senses." Sephiroth mused and returned to working on his paper. "I'm having a hard time with Wutai one. We all agree to hold that one last since Lord Godo is not willing to ally with Neo-Midgar, he had told Yuffie he refuses to allow me take crown… They're going to be hard to win over."

"I know. I was there when Godo said that." Vincent said softly. "He's stubborn. That is where I move in to help you." Sephiroth frowned as he looked up to his father and gave a questioning look. "Do you know of Wutai's history?" Sephiroth shook his head and sat back, curious. "I see. I know of your history with Wutai, you ended the battle and left alone. I've read the report and heard from others, it had given you a bad mark with Wutai, especially with Lord Godo, seeing you had tried to kill him on the field."

Sephiroth nodded, "I detest that memory the most of all from my childhood. The ShinRa," He turned to Rufus, "No offense to you." Rufus shrugged, "they trained me to be a Solider and sent me out, by then, I was cold hearted and emotionless, I just did what I was ordered, my mind was locked and focused on the mission. General Angeal Leon told me before he died, to kill the leader and that's what I focused on. But I did not expect for my Valkyrie Wakening to happen in the middle of it. I changed while I was battling Neo Bahamut. What I must have looked must have given Lord Godo a fright, he called me a monster."

"Yes. There is one thing; he knew who you were up there on the battle. I've contacted with some of the South Wutaianese, they told me what they had learned from Godo on who you are. They are only few handfuls of people in the world who truly knew of you and your heritage; you are tied to the Wutai in a way."

"Because I am your son, so what of it?" Sephiroth said.

"Yes, but more than that, my true name is Xin'Tine Kintaro, of the house of Xin'Tine." By the mention of the name, the two other men's jaw dropped and Sephiroth looked completely confused. "That mean, I am the Lord of the South Wutai. Long ago, at one time, Wutai was under a rule of a royal family and it split apart when the ShinRa rose to power a hundred years ago, dividing Wutai in half, the House of Kisaragi took the north and the Xin'Tine took the south. After one generation, the ShinRa forced the two houses to unite in prospect of an upcoming war. The two houses made an pact, for each to bear a daughter and son to unite in marriage. However, both houses bore sons, no daughter were born."

"So, Lord Godo is one of the sons and who is the other?" Sephiroth asked. He was shocked that he had no idea of the history behind Wutai and felt anger that the ShinRa went as far to hide it from him and wondered why they hid from him.

"I am the other son, younger than Godo and my father, Grimoire Xin'Tine could not have anymore children because my mother had bore me late in her life and wasn't able to have any other children and he was loyal to her, he would not impregnate any other women."

"What?" Sephiroth muttered as he leaned forward, curious and surprised. "So, what happened, how did Lord Godo get rule of the entire Wutai?"

"I'm getting to that point soon. I grew up, there was pressure with two wars we were facing, and one was with ShinRa and the other with Lord Godo. I was frustrated like many other South Wutaianese men, I fled. My childhood was of bitterness, full with pressure of becoming the Lord and the facing of war, I left and I joined ShinRa, under a different name and became a Turk. Over the time, I became one of the best Turk around, and I met Lucrecia, your mother. I fell in love so hard that I forgot about Wutai, everything, my world was around her.

When I learned that she was pregnant, I proposed to her and learned of her heritage of a Valkyrie. I knew fate had different things for us in mind. I wanted to take her and you away from everything, from Hojo. By the time you were born, Hojo wanted to take you away, I faced him and he shot me, I died then." Vincent went silent as he looked away, lost his memory. Then he finally spoke again, "The world went on around me for a long time, the Wutai war happened and everything, I woke up to find Cloud and her band of Avalanche and find that my own son, you were bent on taking over the world and destroy it. I was lost and confused, I didn't know what was going on and why everything had became distorted and twisted. Anyway, back to the point, Grimoire, my father, in his grief, he gave up and surrendered South Wutai to Lord Godo and many of the southern Wutaianese fled, scattered through the world. I've looked it up, Zack's mother and brother was from south Wutai. His mother settled in Gongaga and married his father and had Zack. Zack's uncle went on to ShinRa and became a Scientist, a Mako Scientist and was stationed in Nibelheim when the Reactor was building, that's Cloud's father. We all are connected."

"You said Lord Godo knew of my heritage. What of this?" Sephiroth asked. He was surprised to find that the connection between everyone he knew and cared about was much tighter and deeper.

"Yes. One of the men I talked to was in the war, he had heard Godo tell his tale from his view after the war. Godo, when he saw you on the battlefield, on the top of the hill, he knew then that you were my son."

"How did he know?" Rufus asked, curious, also shocked to hear the truth behind everything relating with Vincent and Sephiroth.

"Sephiroth's appearance, he looked just like me," Vincent said as he glanced to Sephiroth, "At the time, he had black hair. Before Hojo changed me, I had green eyes. Grimoire also shared the same appearance. It was more than enough to show that Sephiroth is of the Xin'Tine bloodline."

"Shit!" Reeve cursed softly under his breath, "The pact… if it were to be enforced, Sephiroth will have to marry Yuffie!"

Sephiroth's face twisted. "Yuffie? No way!"

Vincent chuckled. "Don't worry. I intended to marry her after all. Lord Godo had revoked the pact and he had announced that Yuffie has one year to make her decision, if she chose to say, she is forever disowned from Wutai and is an outcast, but if she chose to go back, Godo will have her marry a man of his choice by her eighteenth birthday. As to where I am coming in to help you with Wutai, I'm gathering force together and return to Wutai and take up my rightful place as the Lord of the Xin'Tine House. Lord Godo will have no choice but surrender or bring entire Wutai into civil war."

Sephiroth frowned as he glanced to the paper he was working on and picked it up. "I wish it wouldn't come to that." He looked up to his father and met his crimson gaze. "Let's try this first… and if it doesn't work out, I'll leave it to you."

"Hai." Vincent nodded.

**_w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s_**

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	53. SS:2: The Genesis and the Omega

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M . **

Chapter Two: The Genesis and the Omega

"All right, here we go." Reeve came in the large beautiful office with armload of folders and papers. He dropped it on the mother of pearl desk and the papers landed with a loud thump. Sephiroth looked up from his paperwork he was already working on; there were towers of folders and papers on the desk already, nearly drowning Sephiroth.

"How many trees had been decapitated to make this mess?" Sephiroth asked with dryness in his voice as he eyed the papers. He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose to ward off the oncoming headache. "Where the heck did you find all of this information?" He asked, leaning back on the chair that matched the desk.

Sephiroth and Cloud had decided to open up the Ancient City, welcoming the people from all over the world to live there. Many had started to flock and settled in. He and Cloud had took the large grand palace for themselves, seeing that they would become the ruler of the world soon and started to work non-stop on creating laws and system for all of the world to abide by and learn the system themselves. They had little time before they could receive their crowns and wanted to make sure they got everything down and ready by the time they take their crowns.

Reeve had helped them, gathering as much information and hiring people from all over to create and work on the system. "Well, those are all found through the documented history, going back several hundred of years." He said as he sat down in one of the other chairs in the room. "There are a whole lot more than this but I got the team to narrow down to these, the most successful regency and governing in the history. ShinRa was based on some of them but ended up not the best because of Roscoe's thirst of power."

"Yeah, I remember how he was." Sephiroth said as he stood up and stretched, he had been sitting for several hours and wasn't used to such kind of pace. He was used to going out and battling whatever he was sent to kill, putting fears in others or scaring the piss out of cadets in the old Academic days.

Cloud came in the room, holding Odin who was resting in her arms, his head on her shoulder, looking half asleep. "Hey guys… I just got back from Neo-Midgar… you wouldn't believe what Odin did this time around."

Sephiroth chuckled and went to relieve Odin from Cloud and hoisted the boy to rest on him. The young boy fell asleep promptly as he was comfortably settled in Sephiroth's arms. "What did he do? Painted any more Moogles in the streets? Gathered force and pelted eggs on some poor bystanders?"

Cloud laughed softly, looking at Odin and stroking his brown hair, amazed how she knew a fearsome god turned into a simple good-humored boy. "This time around, he only simply gathered force of the boys at the orphans and stole all of the girls' clothes while they were bathing. They were left with nothing but tiny towels each. Then he sent the smallest boy to dump a bucket full of frogs in their bath." She shook her head as Sephiroth winced. "Oh, they all came screaming out of the bathroom, holding tiny towels to their body, poor girls… the entire orphanage was sodden wet with the girls running around screaming their heads off. Aeris and I had to kick the boys out for a while until we got everyone calmed down."

"I hope you punished the boys." Reeve said as he stood up, chuckling softly.

"They were punished; they had to dry the entire place, serve dinner, wash the dishes and sent to bed early. Odin's punishment is that he can't go back to the orphanage to play with the others for a week. He is staying here with me."

"I pity the boy, all the boredom he will be suffering this week." Reeve said with mock sadness.

Cloud slapped Reeve as the man passed her by to leave the office, "Funny, you."

Sephiroth chuckled and turned to leave the office and Cloud followed, walking down the hallway in silence as they headed to Odin's room. As they reached Odin's room, they put the boy in his bed and tucked him in. Sephiroth stepped back and watched as Cloud took extra care to make sure he was completely tucked in and brushed the hair away from his face and kissed his forehead. He saw the mother love in Cloud's eyes and hint of sadness and knew her desire of her own child, to grow one in her belly and give birth. They had accepted the fate and took Odin in as their own.

Cloud smiled and turned to Sephiroth who had his arms waiting for her. She stepped in and allowed him to embrace her. She sighed as he led her out of the room and closed the door. "Cloud…" He took her chin and lifted her face, "I love you, no matter what." He said and kissed her. She smiled and returned the kiss. "Mm… I can't wait until we are finally married."

"Me too. It had been far too long… it's hard to believe that we're here finally, together and I just keep waiting, everyday for something to happen… waiting for Jenova to pop up or Maleficius Sephirt to kidnap me once again but nothing… It's so hard for me to believe that peace is finally here and I'm getting a bit riled up sitting around and doing nothing."

"Ah, I know that feeling all too well. Reeve had me stuck in the office half of the time going over the papers and the other half of the time, Rufus had me out traveling and stuck in boring meeting, don't tell the other I said that." Cloud laughed as he said, they walked down the hall back to the office. He had gone to several places near Neo-Midgar and met with the mayor, headsman of the town, and few lords in the area. "This weekend, I'm starting to travel oversea and staying away longer…" He stopped as he saw Cloud's face fall. "Koibito… I got my phone, call me anytime you want." He said as he turned to her and held her to him, "I am leaving in two days and return before the next weekend. I told Rufus that I can't say away all the time, I have to come back home every weekend. It's only for a few weeks."

Cloud sighed in resignation. "I know. I don't like to be away from you so long… I could bear with you being here and myself in Neo-Midgar every other day. At least I get to come back home for dinner and bed."

"Yeah. Isn't Tifa going to move the orphanage here into the city?" He asked as they sat down at the desk together and started to go over the papers.

Cloud nodded as she took one of the binders and started to read it. "Yes, they're starting to pack up. Barret is settling things in Corel right now and when he gets back next week, they're going to move here."

"Good, the city is starting to fill up… It's hard to imagine that a few weeks ago, the city was nothing but empty and now, it's full of life."

Cloud smiled at him, "Yeah, it's really nice to see everyone's face, they're happy; they're raring to go on with their future." She placed the binder down, "Have you decided yet how the system should work?"

"I'm almost there… This pile," He gestured to his right, "Are what I'd like to work around with and these," He gestured to the rest, "I don't want to use… Reeve is having a team to come tomorrow and we're going to put it together. Once we're done, we are to go over them and study them and start setting them up around here and appointing the right people. Thankfully, the team is going to help us. Reeve says once we are finished with this, we can start interviewing people to grant those titles and duties afterward. The knights and the summonses are the first of the people we will be placing them in their places. Here is the work on how it should look like for the royal family system." He handed the paper to Cloud who took it and read it. He watched her eyes go wide.

"This is interesting! Have they been told?" She asked as she stared at the paper in her hands. There was outline of how the system would work, names in places where they would be properly placed and who would govern and rule over what. Her and Sephiroth's name was on the top, being the King and Queen. She grabbed a pen and scribbled her name out and wrote something else down, "There… I'd rather to be called Queen Sorano for a formal title."

Sephiroth chuckled, "What's wrong with Queen Cloud?"

"Sound a bit odd… for those who are close to me can call me Cloud in informal ways but as for the title, it's Queen Sorano." She gave him a smile.

He cupped her cheek, "Whatever makes you happy, you're beautiful to me, your name sound beautiful, I might be inclined to agree, a beautiful name for a beautiful woman."

Cloud batted his hand away, "You're over flattering me." He laughed and gave her a quick peck on the lip. "It's getting late; I am going to turn in. I'm glad I'm staying home tomorrow; going back and forth to Neo-Midgar is kind of harsh, one hour trip each way on that blasted airship… I can't keep taking those pills, it makes me sick afterward."

Sephiroth stood up with Cloud and frowned, "They're not working as they used to. You and Yuffie…" he shook his head, chuckling lightly, "Come on; I'll see you to your room." He took her hand and wound it around his arm and they both walked out of the office together.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Lord Kisaragi looked up to the large mansion, it was large as his own, equally beautiful, yet he sneered in distaste, it was the house the belonged to the family of Xin'Tine. He knew the master of the house is in his prime age, nearly the age of ninety. No one had seen the southern Lord in decades, perhaps nearly four or five decades, since the disappearance of the young heir.

The Lord Xin'Tine had disappeared within his mansion, never coming out, locking himself away in grief and despair. Messages had been delivered only by the trusted servants and then since the War, no words had been heard from the lord, only the servants had assured that the lord still remain alive. The people had begun to doubt if the lord was still alive and over the years, they believed he was truly dead and started to depart from Wutai, losing hope and faith in their trusted lord, not wanting to serve under Kisaragi's rule.

The mansion was left to ruin, dust and overgrown garden strewn about, yet it still stood with magnificent glory. Godo went up to the door and knocked. He waited for a while and decided no one was home. He took the handle and found it unlocked and pushed the door open. He had only meant to come to see how the Xin'Tine Lord was doing in his old age, which is if he was still alive. He wanted to inform him that his son had been recently discovered and discuss with him the events happening in the world and see where Grimoire stands after several decades.

He stepped into the hallway and coughed slightly as the dust made a swirl as the door had shut behind him. The inner side of the place was also dusty and untouched for many years. The southern of Wutai was mostly deserted with some people remaining, living rather poorly. He had been given odd looks as he had passed to get to the abandoned mansion. He knew most of those who were loyal to the Xin'Tine House have abandoned Wutai to live elsewhere in the world, not wanting to be subjected to the Kisaragi's rule.

He walked down the hallway and through the Mansion, finding it was surely deserted. He entered what he knew was an office and glanced it around. He remembered the place to be beautiful and in splendor when he was young boy. The place looked as if it was abandoned in haste, for everything was still sitting there. He went over to the desk and picked up a scroll and blew the dust off it. His eyes widened as he saw the date on it, it was from around the middle of Wutai War. He had remembered then that he had heard the Xin'Tine had dropped out of the war, giving up. So, that was when the entire household and the southern Wutai just left the large island.

He frowned as he turned and left the office to explore the place a little more, supposing that there was something worth to find. He glanced around and stopped, noticing the wall at the end of the hallway that appeared to be slightly different than the rest. He stopped before the wall and looked at it. He reached up and touched it, it clicked and moved slightly. Ah, a fake wall. He pushed it open and stepped into the room, it was dark and he could barely see. He groped around and found a torch on the wall inside and took it down. He fumbled around with his pocket and lifted up a lighter, a marvel that the ShinRa made. The ShinRa was good for few things and he flicked the lighter on, lighting up the torch.

He glanced around the room; it was a secret room with shelves of library full of dusty scrolls. There was a long table in the room with several scrolls and dusty tomes. He went over to the table and glanced at the dust covered papers. He wondered why the room was a secret and set the torch in one of the bracket nearby and picked up a book. He blew the dust away and brushed it. He noticed it was a scientific book; obviously a data records and flipped few pages. His eyes went wide as he recognized some writings. It was a very old book belonging to the original Doctor Hojou, the scientist who had discovered Mako, in fact that this original Doctor was the father of the recent Doctor Hojo, who created Super-Soldiers for the ShinRa. According to the book, Doctor Hojou was a Wutaian and was in prospect of seeking new things to apply to creating a better future however his experiment went awry. He read on and saw there was surprising information that shocked him.

Doctor Hojou had discovered a creature of mass destruction, its ability assuming to absorb the souls of the planet and leave the planet to nothing but a crumbling mass of rocks. Godo read on and found it was named Omega Weapons, the most powerful and terrible of all Weapons that Gaia had created. It was buried deep in Wutai, left to be never touched, yet Hojou and Grimoire had discovered it and researched on it in secret. He felt disgusted and appalled that the two men kept the information from the world and was surprised that the ShinRa had not known in the past, he supposed was the good thing or else the ShinRa would had used it, as he read on learning that this Weapon feed on Lifestream, sucking it up. He flipped the page over and saw that the experiment Hojou had been working on regarding the Mako was similar to the one Hojo had done, using on the Soldiers but in the end, it was abandoned because it went out of control, resulting in creating monsters.

He sighed as he decided he needs to sit down and read a little bit more. He found a chair and sat down, he read the dusty book and learned that Hojou discovered that using Mako had cured and improved a person life and saw that he had taken few Soldiers, the prisoners of war from Wutai war, who were fatally wounded. The experiment had proven successful however, to Hojou's horror, it had changed the person's persona and decided to abandon the experiment, however it was too late then, that he had already done the treatment on Grimoire. Godo gasped at the information, learning that at the time, Grimoire was fatally ill and was indeed on his deathbed, but before his own time.

He scowled and stood up and went over to the table and gathered the papers, scrolls and books together and tucked them in a bag, he figured he would take them home and read more about it. He glanced around and shrugged, no one would notice it was gone since the mansion was abandoned.

He moved to leave the room and noticed a door next to the bookshelf and paused. He turned and went to the door and opened it. He stepped in and the light from the torch bathed the room, revealing it was a small room. There was a box, a long box sitting on the floor; it was long enough to be a coffin. He went over it and held the torch above it to find an inscription on it. There was a word on it, stating 'Genesis'. His eyes widened as he remembered from his reading, this Genesis was the original solider experiment, he gasped softly and a plan started to form in his mind. He smirked and nodded, he was going to have to have his warriors to come back and bring this box to his house soon. He turned and left, the heavy bag strapped to his shoulder.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Vincent bowed his thank to the messenger boy who handed him a scroll and went back to his room. He had been given a room in the Palace at the Ancient City for his stay. Most of the Avalanche and Turks had been given their rooms at the palace for when they come to visit or stay. He had come to stay for a while, keeping Cloud company while Sephiroth was out doing his tour. He saw the seal on the scroll and frowned, recognizing it to belong to the Xin'Tine House. He broke the seal and opened the scroll to read. It was from his father. He gasped softly, it had been five decades he had last seen his father.

Yuffie bounced into the room and grinned. "Hey Vinny, what's up?" She stopped as she saw his face set in surprise and then melted into a frown.

He looked up to her, "I've just gotten a letter from my father, he requested for me to meet him in Wutai at my old home. He said there was something going on I needed to know. It had to do with Lord Godo."

"So, you're going to Wutai now?" Yuffie asked, curious and concerned.

"Yes. I was planning to go to Wutai soon to gather up some numbers who would be loyal to our side. But I suppose I can do this now. I have to leave soon." Vincent said as he went to his closet and started to pull out his clothes and dress himself up in his usual garb that he wore for battling and traveling, the ebony pants and shirt with crimson cloaks. Yuffie stood to the side, holding his bandanna and waited. He turned to her and stood, facing her as she leaned up against his body, helping to tie the bandanna on his head. Vincent then wrapped his arm around her waist, kissing her softly.

"Mm… be careful. I will let Cloud know you've gone. Don't worry, Cloud's fine with me and Shiva keeping her company. Aeris and Tifa are going to be here tomorrow with the kids and we all will keep her busy." Yuffie said as they broke away from their kisses.

"Good. I will call when I get to Wutai." He said and they left the room.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud sighed as she looked the grand hall, standing with Shiva and Yuffie, looking about the large room, easily to fit five thousands of people in the room alone for a special event. "So, what about the room?" She asked. She had been dragged from teaching Odin reading by Shiva and was shown the room she had seen several times before.

"This is perfect place for you to have your wedding banquet! Who'd know how many people will shows up to your wedding!" Shiva piped up in excitement as she looked around the large room with sparkly eyes.

Cloud nodded and shrugged, "Fine. I know we will have a wedding here in the city, so…" She gestured to the binder of her Wedding Planning and eyed it with shudder; it was already twice thicker since she had last seen it. "Write it down then…"

Ooh! So, where are we going to hold the ceremony?" Yuffie asked curiously as she went over to the side of the room where the veranda was attached, overlooking the beautiful city. Cloud had joined her.

The future queen glanced over the railing and pursed her lips, knowing she had to come up with an idea soon or else she will be ambushed by them later. "I suppose it would do good in front of the Council House over there," She gestured to the temple that was next to the palace, it was large and she remembered being there recalling the memories of Aeris' death upon the watery screen over a year ago. The Council House had been rebuilt, restoring to its former glory and renamed to Council House for it wasn't right to call it the temple seeing there was two other temples of the Ancients in the world. They had renamed the Ancient Temple in the south to the Island Temple and the one by the lake deep in the forest the Mirror Temple.

Shiva beamed, "That'd be so wonderful… I can see it now! The guest gathered outside of the Council House, watching you walk up the long red carpet to Sephiroth and get married right there in the front. Given if the day is beautiful."

Cloud rolled her eyes. She supposed it would be beautiful scene and knew the day would be perfect, Gaia would not allow rain to rain on her wedding. She laughed, "Shiva," she said as she turned to lean back on the railing, "It's going to be a beautiful day, if it were in the middle of the winter, Gaia will make the whole area spring just for the wedding. It's not going to rain or snow for that matter." She shook her head, realizing that the wedding was actually going to be in the middle of winter. She wondered what it would look by then and supposed it would be very beautiful, given the added bonus having in the Ancient City. She smiled as she took in the sight of the city before her; it was full of life already and blossoming. The sun shone down on the city, shining on the alabaster stones, the hue of rainbow shimmering, the green lush forestry growing everywhere, flowers blooming, wafting powerful fragrant over the city. It was almost absolute perfect. She gasped softly as she felt the familiar strong arms wrapping around her waist and smiled, turning to see Sephiroth. "You're home."

"Yes." Sephiroth said as he nuzzled his face into her hair, "I've missed you."

"You've only been gone a week."

"A week is eternity for me without you. How is it going?"

Cloud smiled as she tilted her head at him, "Good… Shiva and Yuffie dragged me away to show this room," She gestured to the grand hall, "For the Wedding Banquet. And there," She pointed to the Council House, "For the wedding ceremony."

"Good places. Now, where is Vincent? I haven't seen him when I came in." He asked as he let her go and they walked out of the room to head to the office. Cloud noticed Shiva and Yuffie had disappeared while she was gazing over the city.

"He left yesterday, he had gotten a letter from his father in Wutai and it was urgent. We should be hearing from him soon." Cloud said as they entered the hallway and they just walked around the palace, enjoying the company from each other.

"All right, that's fine. I suppose Tifa and Aeris got the children settled?" He asked as they reached the northern wing, where everyone's bedrooms were. Sephiroth had taken the large master bedroom, belonging to the ruler, as it once was. Cloud took the adjoining room, saying she only needed to stay in a room until she is able to move into the large master bedroom. Sephiroth reluctantly agreed and he had rather for Cloud to take the master bedroom. They had learned that the adjoining room actually belonged to the queen of the Ancient City ages ago when they found history that revolves around the city.

Cloud nodded, "Yes. School should be starting this fall, we have hired teachers and they will be coming to the city in couple of months, its summer time now, schools are out." She paused as they reached the end of the hallway where their bedrooms are. She looked to him, stepping into his arms as he took her into his embrace, enjoying the feel of his strong arms around her. "You must be tired, we will talk more tomorrow." She said as she broke away from his embrace, yet he still held her.

"Yeah, it had been a long week for me. I missed you all. How is Odin?" He asked as he stepped back to open the door.

Cloud tilted her head, smiling at him, "He misses you already and ask about you every day. I had explained to him that it would be only few weeks before you are home for good. He really looks to you as a father."

"And you as a mother. You're a good mother." Sephiroth said as he stepped back to Cloud and took her chin, tilting her head up. "Never doubt that. Thousands of children in the world will look to you as their mother, that's how important you are to them, and much more to me. I value you more than anything, even this city and the world. Never, ever doubt yourself."

Cloud took a deep breath and nodded. She closed her eyes as he brushed his lips on her, "Thank you."

"I love you, Koibito. Tomorrow then." He said and smirked at her as he bowed and disappeared into his room. She shook her head and went to find Odin.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Vincent stood before the abandoned Mansion. His arrival to southern Wutai didn't alert anyone, for he had arrived discreetly. Only people knew him as Vincent Valentine by sight, but no more. They mostly left him alone as he passed them by and they had just merely glanced at him and returned to whatever they were doing. The people of Wutai were under a hard time, unsure who to trust. Lord Godo had announced that the rest of the world was traitors and the Avalanche is the enemy. The people wasn't sure because they knew in the past few years, the Avalanchers had done nothing but save the world several times and they knew things were going to change and decided to keep their mouth shut and wait.

Vincent was surprised to receive a letter from his own father after forty years, he had expected for his old man to die sometime after he had left but to learn he was still alive was a blow to him. He was a bit afraid it could put a dent in his plan with Wutai but his father had sounded urgent and needed for him to come to Wutai about something.

He made his way to the mansion and entered the large house, finding it dusty and well abandoned for years. He went down the hallway, the old memories rising to the surface as he recalled the place by the heart. He stopped and entered the office. He paused to see a man standing at the window overlooking the overwrought garden. The light shone in, making it hard for Vincent to take in the man's detail for he was mostly covered in shadow from his view.

The man moved and stepped away from the light, turning to face Vincent. Vincent gasped softly as he stared into the crimson eyes of his own father. He appeared around his fifty, still handsome with graying black hair that fell down his shoulder in wild waves and his outfit was almost similar to Vincent's but with different cut, in crimson, blue and black. Vincent stared at his father, "You've been cursed." He said simply, deducting what had happened to Grimoire Xin'Tine, the eyes were a dead give away.

"Hai." Grimoire said as he sat down at the low table and Vincent did the same. "My son, it is good to see you again. What had happened in the past is in the past; I will not gripe or grieve over your and my wrong doing. I can see your life as of now is good to you. We will get to your questions about me later, but first, I have brought you here to warn you that Godo is up to something."

Vincent frowned as he leaned forward, he was dying to know how his father was sitting before, not much older than the last time he had seen him and how he was cursed. "I know Godo is up to something. He is asking to raise a war against Neo-Midgar and refusing Sephiroth to take crown."

"That's not only it. Godo had recently come here a few days ago, I assume to check on my old aging self on the death bed. I do not live here anymore; I am often wandering about, seeing the world and staying away from Wutai. I've been keeping eye over you all for the past several years and I know about almost everything about your little group." Grimoire smirked as he saw his son's shocked look. "Ah, don't be so shocked, we will get to the point of getting to know one another again soon, but to the point." He moved a small diary toward Vincent. "Godo has not taken this but it is my personal diary of the past, a very private one. He broke in the secret lab I have here and took most of the papers and scrolls there. He knows about the Omega Weapons and the Solider Genesis."

Vincent's eyes went wide as he stared at the diary, the whole revelation of his father having a secret lab. "Omega Weapons? Solider Genesis?"

Grimoire leaned back, "Ah, more questions to fill in. Hm, let's see." He tapped his chin and smirked, "You know of the Weapons," He saw his son nod his head. "Yes. This Omega Weapon is worse of them all, it is capable of destroying the entire planet in one go, sucking all the life force and rendering it to mere rock. Now, onto Solider Genesis…" He was interrupted as Vincent spoke.

"Wait. This Omega Weapon, how come we don't know of it? Gaia told us everything we needed to know. She is the creator of all of the weapons."

Grimoire looked severe and it struck a chord in Vincent, feeling foreboding. "Hai, she would have known if she was the creator of this Omega Weapon but she isn't. Omega Weapon is currently buried deep underground in Wutai, in dormant state; Gaia won't know or recognize it because it is merely not alive as of now. It took me a long time to find out, through traveling the world and learning of things from everywhere, I've come to recent conclusion, the Omega Weapon was created by Ouranos, as a precautions if anything goes wrong much like that planet of the Calamity of the Sky. I've learned that it was how the Calamity of the Sky planet faced their destruction. Every planet out there has something like Omega Weapon, in case of event that the mortal-kind decides to turn against the gods and overtake them."

Vincent's eyes widened. "My gods… this is terrible."

"Hai, and now Godo has all the report on the Omega Weapons, including on how to wake it." Vincent cursed under his breath in several languages, causing Grimoire chuckle darkly. "My thoughts exactly. I am sure, if Omega Weapon is a threat enough, your Sephiroth will be able to defeat it."

"You think so? He's but a mere man…" Vincent started but Grimoire smirked.

"A mere man with the power of a god. I've seen his power and this Cloud's power, she is a magnificent goddess. Anyway, are you satisfied with the information on Omega Weapon?"

Vincent nodded, "For now. I will read this and discuss this with Sephiroth when I return to Ancient City. It is not a good prospect for Sephiroth and Cloud; they're planning their wedding and coronation in few months. We can't have anything to interfere."

"Hai. Now, to the Solider Genesis." The older man sighed and rubbed his forehead as if he was struck with fatigue. "He was the original Solider experimented with Mako." Vincent gasped; he had thought Sephiroth was the first one. As if his father read his mind, "No. Sephiroth was the first successful Solider but not the first experimented one. Solider Genesis was before Sephiroth's time, created by Doctor Hojou, the father of the Hojo you know and killed."

Vincent narrowed his eyes at his father, "Doctor Hojou, he was not in any record of the ShinRa."

"No, he wouldn't be because he didn't work for the ShinRa, even though his son did. He was Wutai's foremost scientist and doctor, he discovered that Mako gave a healing capability to mortal wound and decided to see how far it went. It went as far as creating a super human being. This Solider was a prisoner of war from the first war of Wutai."

Vincent frowned, "What? The first war?"

"The recent war, the Great War was the second. The first one was a hundred years ago and no one truly thought of it, because it was small. The first ShinRa came to Wutai and saw how the country was beautiful and prosper, he wanted it for his own, he raged war against us and we were too strong for him, he fled. But there was several soldiers left behind, as prisoner of war. Hojou decided to experiment on them, seeing they were just waste of a breath." Vincent gaped, realizing the generation of horror that passed down from father to son and shook his head, knowing that Hojo he knew wasn't insane after inserting himself with Jenova's cells but it was hereditary.

Grimoire nodded grimly, "Hai. All but one failed, this one, Hojou named him Genesis, a super soldier, and he was both thrilled and disgusted with the result. It did indeed succeed in creating a powerful human being, with heightened senses, speed and strength. However, he had not anticipated the murderous personality to appear in this Solider." He drew out another journal, similar to the first one but it was in black color while the first was simply in faded cover of red and gold. "This is daily report of the Solider Genesis, how he behaved and many other things. Originally, this solider was a gentle nature, a nobody. He was, as I've met him before his experiment, he was a sweet young man, but now, he is not who he was. Hojou had him in dormant state and locked up; much like your Hojo had done to you."

Vincent took the book and flipped through it. "What happens to him now, where is he?"

"Godo took him. I believe he plan to waken Genesis and use him against Sephiroth."

"No."

"Hai. This is why I've called you here; you must warn Sephiroth and inform him of this. I'm sending you back to Ancient City with all of the information, records, documents whatever we have left that Godo had not taken. You see to those things and whatever should be done. I would burn them all."

Vincent nodded as he took the two dairies. "I will take them with me. We will not destroy them, for they have vital information and be locked away with the other documents of Hojo."

"Good."

"Now, father, tell me how you came to be cursed?" Vincent asked his red eyes boring into his father's red ones.

"Ah, simply, it was an accident. I was working with Hojou with the Mako, he had a vat in the lab and I tripped and fell right into the vat. Hojou took me out and tired to save my life, I ended up like this. The vat was of purified Mako with few other things, I couldn't remember."

"Why were you experimenting with Mako in the first place?" Vincent asked, curious.

"You were but a young boy at the time. Hojou was a close colleague of mine and he came to me with the idea of Mako having the healing capability. He asked me to fund the experiment however, he wanted it to be a secret, he wasn't sure the result was. He believed it was a new medicine wonder; he wanted to discover this so he'd help Wutai to prosper in the world. So, originally, I supported his idea, gave him the funding and asked to be part of it, since it was my money I was giving him, he allowed me. But over the time, his idea became fanatical and I wasn't sure where he was going with it. I had that accident in the middle of the whole episode and after two weeks, I was out of the coma and at first, I thought I was fine. Hojou started to experiment on the soldiers and it was when I realized what had happened to me, I didn't age, every cut and wound I got healed fairly quickly and after I saw what happened to Genesis, I told Hojou to end the experiment. He agreed, but he had deceived me the whole time. He saw what had happened to me and did the similar experiment on himself, thus in the result, driving himself to insanity, only few people out of hundreds, if were to be experimented would remain sane. I had to kill him, so I did. I shut everything down, locked the place up and left. That was after you ran away. I took the advantage of your disappearance. I knew you were going with the others to Midgar, I knew you would be safe there, but I guess, I was wrong in that too."

"So, you weren't upset with my running away from Wutai, from my place as the next Lord Xin'Tine?"  
"No. I knew of the prophecy. I had met Lucrecia way before you had met her. I was a little boy when I met her. She was, for a short time, my nanny."

Vincent's jaw dropped. "Lucrecia?"

"Surely you know she was two thousands years old, she wandered the planet, doing all sort of things. She told me tales and stories of the Valkyries. I didn't realize them to be true until things was starting to fall in place and I knew Wutai will be all right in the end, even though things had to happen first before everything would be fine. This is why I surrendered the control of Wutai to Godo, knowing in the end, Lucrecia's son, the King would take it and restore it to the full glory as it was centuries ago. I just let you go. I lived my life, knowing fate will take care of things. But now, as of everything's happened, it had come to full circle, I'm back in Wutai and I learn that Godo is defying Fate. It is time for me to take up my place in the fate's plan and help to stop Godo and allow Wutai fall to Sephiroth's hands instead."

"So, you called me back here, tell me of this Omega Weapons and Solider Genesis."

"Yes and to tell you to take action and save Wutai. Only you will be the one to hand the Island of Wutai to Sephiroth. Until then, you must take Wutai from Godo, if it must come with War, so be it."

"That's what I was planning to do… I… father, I had planned to marry the Kisaragi heir to fulfill the contract."

Grimoire smirked and stood up; he went over to the shelf in the office and withdrew a scroll and blew the dust off it. "Godo have one of this, you will need this. It is also part of the fate's hand. Though it ended with irony, as it was supposed to, Sephiroth was the one who should marry Godo's daughter but it is you who will marry her." He chuckled as he handed the scroll to Vincent. "Take it; I believe it would come to a good use in your plan."

Vincent nodded as he took the scroll. "Hai, where do you plan to go now?"

"I don't know. I cannot show my face to Wutai just yet."

"Come back with me to Ancient City, you will be protected there."

"I suppose. I need to visit one place first and I will head to the Ancient City."

Vincent stood up and bowed to his father, "All right. Thank you for informing me this. I will see you in Ancient City then." He stared at his father, feeling strange to be standing before the man and he just couldn't find the feeling of the bond between father and son, he figured it was the same with his own son and himself. There was none, except for the friendly acknowledge of one another. He cursed the fate that the three generations had no father and son relationship with each other and prayed to the gods above that Sephiroth would find the bond with his own child and break the cycle.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth woke the next morning, the morning sun filtered in the grand master-bedroom, the ceiling was high, very high and it seemed to be made of transparent stone, like glass, but designed for the sun to shine gloriously into the bedroom through the day with beautiful shimmering prism color dancing off the white stone wall and floor. It was grand in design and the bed itself was amazing in the room, it was carved out of a large tree, apparently, the very heart of the city, the tree was like those in the crystal forest, white with soft light flowing through the vein.

The tree itself was tallest one easily in the city and very large. On the ground floor, the root etched deep in the ground, stretched out for miles under the great city itself and the thrones were carved on the bottom of the tree and on the next couple floors, it sat as a grand pillar, holding the entire palace as a foundation. Then finally, on the third floor, it was carved out in a grand bed, beautifully designed. Then finally, the top spread outward, its spindly branches spread out covering the entire palace roof and during the spring, tiny buds of flower would bloom and glowed with it's life force and during the winter, fragile icicles would hang from the branches, creating illusion of glass palace.

He looked skyward to the room's natural skylight and smiled, seeing the birds and creatures sitting high above him on the branches, singing and chattering away. The leaves, fragile and pale green, almost white filtered the sun slightly, giving slight shadow dancing across the room below. He rose from the bed and headed toward the door that connected his to Cloud's rooms. He quietly opened it, he found Cloud in the room, asleep in her bed, curled up under the blanket. He smiled and went to kneel beside her bed, watching her sleep. He reached out to brush the golden strands away from her face softly. He had missed her terribly, he was gone for a week, the last time he had saw her was only one day. He didn't like going away right after the battle and everything. He felt that they weren't spending enough time together.

He saw the blue eyes open, he smiled, "Cloud."

"Mm." Cloud smiled at him, sitting up. "I missed you." She pouted.

He chuckled as he moved to sit beside her on her bed, "I'm home for now, I won't be going back out for a week this time, after that, I'm here to stay, by your side."

Cloud leaned into his embrace, "Good. I got a long day today, you're going to have to stay by my side and help me through."

Sephiroth chuckled, "That's what I am here for. What are you doing today?"

"Shopping for the wedding. We're going to look at fabrics for the gown, and get fitting; Zack and the others are coming too, to take me to Neo-Midgar. Now you're here, we can get you fitted."

"Sound fun." He took her face and kissed her, "Mm, I'm going to get ready for the day." He stood up.

Cloud nodded, "Sure, I'll get up as well." She watched him leave the room and close the door behind him. She sighed and lay back down, curling up in the blanket and smiling to herself, wanting to enjoy the few minutes in bed before getting up.

The few minutes were short lived as Zack bounced right into her bedroom, shouting on the top of his lungs announcing the morning. "Rise and shine, sleeping beauty!"

He didn't expect Sephiroth to be back already, the said man bumbled out of his bedroom, his hair wet and mussed up and he had deep scowl on his face, "What's going on?" He asked, clearly upset.

Zack gaped at his friend, "You're back! When did you come back?"

"Last night." Sephiroth shot a glare at Zack, "Did you do this every morning when I was gone?"

Zack looked sheepish, "Not every morning, but she get a wake up call every morning from some of us."

Cloud yawned as she stretched, stepping out of her bed, "Nice one, Zack. So much better than Ifrit's."

Sephiroth shot a confused look at his love of his life, "Ifrit?"

Cloud smirked as she went to her table in the room and poured herself a glass of water, "He lit my room up with fire, no, he didn't burn anything but it was enough to scare me shitless."

Sephiroth growled, "I don't think I like this wake up calls of yours. Whose idea was this?"

Zack whistled, looking around the room, avoiding Sephiroth's heated glare. Cloud rolled her eyes, "I can't wake up in the morning lately, so they come in and wake me up. Aeris' wake up call was better than anyone's, she's nice enough."

Sephiroth rose to his full height, his arms crossed across his chest, "Well, that's going to end, I'm here and I'll wake you up, no one else. I don't like the idea of anyone else waking you up. If Ifrit set the room on fire, what did Shiva do?"

Cloud shook her head, "She dumps water on me, freezing cold one."

"That's it. You're waking up only by me or by the alarm clock, we're getting you one." Zack smirked watching the two.

"Hey, I asked them to wake me up, they're helping me out. Yeah, their methods may be crude, but it's helpful. Trust me, alarm clock won't do."

Sephiroth glared at her, "No more."

Cloud steamed, "What are you to tell me what to do?"

"I can, I will be your husband, I can tell you what to do and not what to do." He shot back.

"How dare you! That's not the way it works! I'm not going to be any of those submissive wives; I'm not going to listen to this!" She screamed back and went into her room and slammed the door.

Sephiroth stared in shock and finally settle to scowling and poured himself a glass of water, the argument had somehow brought them into his room. He glanced up and realized Zack was still in the room. "What?" He snapped.

Zack stared at him with surprise on his face, "Whoa… I've never seen you like this before. New thing?"

Sephiroth glared darkly, "Shut up."

Zack sighed as he sat down at the table across from Sephiroth, "Hey, I can understand your feeling on this whole wake up call. But you're wrong here."

Taking a sip of his water, Sephiroth sighed tiredly at his friend, "What did I do wrong?"

"By telling her that you're in control. That's not how it works. In marriage, you both are in control and equally, you two balance each other out by helping with each other's strength and weakness."

Sephiroth rubbed his face, "I don't know this. This is new… How did you know so much about this?"

Zack smiled, "I learned from my parents, and I may be married for a few weeks, but that's the key in marriage, you two become one mind, one heart and one soul, it's something special."

Cloud peered from her doorway and sighed, Zack had been right. She needed to understand Sephiroth's strength and weakness in the relationship. She stepped out and joined them, "Thank you Zack. I got to talk to him."

Zack nodded, "Sure, see you soon." He waved and left the room.

Cloud turned to Sephiroth, "I'm sorry. Do you think we need to work this out before we get married?"

Sephiroth nodded, "I guess. I don't know where to start. We both have no idea where we are getting into."

Cloud smiled, taking his large hand into her own, "We're going to go shopping today, and maybe we can stop at the book store for books on marriage?"

Sephiroth chuckled, "I think that's a good idea. Still, I stand by getting you an alarm clock. We'll find you a stronger one."

She smiled, "Sure, I won't ask them for wake up call anymore. I say you're a bit possessive."

"I have to be, you're mine, no one else. I've let this gone far enough; I'm not letting you go this time around." He took her hands, guiding her back to her door, "We should get ready. The others should be waiting for us soon."

Cloud reached on her tiptoes, kissing him on the mouth, "Yeah, see you in a few minutes." She turned and went back to her room. Sephiroth stood there, rubbing his head and grimaced as he felt knots in his hair.

Afternoon found the small group of shoppers in the Neo-Midgar Mall; the place was bustling with people. Cloud was nearly quiet the entire time, being dragged though with chattering Tifa, Aeris and Shiva. Sephiroth, Zack and Ifrit stayed together, wary of the women's shopping spree. However, they fell to the burden of carrying bags.

They all went to the men attire store and an hour later, Sephiroth was the last one to get fitted. Cloud flipped though the book that was on her lap; she was ambushed by several magazines by the other women, asking her to pick something out for Sephiroth to wear to the wedding.

"So, find anything so far?" Shiva asked, smirking as she leaned over her chair to Cloud's side, peering at the picture Cloud was studying.

"Not really, almost nothing suits Sephiroth's taste."

"Oh, don't worry about the colors, just find the cut and style, and then you can tell the tailor to make it in different colors. The color is white, silver, gold and black? So, which one is Sephiroth going to wear?"

"Black." Sephiroth interrupted Cloud, sending glare to the pale blue haired woman though the mirror he stood before, his arms akimbo as a man went around him, measuring his side.

Cloud smirked, "Black, I suppose so; you always looked good in black. I guess so, hmm…" She took the magazine she was looking at and brought it to Sephiroth, "How about this?"

He glanced at the picture, shrugging, "Not bad." The picture was of a model posing in a nice elegant suit robe, it was nice and simple, and high collared and knee length.

Cloud nodded, "This jacket would look good with your usual knee high boots… We can always change the buckles to go with the jacket."

The man who measured Sephiroth stood back up from measuring Sephiroth's leg, "Oh, excellent choice, but here, this designer is from around here, she can whip up something personal for you two, an original that no one else can have, I suppose you are having a very extravagant wedding, you need something more than this."

Sephiroth shrugged. Cloud's blue eyes went wide, "You're serious?"

The man nodded as Cloud smiled, "I can call her up, have her meet you two and go over what you want for your wedding." He pivoted on his heel and went to his counter, he started to call on his phone and soon, he was chatting up a storm with the person on the other end.

Cloud turned to Sephiroth, "What do you think?"

Sephiroth shrugged, "Doesn't matter to me."

Cloud frowned and sighed, "All right, I hope this isn't going to cost too much. I have a feeling it's going to cost so much, big wedding and all."

Zack laughed at her, "Cloud, don't worry. Despite the cost, you two are nearly the world richest people, Sephiroth has saving from his General status and you, you earned so much in the last two years traveling. The price of the wedding is nothing to your income."

Sephiroth frowned, "How do you know of our income, I haven't been told that I had some money. I thought it was all gone after they presumed I was dead."

Zack smirked at his friend, "Reeve looked into your account and saw how much you had before you were "dead", and he matched it up, giving it back to you. Rufus had no objection. You earned it, its yours."

"Tell him thanks."

"Well," The man came back to them, holding his planner in his hand, "I called her, and she's excited to meet you two. I got few timeslots that she is available," He looked at his planner and pointed it out to Cloud.

Cloud nodded, "I think that day would be fine for both of us." She turned to Sephiroth who hopped down from the dais, standing beside her. He was shaking his head. "What?"

"I can't do that day. I am out of town."

Cloud's face grew darker, "Sephiroth, I thought you are going to be gone for a week and then that was it."

"That one is a day trip; I have to go to Icicle Inn that day."

Cloud sighed and turned back to the man, "What else do you have?" He pointed to another day; she turned to Sephiroth and saw him shake his head, "What then?"

"All day appointment with Rufus, Reeve and Dr. Severem, you know, all that stuff."

Cloud nearly growled under her breath, "Anything else?"

The man looked nervous, "There is one other day, this one."

Sephiroth became stoic, silent. Cloud took it as another no, "No?" She saw him narrow his eyes, "Sephiroth, which days are you not booked? Do I have to book time for me to have some time with you?" She snapped at him, turning toward him, forgetting about everything else.

Sephiroth crossed his arms, glancing down at Cloud, "I am a very busy man."

Cloud threw her hands up in the air, "Sephiroth! I know you're busy, so am I! But I made time so we can have time together. I hardly see you much, and it's only been a while since we actually had time to ourselves. Why did I ever save you?" She was nearly screaming at the end and sighed, she turned to the man, "I'm sorry, here, I'll come alone, and this day will be fine." She pointed to the last one and stormed out of the store.

Sephiroth sighed, feeling defeated as he watched her disappearing in the crowd outside the store.

Zack had remorseful look on his face as he stood up, "Seph, just leave her alone for a bit…"

Sephiroth shook his head and held up a hand to silence his friend; everyone else in the room knew to not cross his path, "Save it." He turned and left the store, going in the opposite direction where Cloud had left to.

Aeris held her hands together, "Oh my, this is not good. I never dreamed of them having problems."

Zack rubbed his face, "Aeris, if you count the times they actually had together in the last few years, it was far few and in between. I just realized it now, they barely know each other. They've changed since they were separated in Nibelheim."

Shiva smiled, holding onto Aeris' shoulder, "It's normal, all marriage start out like this, there are fears that they both have to face. It's like learning your strength in another person. It's basically a personal blow to the ego. Ifrit and I will try to talk to them both soon."

Aeris nodded, "I suppose that's the best thing. You two have the longest marriage than any one of us. Did you two start out like that?"

Ifrit smirked, "Shiva and I couldn't stand each other when we first married. At some point, we nearly killed each other."

Zack chuckled, "I can guess where Sephiroth went to. He went back to his office. Cloud's out in the plain, riding Silver."

Aeris turned to him, "How did you know that?"

Zack shrugged his shoulders, "That's how they always do when they get upset. Sephiroth tend to bury himself in paperwork. But if he's not there, he's out there decapitating dragons or beasts."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_


	54. SS:3: Calm before the Storm

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M . **

Chapter Three: Calm before the Storm

True to Zack's words, Shiva found Cloud along the plain outside Junon Harbor, riding Silver, the black chocobo all over the place at breakneck speed. She winced as she saw Cloud do a stunt of flipping one side to another on the bird.

"Cloud!" She called out to the blonde and sighed in relief as she saw that Cloud had heard her, steering the black bird toward her and stopping with a storm of dust around her.

Shiva smiled as the bird warked and trotted in its spot as Cloud slipped off the bird's back. "Come on, you need to talk it all out. I'm here and we're going to talk."

Cloud scowled, "What if I don't want to talk?"

"You're going to listen to me." The tall former Ice-Goddess took Cloud's hand and led her toward the clearing where she had laid down a blanket and a basket stood there, waiting for them, "Sit, sit. Eat with me."

Cloud sat down, taking whatever Shiva had handed to her from the basket. It was full blown luncheon, "There's so much food here, and two of us. Expecting anyone else?"

Shiva shook her head, "Nah, I'm eating a lot lately. I'm just having crazy craving for almost anything I can get my hand on." She smiled at Cloud and smoothed her dress as she shifted. She reached out and grabbed a sandwich and started to bite into it.

Cloud gaped as she saw a telltale small bump on Shiva's abdomen, "Shiva… you're… you're pregnant too?"

Shiva looked up and sighed, "I didn't want anyone to know yet. Yes, I am. I am sorry, I had heard about your reaction to Aeris' pregnancy… "

Cloud nodded and turned away, resting her arms on her raised knees, "Oh." She stared out to the distant horizon, the sea was several miles away and she could smell the salt in the air. She knew that she had to accept her friends getting pregnant here and there around her save for herself.

"Cloud, tell me what's bothering you. You're clearly upset."

Cloud nodded, "Yeah, everything seems to go wrong for me. Ever since Nibelheim, I wasn't sure who I am, what my role is and all that. Now, I know, and the problem is, I don't want it. To top it all, I don't know what to do."

Shiva placed her food down and reached to Cloud, patting her shoulder, "I know fate can be real messy for some people. It has to be more than that, I mean, you're back, you're here, alive and everything, you have another chance."

Cloud dropped her head, "Another chance, to do Gaia's bidding. I just wanted to have a normal life, you know, be married to Sephiroth, settle down somewhere, raise children," at the moment, tears started to fall from her eyes, "Argue over simple silly things. No, my life have to be complicated, I wake up from the dead, find that I have to rule the entire planet, I can't even carry my own child like you are now, to feel life inside me. I'm famous and I'm going to marry a man that half of the world feared. This is crazy."

Shiva smiled softly, "Cloud, it may seem complicated and crazy, but you're the only one chosen to live this life. You were chosen because you can handle it, no one else. At least, you've found your love; you're going to marry him. Between the two of you, you both will overcome obstacles in the future, whatever is given ahead. Yeah, it may require some sacrifices but rewards are always worth it. Two thousands years later, I finally get to have a baby. I gave up the idea of ever having a child a long time ago… but I'm here and I have a baby in my belly, growing and it was worth it. I am sure you will get your wishes, your dreams to come true. If I can have a baby, then you can have one."

Cloud was openly crying, "I'm sorry… I sounded so selfish!" She leaned into Shiva's arms and cried. "I just wanted more time with Sephiroth; he's always so busy, just after we finally have each other."

Shiva stroked Cloud's hair, "Enjoy the time you have apart from him, pretty soon, you'll be with him almost all the time and you will wish to be single again. Trust me on that, I nearly killed Ifrit because I thought I had enough of him."

Cloud laughed in the middle of her crying fit and looked up to Shiva, "It's so hard…"

Shiva nodded and smiled, "It's always hard, nothing is easy. To every little girl on this planet, your relationship with Sephiroth is a dream for them, to go out and fight and rescue, either way, and in the end, ever happily after. They're witnessing it, your wedding is going to be huge, a beautiful and magical one, it's once in a lifetime experience. They want to be in your shoes, have you taken a look at Sephiroth? He's to die for! And you did… rhetorically speaking."

Cloud laughed and swatted Shiva's shoulder, "You're right. Thanks. Sometime I wish my mother and father would be there… At least I got the world hottest man to become my husband."

Shiva rolled her eyes, "I don't know where you went for a while there, you really did hide yourself until you were taken and claimed, because every man is jealous of Sephiroth, you're like a goddess."

Cloud blushed, "No, I'm not."

"Why not? Perfect body, long golden hair and beautiful eyes. You're tough to the core and maybe," She snickers behind her hand, "Good in bed, maybe…"

Cloud blushed horribly, "Shiva!"  
Elsewhere, not very far away, "You're a hard man to find." Ifrit announced as he found Sephiroth on the outskirt of Midgar, his sleek silver motorcycle, Loki sitting in the grass waiting as his master slew beasts with his long sword, shining in the sun.

Sephiroth turned, giving the six footed Masamune a sharp flick, removing most of the blood and gorge that gathered upon the blade, "Oh, I try to. I don't want to be found. An old habit from ShinRa days, they would send troops out searching for me, so, I learn to hide better."

"You're far away from home." Ifrit folded his arms across his chest, "I've been sent to talk to you. I don't talk, you know that."

Sephiroth gave the fire-god a smirk, "I know. What you have to say, say it and we'll be on our way."

Ifrit gave a nod, turning to Sephiroth as the man went to his motorcycle to slide the sword in its compartment. "You and Cloud are having relationship problem."

Sephiroth rolled his eyes and turned to the fire-god to glare down but found the darker skinned man was his height, easily his size. "Like they say, No shit, Sherlock."

Ifrit gave a small rare smile, "Nothing will be easy. You are simply going into a new level of challenge, trails and tribulation. Marriage is form of joining that you don't go though it alone but side by side with life partner."

Sephiroth gave an incredulous look, "You're telling me, you married Shiva because you wanted someone else to go though life with you, make your troubles easier?"

Ifrit shook his head, nearly rolling his eyes, "No, it's a phase of life and troubles are not easier but more complicated. You learn a different love. A man long time ago told me something about love and it is profound, what he had said was true, and it is very hard to learn, but you don't learn alone."

Sephiroth leaned back on Loki, folding his arms across his chest, "Do tell me."

Ifrit nodded, "Love is patient, kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not selfish, it is not easily angered, and it does not keep record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes and always preserves."

Sephiroth studied his boots, taking in the words, "Easier said than done. I do love Cloud, but it's different. I once thought, being in love, you'd pick it up from there and it last forever."

Ifrit moved to join Sephiroth's side, leaning back on the sleek contraption, "being in love is not a true thing. Love is something you grow and develop over the time, basically, you and Cloud are starting to learn this."

Sephiroth looked up to the fire-god, "Tell me, what this love is like?"

Ifrit shook his head, "There is no way of explaining to another what it is, but it is something you learn on your own. But one thing I do know, from two thousands of years experiences, Love fall under five languages, your mate speak one of those, but always, you speak another, rarely, any mates speaks the same. You need to learn her language while she learns yours."

Sephiroth stood up, facing Ifrit, "What are they?" Curious to know the mystery of the love, surprised to know it has simply five languages.

"They are languages, not in tongues, they are: Affirmation, Quality Time, Receiving Gifts, Acts of Service and finally, Physical Touch."

Sephiroth was baffled, "What?"

Ifrit chuckled, "Strange, I know but it works. If you don't speak your mate's language, it's never going to work. You need to find out her language and she will find yours. Some may have two or three, but there's one that you speak primarily. I've learned Shiva's language is Physical Touch, she also speak Receiving Gifts. So, I had to learn over the time to give in those, give her the physical touch she desires, it is simply from a kiss on the cheek to full blown sex. As for Gifts, it can be from small thing to big things, she treasures smallest the most, simple grain of sand saved from a honeymoon, or a hair barrette that I made for her just for no reasons. Those are what make her happy, once she is happy, she make me happy."

Sephiroth nodded, "I want Cloud to be happy, and I want to make her happy every day, just to see her smile just made my day. I missed her terribly the time I am away. I understand she want time with me, to talk, to go somewhere, whatever, maybe just sit at home, watch the tube together. I remember those days when we simply would go to my condo, sit at the couch, watch together whatever was on, and munch on left over pizza that Zack left in my apartment." He chuckled.

"That means her love language is Quality Time. It doesn't just mean you can speak one language to her alone, but that is the one you should speak the most, there are others that she want you to do and you should do that too."

"Complicated, sound like strategic battle."

"It is. You have to find the moment she want something from you and act upon it. If you do the wrong one, you're doomed to argue with her or anything. Keep her happy every day, always. You would be surprised how happy you will be in return. She will learn your language eventually."

He watched Sephiroth take out a small planning book from the depth of his jacket, dog eared and notes sticking around the edge, his brow raised. The sword-man flipped his book and scanned a full calendar; he took out a small cell phone out of his pant pocket and flipped it open, dialing as he made his call.

"Reeve? I have to clear most of my schedules from now on. I can't be busy like I am now." Sephiroth said as he held the phone to his ear, glancing in his book. He nodded, "Thanks, give me my new schedule soon. I'm taking today and tomorrow off. Thanks, bye."

"That's a start. I'm curious, what is your language?"

Sephiroth closed his black book and gazed at Ifrit, "I'm not quiet sure. I've always appreciated things done for me and I've never been one for physical touch from anyone, but from Cloud, they're enduring."

"Then, maybe they are your languages, act of services and physical touch. Strange coming from you, knowing your history, you had shown to everyone you're a man that likes things done his way."

"Yeah, I've put that front up for a long time for the ShinRa but now, I'm my own person, and I'm starting to find what I really like, want and need. Thanks, I'm glad you came out here to talk to me."   
Ifrit shrugged as he climbed onto his gold chocobo while Sephiroth did the same onto the black one, "It is no problem. At any time you need to talk, I'm here."

Sephiroth smirked, "Thanks. I do feel better, and I think I better apologize to Cloud now."

"Godspeed." Ifrit watched Sephiroth zoom across the land, disappearing over the horizon quickly. He knew Sephiroth's motorcycle was a lot faster than the one he rode on but he will get back to Neo-Midgar soon eventually.

He turned his head toward the old darkened city, in ruin, Midgar. There were still some people remaining there, searching though rubbles for anything salvageable. Rufus had plan in the future to clear out the city and rebuild it, not entirely. He started the motorcycle up and soon, he was off, trailing the trail Sephiroth had left behind.

Sephiroth had found Cloud with Shiva near Junon and he went to the blanket where they sat and stood there, looking down at her. Shiva stood up and smiled at him, walking away, heading toward Junon Harbor where she would meet with her husband.

Cloud stood up and faced Sephiroth, studying his expression and frowned as he pulled out a black book she knew to be his planner book. He smirked and tossed it to the wind and the paper scattered, blowing away. She looked back to him wide eyed as he spoke. "I've contacted Reeve to reschedule all of my trips and meetings so I'd have more time to be with you and Odin. I'm sorry."

She gasped softly and closed her eyes as she dropped her head, tears falling from her face as he stepped up to her, taking hold of her. "I'm sorry too… I had been rather selfish myself, I wanted things my way done but it goes against everything that fate had planned for me. It's causing me nothing but despair."

"Cloud… we will work though this together, take what is given to us and make it into what we want. Come on, let's go home, I believe the tube is finally hooked up in the Ancient City and we can watch whatever we want."

She laughed, "Okay, that sound good…" He helped her onto his motorcycle and she turned to him as he stood before her.

"I think we need to sit back and watch the Kingdoms of Ring Trilogy, all of it this weekend, just you and me. I am sure Aeris and Zack would take Odin for the weekend."

Cloud laughed and poked his nose, "Are you sure, its three hours each, that's nine!"

"Ah, I got the extended ones, it's four each, and it's just you and me, together."

She shook her head as she wrapped her arms around his waist as he got on the motorcycle and rested her head on his back, smiling, glad that things doesn't seem so bad. Shiva had given her hope that she might be able to conceive a child one day and she wished with all the wishes in the depth of her heart that she would soon.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth, a week later stood as he looked at a single sheet report that had summarized everything on Omega Weapon and Solider Genesis. His desk beside him, large as it is was full across the surface with all kinds of books, papers and scrolls that Vincent had brought back from Wutai, those that Godo had not taken for himself. Vincent had returned to Wutai shortly and got to work reading everything and putting together information to present to Sephiroth and Cloud and few other people. Now, they were gathered in the office, waiting for Sephiroth to say something.

He was surprised to say at the least. He put the paper down on the desk and leaned on the desk, looking around the room, meeting the eyes of his audience, "Well… I suppose I can't say I wasn't expecting this." He started and then sighed as he stood back up and walked around the desk. "Godo thinks he found a upper hand against me. Is there anything about him acting upon war against Neo-Midgar?"

A Wutaian warrior spoke, "No sir, the spies believe he had changed his mind and refocused his attention to you rather than anyone in the world. After he had gathered several books and the Solider Genesis, he had retreated away in his palace, not coming out often. There were no words of anything about Neo-Midgar." He said. He had been working with Vincent and served under him, acting as the head commander of the small army that Vincent had gathered for himself.

Cloud stood up and went over to Sephiroth and touched his arm, feeling that he was tense. "I don't think the threat is so bad… The only threat of danger is to the Ancient City, especially you, not the planet."

"She's right." Vincent spoke. "I've researched far enough to find horrifying information and learned that this was the origins of the Solider Project, and there was more to it. Basically, the Omega Weapons can't work by itself. Ouranos left a key, a protomateria on the planet and the one who has the protomateria can waken Omega and make the path for it to succeed its goal."

"Protomateria?" Cloud asked as she looked to her future father-in-law. "Has it ever been found?"

"No. It never was found for it was never hidden. It was handed down from generation to generation, Lucrecia had it. Until to the point of her supposed death, and after that, I don't know what she did to it."

Grimoire frowned as he stood behind Vincent and stepped up out of the shadow of the room, "Son, Lucrecia had you revived when Hojo shot you."

Vincent turned to look at him, "Yes. Why?"

"You're cursed, like I had been but it takes more to bring you back from the dead."

"Where are you getting at?" Vincent asked as he stood up and turned to face him. "There were no real documents on what Hojo had really done to me."

"True, perhaps, you should ask Lucrecia."

Sephiroth stepped up to the two men, his father and grandfather. He was shocked to meet his grandfather and was glad to get to know the man in the past week since he had came to the Ancient City. "I think the next thing on our agenda is to find protomateria and keep it safe until we are sure what to do."

"Then, once we get the protomateria, what do we do with Omega Weapons and Genesis?" Cloud asked.

Sephiroth turned to her with steel resolve, "I will take Omega Weapons down, it is the planet that we are responsible for and it had capability of rendering it to nothing."

"No." Everyone gasped and turned to Grimoire. "Sephiroth, you will not face Omega Weapon. Vincent here will, trust me; I believe he is the only one who can. It has to do something about what Lucrecia did to him."

"Explain." Sephiroth said as he sat back down in his seat.

Grimoire gave a nod and took the floor, standing in the middle while everyone else was seated in circle around the room. "Very well. Lucrecia was once my assistant a long time ago. I was both a Lord to South Wutai and also a professor, a scientist at the best. She taught me many things about the Planet, how things work for one another, like how which herb can harm and which can heal. But the point is, she was the one who had the protomateria and she is intelligent in human scientist as well, she told me once that the protomateria only worked if implanted in a being. If she doesn't have it, she must have planted it in someone at some point. I believe she did this to Vincent." He turned to Vincent. "The protomateria is powerful and it's intention is to give a person immortal life and the power of the gods. Vincent, have you had ability to do more than you can?"

Yuffie quipped up, standing from her chair, "Yeah! He could! He becomes into a creature, really strong! Like a demon!"

Grimoire's eyes widened as he shot a look to Vincent and saw his son nod his head. "Yes, it's like a limit break, when I approach to the final one, I turn into this Chaos creature, but I am always aware and in control."

"Then, you have the protomateria in you. You must seek Lucrecia out and talk to her, she only know how you can stop Omega Weapons. She once told me that the Omega Weapons and Chaos goes hand in hand to work in destructing the planet."

Sephiroth frowned as he leaned his head on his hand, thinking. "This is not even good at all. We have the remote to destroy the planet right here." He said looking to his father. "This stays in the room." He glanced around the room, glaring, challenging. "If I hear one word that the words spread that Vincent here has the protomateria, deals with me."

Cloud sighed, "I suppose, you better go and visit Lucrecia." She said as she stood up, looking to Vincent.

"Can I go too?" Yuffie asked.

"Sure." Vincent said. "I'd like a company… If you will, I'd like to leave right away." He stood up, bowing his head to Sephiroth and Cloud and saw they nodded their consent. "Thank you." He turned and left the room. Soon, the others started to filter out, leaving Sephiroth, Cloud and Grimoire alone.

"Are you really sure that Vincent has the protomateria in him?" Sephiroth asked.

"I am pretty sure; after all, it is something Lucrecia would had done. She trust Vincent and loves him to not allow him to die. I am more concerned about one another thing." The older Wutaian man said as he sat down in chair facing Sephiroth and Cloud. "I found another journal belonging to Hojou years ago after I killed him, much like his son, it was in complex codes. It took me years to decipher it and I've learned he was responsible for allowing his son to bring the project to the ShinRa and thus creating the first batch of Soldiers for the ShinRa."

"The Elites." Cloud murmured, staring at Grimoire.

"Yes. There are names in the journal speaking of the group, I believe there were ten of you, and you were the tenth one, Sephiroth and the only one to survive, thus making you the first successful experiment of Hojo's."

Sephiroth nodded, "Yes. Hojo chose the nine best warriors that the ShinRa had at the time, I remember one the most, one was Angeal Leon, he was the leader of the Elites, and he would had become the General after the Wutai War." He scowled at the memory, not liking to recall the time during the War.

"There were one another that were successful, this Soldier Genesis, he came before your time, and the only one Hojou was successful with. Like you are to Hojo, he was to Hojou."

"You're saying this Genesis is another Sephiroth?"

"Basically, yes. There is one thing I am not quiet sure, the only difference is, I do not believe this Genesis was a Valkyrie, you are. This is why you are the one who can take care of Genesis." Grimoire said as he looked to Sephiroth. "According to the journal, the reason why Genesis was successful experiment is because he was a true Cetera."

"My goodness." Cloud murmured. "It makes sense, a hundred years ago, there could have been a handful of true Cetera left in the world, much like the Valkyries, at the time, there was several surviving ones."

"Yes. So, let Vincent take care of Omega Weapons and Sephiroth, when it is necessary, you are to take care of Genesis. I am here to help Vincent to take back Wutai. Am I correct you cannot take the crowns until Wutai is willingly handed to you?"

"Yes." Sephiroth replied.

"Then, we are working on that. It will take a war… we are ready for one now, Vincent has amassed enough warriors to make war."

"I wish it wouldn't come down to that." Cloud said as she stood up and went to the window that overlooked the city. "There has been enough death in the past few years. Enough wars in the last few decades."

"Then, let this be the last one."  
"Yeah."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Vincent and Yuffie stood together facing the waterfall where Lucrecia's crystal tomb laid beneath. They had been dropped off at Costa Del Sol by Sierra and took the chocobos to the hidden valley. Yuffie gasped softly at the beauty around. It was nearing fall and the valley was in brilliant colors, the grass was dark emerald and the flowers were in full bloom, the valley was full of heady scents and the water sparkled under the sunlight.

"Come, Lucrecia is within. I do not know if she still remain. She said she would remain until she knows her son is safe. But afterward, I do not know." Vincent said as he led the teenager on the path, under the waterfall and into the crystalline cavern. The girl gasped softly as she took in the place with wide eyes.

"Its so beautiful and so sad…" she said with whispers. "It's all Materia!" She gasped again as she touched the glass wall.

"Yes. A fitting tomb for Lucrecia." He said and they reached the center, looking up to the dais where the large crystal stood. Yuffie stepped up and peered closely to find Lucrecia encased in eternal rest. "Oh my, this is Lucrecia, she's so pretty!"

Vincent gave a somber smile; it was strange to introduce his love to his former love. He looked up to Lucrecia and spoke, "Lucrecia, I've come again."

The voice filled the air and Yuffie yelped, looking around and back to the immobile woman in the crystal. "Ah, Vincent… I knew you would come once again. I have left out some information until the time was right and it is now, ask."

Vincent bowed his head and touched his chest. "The protomateria, where is it?"

"You already know the answer to that."

"It's in me… isn't it?"

"Yes. I had it placed in you."

Yuffie frowned, "Why would you do that?"

"ah, a new guest you've brought along again." The air shimmered and Lucrecia appeared before them in spirit, her brown hair held up in high pony tail and wearing soft green gown. "Vincent, you've chosen a good soul to love."

Vincent blushed slightly, "This is Yufi Kisaragi. We met during our travel in search for Sephiroth. He is safe now and is preparing to become a king."

"Hai… I know everything." Lucrecia smiled as she moved closer to Yuffie and looked her over. "She's beautiful, a good match. Spunky too." She laughed as she poked Yuffie's nose and the youth batted at her nose.

"The protomateria, Lucrecia…" Vincent said with soft voice.

"Right. Hojou was close in discovering about the protomateria when he discovered Omega Weapon; I had to elude him from finding the truth. Fortunately he didn't bother farther. However, like father, like son, Hojo knew of the Omega Weapon but didn't bother because he was more interested in Jenova and creating the door for the Calamity of the Sky to take the world. Jenova gave him a promise that he couldn't resist that he didn't bother with his father's researches. However… when you learned of his plan with Sephiroth and me, you encountered him and got yourself killed." She closed her eyes as she rested her hands over her heart. "I was heartbroken. My only love to be killed. I was also confused because, you know my ability to foresee the future."

Vincent nodded, "Yes, you've told me a little about that."

She smiled at him, "I saw the future, you and Sephiroth standing side by side. It was a hazy vision I saw, but I knew you would live to see your son grow up and become a man he is now. The moment you were shot, I was upset and confused because of the vision I saw and realized then that the protomateria had to come in hand. It was the only way you would live, but with a price. I convicted Hojo to use you as an experiment and he was more than happy to. The protomateria has to work with a strong body, you were not of Valkyrie or Cetera descendant, so Hojo used his experiment. What he did not know, he could not revive a dead person and that was where I came in handy. I assisted him in his horrible experiment."

Vincent frowned, "How did you slip the protomateria in me without Hojo knowing?"

Lucrecia waved her hand and an illusion appeared before them, a tiny orb in crimson. "Much like the summon Materia. How it works with the Omega Weapon, I do not truly know. It was handed down by Ouranos to Alexander the Judge and his descendant. I was handed this protomateria at some point in my life and held onto it for a long time, close to a thousand years. With the Valkyrie knowledge and genetic memories, I learned that it has the power to control Omega Weapon; like a remote and it is very powerful to revive a person if placed in the body, but it also came with a price, creating the person into Chaos. With Hojo's experiment on you, he gave you the strength to surpass Chaos and only use it at will. I was able to slip this tiny orb into your heart on the operating table. Hojo had his back turned for a moment to retrieve another scalpel and I did this then. The moment it touched your heart, it disappeared, merging with your body, you are the protomateria itself, the power is in your hands." She reached out and took Vincent's hands and held them.

Yuffie's eyes widened, "So, what are we going to do now?"

Lucrecia looked to Yuffie and tilted her head as in saying it was up to them. "The vision I had before I encased myself in this crystal tomb, was of you Vincent, fighting with the Omega Weapon. I do not know how it happened or what lead you to fight the Omega Weapon, obviously, someone else must have a protomateria to activate it."

Vincent frowned, "How is that possible? In Grimoire's research, each planet in the cosmo has one of each, the protomateria and the Omega Weapon."

"I do not know. My vision ability is limited after my death." She looked to herself in the crystal tomb and floated away from the two. "Why did you come here about the protomateria? Even though I do know you would come and see me one last time, but what was the reason that lead you here to ask." She turned back to them.

Yuffie scuffled her foot, "My father, Lord Godo found about Omega Weapon and Soldier Genesis, he plans to use it to attack the Ancient City and prevent from Sephiroth and Cloud becoming the new King and Queen."

Lucrecia gasped, "Is this true, Vincent?"

"Yes. He discovered the researches on the two few weeks ago and has the Solider Genesis in his hands."

"This is not good, now I see why you would be faced with the Omega Weapon. There has to be a second protomateria to be used. Vision comes and it have to happen, so let things happen as fate plans it."

"So, we're going have to deal with Omega Weapon and Solider Genesis and all that?" Yuffie asked curiously.

"Yes. We know that Vincent will be the one to take on Omega Weapon. Sephiroth will take care of Genesis." She closed her eyes and smiled, "Ah… Do tell Sephiroth, I am blessed to have a beautiful granddaughter. She has a destiny greater than anyone we can imagine." She opened her eyes and looked to Vincent and took his hand, she then took Yuffie' s hand and joined their hands together. "You both have my blessing. I see a good life ahead for you two. Vincent, after Omega Weapons, you won't be immoral anymore. Grimoire will finally find his peace. I shall await for him in the Lifestream." She smiled and gave Vincent a kiss on his forehead and did the same to Yuffie. "Take care of him." She told her and then floated away until her illusion spirit faded into the crystal, rejoining with her body within. The light in the crystal glowed, becoming brighter by the moment until the entire room was bathed white. Yuffie and Vincent shielded their eyes and then the light dimmed.

Yuffie gasped softly, a tear fell from her eyes as she looked to the empty crystal when the light faded, leaving them in the low dimmed room. "She's gone…"

"Yes." Vincent said simply as he kneeled and bowed his head. "Be at peace, Lucrecia Crescent." He opened his eyes and stood up. "Come, love, let's go home. The Banquet is near."

Yuffie smiled at him and took his hand and they walked out of the cavern, leaving behind the empty tomb.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The day the World Banquet came and everyone was on their last nerves. Sephiroth had met with all of the world leaders, save for Wutai because he knew that Vincent would hand the country over once he is finished with his end of business and left it to Vincent to handle Wutai with Yuffie. He trusts them and supported them.

The Ancient City filled up within short three months and was bustling with people from all over the world. The palace had been cleaned and prepared for the Banquet, the grand majestic doors were open and all kinds of people dressed in their finest was going in, happy chatters were in the air. Sephiroth and Cloud stood on the balcony above, watching from their rooms as the people came in. they could see the two airship, commandeering under Cid Highwind, the Sierra and the Highwind bringing in guests from all over the world. Motorized carriages, designed by Scarlet were bringing in people from the city, driving up the white stone paved road to the palace. Reeve and Zack were in the doorways, standing there as they greeted the guests, showing them in and the servants came and went, bringing the people to the grand hall.

"You're nervous." Cloud stated softly as she rested her hand over his on the railing.

"How would you tell?" Sephiroth said coolly as he looked to her, she was beautiful, dressed in simple formal gown of black and silver and her hair was tied up in simple bun with the rest of it trailing down her back. On her forehead was a simple silver circle band, showing she was the Lady of the City. His clothes were color coordinated with hers, in black and silver, he also wore simple gold band around his forehead and his hair tied up in formal topknot.

She laughed at him, "You're tense. Your muscles bunch up and you're serious. No one may notice, but I do." She leaned up against him and kissed his nose. "Relax, it will be okay, the entire world is going to sign the treaty and agree to our coronation after the wedding."

"Except for one." He said darkly and looked down to the ground. He frowned, "Wutai. He's here."

Cloud looked down and sighed, "He was invited, right?"

"Yes… ah, there's Vincent and Yuffie too, they're coming." He gestured to the other carriage that was several cars behind Lord Godo's. He turned and clapped his hand and a servant appeared by their side, "Have Lord Xin'Tine and Lady Kisaragi brought to me when they arrive."

The servant bowed, "Hai, my lord," and disappeared out of the door.

"I think they are the last of the guests. We should get ourselves to the Grand Hall." Cloud said and turned, following Sephiroth through the room and into the hallway. They intercepted with Aeris and Zack coming from another direction. Aeris wore pale pink gown, her belly huge as she waddled slightly, she was glowing with happiness as Zack had his hand on her back, supporting her.

"Aeris! You look beautiful." Cloud said as they met. She reached out and touched Aeris' belly and felt the baby kick inside, smiling to the flower girl, "Any time soon, right?"

"Yeah, the child is pressing lower, I feel like I'm going to burst anytime." Aeris laughed.

Sephiroth grinned as he looked at the two women and realized, he wanted to see Cloud have the same kind of glow and shine and understood why Cloud desired so badly to have a child. He closed his eyes and vowed to himself that he would find a way to grant her wish. He felt his hand being picked up and looked to find Aeris bringing it to her belly and he felt the child kicking softly under his hand. He smiled, feeling the tension leave his body. "Do you know the gender of the child yet?" He asked simply.

Zack chuckled, "Nah, we wanted it to be a surprise. The doctor said that despite that we have Valkyrie genes in our bodies and we have fifty-fifty chances for girl or boy. Aeris wants a boy, I want a girl."

Sephiroth's eyebrow rose, "A girl, I took you to be one who would want a boy."

"Nah, why have a boy when you can have a little girl to spoil?" Zack laughed, "and as beautiful as my love." He looked over to Aeris, smiling softly.

"You're just saying that because I am bloated up like a balloon… just you wait." Aeris swatted him and they all laughed together.

Vincent and Yuffie joined them in the hallway. "Greeting. A servant told us you wish to see us before entering the Hall."

Sephiroth turned to his father and nodded, "Yes. Lord Godo is here."

"Hai. I would suggest you to stay out of his way, just go about as normal. He is seeking to catch you in your misstep and expose you to everyone else. I am not sure what his ulterior plan is as of now. He had been rather quiet to his council in the past week."

"Very well." Sephiroth said.

"It's better for you to stay away from me too… He has not said a word to me since the last treaty in Neo-Midgar. I don't know what he intended to do with me except to marry me off by my eighteenth birthday." Yuffie said looking worried to Sephiroth and Cloud.

"I understand. Well, I might be a bit busy during the banquet to be close to you, Yuffie. As for Godo, I am not sure, I believe he will be seated among the other Lords, I'll have extra guards here tonight."

"Yes, however, Godo brought his own guards as well. So, we better keep our eyes out on them and pray that the banquet goes smoothly to the end." Vincent said as he turned to head to the Grand Hall.

"Let's get going." Cloud said as they all went together to the Grand Hall. Sephiroth had told one of the guards to increase watch and told them all to be aware of Lord Godo and watch his guards as well before entering the Hall.

Cloud and Sephiroth was the last to enter the Hallway, everyone turned to them and applauded their entrance. They smiled and waved as they made their way to the head table that was set on the stage. The table was long and all of the world leaders, lords and ladies sat upon the table. Sephiroth held the chair for Cloud and she sat down. He moved and sat in his grand chair, their chairs were like the throne chairs, elegant and larger than anyone else in the room. Soon, the servants started to bring in the food and served everyone. The chatters were quiet as they all waited for the last person to be served.

Finally, after about ten minutes, everyone was served and they turned to see Sephiroth stand up, holding his goblet of wine, the wine was specially chosen for the event, they had found wine cellar full of age old wines that was enough to serve the world several time over deep underground the city. They were delicious and ripe to serve and were created by the fruit of the great white tree that stood as the foundation of the palace.

He held the goblet high and saw that everyone had their attention to him and the room was deathly silent. He was not one to present a speech before large group of people and swallowed. He had always made short speech before the Soldiers in the past, usually harsh and cruel with cold words. Often then, he would scare the new cadets pissless. This was different for him, a new experience. He sighed and smiled slightly as he spoke, "Welcome all, to the Ancient City and the future. In the past few months had been life altering and chaotic, many of you had witnessed the near destruction of the Planet twice in short time and thankfully, the team of Avalanche and Turks came to our rescue and made way to open the gate of a new future, a new hope. Together, we are to unite and venture forth into uncharted territory, experiences and build a strong foundation as one people, the Children of Gaia."

Everyone raised their goblet and echoed after him, "Children of Gaia!" And they all took a sip.

Rufus stood up, bowing his head to Sephiroth who sat down. "Excellent speech. Everyone, I knew him in the past and he never was one to make a good inspiring speech." Everyone chuckled slightly at this. "He had surely changed a lot in the past few years. Let's get to the point." Then the laugher was louder in the room for a moment before they silenced, listening to the young Neo-Midgar president. "For thousands of years on this Planet, there were two races, the Cetera and the Valkyries. They mixed and bred, creating a race of human and populated the planet and their races became extinct, fading away into legend. The legends had been passed down for generations, giving us a hope of united people, under the rule of one King and one Queen, the last children of Valkyries, the true daughters of Gaia herself. They sit here before us," He turned and gestured to Sephiroth and Cloud. "Gaia herself told them to become our King and Queen, to lead us into the promised future." He smiled and shook his head. "My father, as many of you knew, Roscoe ShinRa had a vision, a promised land, he believed the promised land was full of power and wealth, but with that vision brought near destruction to the planet twice. For that, he paid the price in death. I grew up hearing his dream, his vision and now, I stand here before you all, it is not what he thought it was. The Promised Land is real, it is full of glory, power and wealth, but not in money or strength, but in love, peace and brotherhood. The promised land is here and now, everywhere, on every land of the planet!" He rose his goblet up and everyone cheered loudly in the room. "Sephiroth, Cloud! Our parents of the Promised Land!" Then again, the room filled with thunderous cheering and it took a while before everyone quieted down. "I believe, our dinner is getting a bit cold, let's tuck in and enjoy our time before we get onto the signing of the World Treaty. Cheers."

"Cheers!" Everyone said together and sipped their goblet before turning to their dinner and chatting with their neighbors.

"I think I will need to hire you as my speech writer." Sephiroth deadpanned to Rufus as the young president sat down.

"Ah, you did well with yours. It was inspiring. I was drilled my whole life on how to give speech. Ninety-five percent of the time, I'm lying and manipulating the people."

"And this time was the small part of that five percent, I hope?" Cloud asked, smirking at him.

Rufus rolled his eyes. "You know the difference. You've heard my speeches in the past."

Cloud shook her head. "Yeah, yeah. Thank you, it was good. Sephiroth," she turned to him and smiled brilliantly at him. "You already showed you're a good King."

"And you, my beautiful queen." Sephiroth replied and started to eat. The next hour was full of entertainment, there were performers giving shows in the center of the room while everyone ate then there were a short dancing time near the end of the hour. Sephiroth took Cloud down and they danced together, displaying their perfect grace.

The hour ended with Reeve ringing his goblet, the sweet sound of the ring spread through the room, silencing everyone and they all turned to the head table. He smiled and placed his goblet down and held a scroll up for all to see. "Thank you, I hope you have enjoyed the dinner, it was delicious. Thank you Sephiroth and Cloud, for hosting this banquet." He bowed to them and they gave a head nod. "I see that everyone from all over the world is here, thank you for coming and I am sure you all remembered few months ago where you were sent the peace treaty for Neo-Midgar." Murmurs of agreement rose and a few moment later, Reeve continued, "This is similar, but it is an agreement to join together under one ruler, the house of Children of Gaia, each countries leaders sign this to enter an unbreakable vow to join together as one nation, one world, united." He started to roll out the scroll and placed it on the table that was recently cleared away by the servant during his speech. "You all see, the leaders are here, sitting at the head table, the paper will be passed along and each will sign. We are to join with joy and look to the prospect of a wonderful future. As the last leader signs this, the coronation will take place in three months, a week after the wedding of our future King and Queen." He smiled as everyone cheered. He handed the paper to Rufus who took it and signed it first for Neo-Midgar and the Midgar country. There were five greater countries in the world and each had several leaders and lords, who all showed up and the scroll was being passed along to each one of them, every one signed it.

Sephiroth smiled at cloud as they watched each leader sign. As the paper reached Lord Godo, Cloud bit her lip, watching him. He had been silent the entire time, only making small conversation to the lords sitting next to him. He took the pen and stood up. The room became deathly silent; he was the last one to sign.

Sephiroth's eyes became cold and hard as he watched Godo held the pen, their gazes locked. Finally, Godo spoke, "I refuse." He said and threw the pen down at the table. The room gasped softly then, several women gave small screams as the Wutaian warriors came out from behind the curtains that lined the wall behind the head table and surrounded Sephiroth.

Sephiroth stood up, glaring with anger at the older man. "What is the meaning of this?" Two of the guards took his arm none too gently and Cloud stood up, throwing her chair down. Sephiroth turned to Cloud and shook his head, "No, stand back, Cloud."

Godo chuckled and turned to the audience and took out folded papers and held it up. "Warrant for Sephiroth's arrest." He simply said and the noises in the room rose, confused, angry and objections were shouted at him.

Rufus stood up, "Warrant for arrest? Why?" he asked, glaring at Lord Godo.

The Wutaian lord tossed the papers to Rufus who caught it and the young president read it out loud, "Warrant for Sephiroth Valentine's arrest, for the crime stated against Wutai." He gasped softly, "Mass murder, attempted assassination to the Lord of Wutai, Lord Godo Kisaragi, fatally wounding Lord Godo Kisaragi… it goes on…" He looked up to Lord Godo and snarled, "He is innocent of the charges, he was merely a young boy doing the bidding of the former President ShinRa! It was a war! If you must, arrest every single Soldiers that were in the war!"

"Sadly, the only one remains alive and he is standing here before us, pretending to be our King! Wutai will never bow to the murderer!" Godo shouted.

Sephiroth narrowed his eyes and said softly, but loud enough for everyone to hear. "Wutai or you?"

Vincent stood up and walked up to the head table and stood between the two men, "I believe it is the North Wutai who wishes to arrest Sephiroth." He took the treaty paper and signed his name, "As the Lord of South Wutai, I agree for Sephiroth to be our King. He has our alliance. I demand a fair trail for Sephiroth."

Godo's face darkened. "Very well, but we are taking Sephiroth with us to Wutai." He looked over to the silver-haired man and raised his eyebrow as if challenging him.

Cloud gasped, "No! You can't take him! He belongs here, if you must, have trails here!"

Godo shook his head and Sephiroth spoke, shaking his arms out of the guards hold, "Let me go for now." The guards held on and looked to Godo who gave a nod and let him go, they stood back, still surrounding him. He turned to Cloud and took her into his arms, holding her face with one hand. "Cloud, I must." He said simply and leaned down to whisper in her ear, "don't worry, love. I have to do this to show everyone that I am willing to sacrifice for them, for the Planet's sake…" He looked into her eyes, "During the last battle, I had a vision. The vision was of the city, full of life and people, you and me together as the King and Queen, it was hazy at first but now I see it clear in my mind, a little girl stand by our side, she is so beautiful. That is our fate, our future, we are just halfway there." He said simply and smiled as she gasped at him, tears falling out of her eyes. "Just hold on a little bit longer… I will see you at the altar on our wedding day; we will stand here together in the city and take our crowns." He dropped his hand to her belly, "And you will grow our child and together, we will rule with peace."

She closed her eyes as he leaned down and kissed her. "I love you…" She said softly as she felt him withdraw and she gasped, falling back into Zack's arms as he was behind her, holding her. She watched as Sephiroth turned to Godo and bowed his head, then the guards took his arms and they walked through the room, everyone watching in silence as they walked out together.

Cloud dropped to her knees and broke down crying. The room filled with conversation as everyone talked. Zack and Aeris knelt down beside Cloud and rubbed her back, trying to console her. Aeris helped her up and walked her out of the grand hall and took her to the master bedroom. By the time Cloud was taken to the master bedroom, she didn't bother to change out of her clothes but fell on the bed, crying some more until she fell asleep.

Zack came to the room a while later, finding Aeris sitting on the bed, brushing Cloud's hair out of her face. "How is she?"

"She's clearly upset. That Lord Godo is rather a bastard." Aeris said softly as Zack came in the room and stood by her side.

"Ah, ah, language, my sweet love. Sephiroth's right, he had to go in peace to Wutai. Everyone's gone for now, Reeve and Rufus got everyone out and apologized for us. Vincent is gathering force and is heading to Wutai soon, Yuffie is going too. I don't know what they're saying, but with my little understanding for Wutaian language, they were talking about war."

"War?" Aeris gasped as she met Zack's violet eyes. "Are you serious?"

"Yes. Vincent controls half of Wutai and, believes me; he has a great army ready. That was what he was working on in the past few months since the last battle. It's over three thousands of warriors. I believe if I heard correctly, Grimoire has two thousands waiting in Wutai."

"Oh my!"

"We need to sit back and wait and see."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Yuffie and Vincent stood on the highest hill the next day, overlooking most of the northern Wutai from the southern part. They were in their formal kimono and robes, decked in warrior armors, standing together alone. Yuffie had her large shuriken strapped to her back as Vincent had his Cerberus gun loaded and ready in his holster. Yet, they both had katana on their hips.

She turned and looked to Vincent as the light of the dawn was becoming brighter and placed the helmet on her head, the long feather plume swayed slightly in the breeze. "It's time."

"Hai." He said as he looked down behind him to where thousands of warriors stood ready, awaiting for their order. He turned back to the short elderly man that came up the hill, holding a book gripping in his hand.

The man stopped before them and stood, "Are you sure?"

Vincent nodded. "The witnesses stood here," He gestured to the thousands of warriors watching below the hills, coming in total of nearly six thousands. "Lord Godo should arrive in a moment." He said and indeed, Lord Godo came walking up the hill with his face set in scowl, he had several warriors with him.

"What is it you have called me here?" He said and gasped softly as he saw his daughter standing beside Vincent, dressed in white kimono, yet also with the armors on, and looking like a warfare goddess; she looked very much like her mother.

"We are here to wed, to unite both house of Kisaragi and Xin'Tine." Vincent said and handed the scroll to Godo.

Godo's eyes widened as he took the scroll and saw the signature on the bottom; it was signed by him a long time ago along with Grimoire's name. On the bottom was two new names, Vincent's name and Yuffie's, his head shot up to the two before him. "What!?"

"There is nothing you can do but witness the union now." Vincent said grimly and turned to the old man and nodded, "We are ready."

The old man bowed and held his hand up, his voice clear and strong despite his appearance, "Words, old as time, strong as the foundation of the earth, say your vows and be united forever in the minds, the hearts and the souls." He turned to Vincent, "Say your words." Godo gasped softly, knowing he could not interfere for it was forbidden once the vows were to give to one another. They had placed him in a tough spot and he had not expected this.

Vincent spoke, looking to Yuffie, "Kisaragi Yufi-hime, watakushi wa kono josei to kekkonshi, fufu to narou to shite imasu, watakushi wa kenkouna tokimo, soudenai tokimo, kono hito o aishi, kono hito o uyamai, kono hito o nagusame, kono hito o tasuke, watakushi no inochi no kagiri, kataku sessou mamoru koto o… "

The old man nodded and turned to Yuffie, "Say your words."

She smiled brilliantly and Vincent felt his heart soar as he watched her eyes shone in the morning dawn. "Xin'Tine Kintaro-sama, Watakushi wa kono dansei to kekkonshi..., fufu to narou to shite imasu, watakushi wa kenkouna tokimo, soudenai tokimo, kono hito o aishi, kono hito o uyamai, kono hito o nagusame, kono hito o tasuke, watakushi no inochi no kagiri, kataku sessou mamoru koto o…"

Then they said the same time together, sealing their vows, forever binding their lvies for one another in marriage. "Chikai masau, Amen."

"Before the witnesses and the gods, you are now man and wife." The old man smiled and bowed as Vincent grabbed Yuffie close to him and gave her a sound kiss. She laughed softly as they finally broke away and the mass of warriors cheered, their voice rising in thunderous level.

Vincent turned to Godo, "Now, Wutai is one."

Godo growled, "Never! Not with the Xin'Tine House! Yufi, you are forever disowned of the Kisaragi's house!" He spat as he spit on the ground before Yuffie.

Yuffie stared stonily at her father. "So be it. You've brought war to Wutai."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_

Translation for the vows:

Vincent's: Princess Yufi Kisarai, I marry this woman, no matter what the health situation is, I will love her, respect her, console her, help her, until death, protecting fidelity…

Yuffie's: Lord Kintaro Xin'Tine, I marry this man, no matter what the health situation is, I will love him, respect him, console him, help him, until death, protecting fidelity…

Together: I swear, Amen.

The vows were found using Google… hehe.


	55. SS:4: The Passion

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M . **

Chapter Four: The Passion

Cloud had cried herself to sleep, upset and overwhelmed from the event that followed the banquet. She was at loss of what to do for the first two days, locking herself up in the master bedroom, but only allowing Shiva or Aeris to visit her and console her. Two days later, she had heard news from Vincent that he went to war immediately following his quick wedding. She was surprised that Vincent and Yuffie decided to marry after all, seeing that their relationship was nothing but of good friends but she then realized, they were hiding their affections for one another the whole time. And to learn that Yuffie was the one to declare war upon her father surprised her farther. It was then she decided to not mope anymore but take Sephiroth's words and be strong and have faith that he will return to her and they would have their wedding. She supposed, it wasn't her place to take actions anymore, for those days were over and it was Vincent and Yuffie's turn now in the greater plan of the gods.

Cloud smiled as she entered Aeris' room, the smile didn't reach her eyes but she was glad for her friend who she had come to love like a sister, a soul sister. Aeris had just given birth to a son a week later, a beautiful baby boy with shocking black hair and bright green eyes. Zack and Aeris had argued through the entire birthing time to whom will name the child, Aeris won the battle when she had attacked and gripped rather hard on Zack's family jewel, demanding that he would take the first honor to name their son and a few moment later, the baby was born. Aeris recovered quickly as she held the baby in her arms a moment later but however, Zack was suffered several days until his balls healed from the bruising grip.

Zack named the child Jules Gast Donovan as the first name came from his Valkyrie name and the middle came from Aeris' father, in honor of the loved Doctor Gast Gainsborough. The boy was a healthy child; he was born with bright glowing green eyes, even though his eyes didn't match Sephiroth's intenseness but was sweet as Aeris'.

"Ah!" Zack smiled as he looked up to see Cloud entering the room and stood from the bed where he was sitting, watching Aeris nurse their son. "Cloud, we've been talking… We'd like to name you Jules' godmother."

Cloud bowed her head as she reached the bed and nodded, "I'm honored. He's beautiful." She peered over to Aeris' arms and watched the baby suckle at the breast eagerly, drinking the milk. A stirring in her heart made her smile softly as she recalled what Sephiroth had told her few days ago before he departed with Godo.

Aeris looked up to see the sadness in Cloud's eyes and said, "Cloud, would you like to hold him?"

"Uhm…" She replied and shrugged. Zack moved around the bed and pulled up a rocking chair that was set in the room for Aeris to sit in with her son. He nearly forced Cloud to sit down and went over to Aeris and gently took their son from her arms and handed to Cloud, helping her to hold the baby properly. Cloud gasped softly as she was settled with the baby in her arms, holding him.

"There you go, you're already a natural!" Zack smiled as he watched Cloud stroke the wisp of black hair. He looked to his wife and saw her smiling softly, resting on the bed.

"He's really beautiful… so small." Cloud whispered as she rocked the cooing baby of a day old. "Sephiroth told me something… he said he had a vision and saw a future where we would be here in the city, with a daughter… He truly believe we would have our own baby."

Aeris chuckled softly, "Yes. I wouldn't be surprised if it came true. Lucrecia was known to have the ability to see the future and since Sephiroth is her son. The ability is most likely to be passed down. Zack, was it said anywhere in the tome that Jenova Crescent had the ability too?"

"No. If she had, she would have been able to prevent the outbreak of the Calamity of the Sky. Maybe it did indeed skip her generation, I know Madoshi did have the ability and Sephiroth is the reincarnation of Madoshi."

"Maybe that then too. If I were you, Cloud, I'd trust his word. Have you heard from Vincent yet?"

Cloud shook her head as she looked up from studying Jules sleeping face. "Not since the first one. The war has begun and Godo's army is losing pretty quickly. We will find out later to why, it seem like the warriors on Godo's side are switching side to Vincent's. I suppose they are changing their mind and laying their loyalty to Vincent."

"Wow, I gotta to read this soon." Zack said offhand. "I've been cooped up in here with Aeris and Jules… I don't regret that, I just can't stay away from our baby…" He smiled as he looked to his son, feeling prideful.

Aeris rolled her eyes, "Yeah, you've been a mother hen! Get out and give me a break sometime." She laughed.

Cloud handed the baby to Zack who in turn sat down the rocking chair Cloud had vacated. "I'll have the newspaper sent to you. Do you need anything; I'll get the servants to bring it to you."

Aeris shook her head. "We're fine. If anything, I'll just kick Zack out." She laughed as Zack scowled slightly and Jules fussed a bit.

Cloud nodded her head once and left the room.

"She's not taking it well." Aeris said once Cloud left.

"I know. She's taken it too hard, with Sephiroth being arrested by Godo and the whole prospect of the wedding coming up and everything. I'm going have Ifrit to take her to Wutai to visit Sephiroth and maybe talk to Godo about releasing him soon."

"Are you sure that's wise? Godo doesn't like Cloud any better than Sephiroth." Aeris asked as she moved down on the bed to lie down and take a nap. She turned to face Zack and watched as he placed their son in a bassinet near the bed.

"Like I said, I'm sending Ifrit and three other knights to accompany her. She needs to see Sephiroth."

"Very well. Now, get out of here and let me sleep." Aeris smiled as Zack made gesture of defeat and left the room.

Zack shook his head in amusement as he went down the hallway to the office and entered. He was surprised to find Reeve, Rufus and Ifrit there with Cloud. There was also a messenger from Wutai as well. "What's up?" He asked.

Cloud looked up from reading a scroll. "Vincent just sent a message. He is doing well in the battle. Godo's army is considering surrender. But Godo refuse defeat."

"We've been discussing about sending a battalion or two to aid Vincent." Reeve added.

Zack came to their side and looked to the world map that was spread out on the table and they had tiny figures all over Wutai, tracking Vincent and Godo's war. He could see Vincent's side winning, taking over the entire north Wutai except the City had been surrounded and Godo was defending the City. "I think you should go." He said looking to Cloud.

"What?" She asked as she placed the scroll down.

"Take some of the Knights with you, go and see Sephiroth and see how he is doing. Ifrit should go with you too."

"Hm… maybe I should, not now." Cloud sighed deeply and placed her hands on the table, supporting her weight as she studied the map. "It had only been few days. I don't think Godo would let me in Wutai City. He had barricaded himself in the city."

"At least, see to Vincent and Yuffie. It would do you good to stay busy. Aeris and I will take care of the city here, go." Zack said.

Rufus agreed, "Yes, I agree with Zack. Sierra will transport you and the battalion to Wutai and remain there if it is needed."

Cloud stood back up, "All right, I'll get ready. Prepare a battalion. I'll contact if any more is needed, but I don't think so."

The men watched as Cloud left the office and they sighed in relief. "I was getting a bit worried about her." Reeve said.

"Yeah, she needs to get out and get some actions." Ifrit said, finally speaking up. I'll go and prepare for the trip and inform the knights."

"Take three." Zack said.

"Hai."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"Where are you going, mom?" Odin asked as he sat on the grand master bed watching Cloud pack a small bag.

"I'm going to try to see your father in Wutai and making sure he is all right and everything over there is okay." Cloud said as she zipped the bag up and searched in the closet for a cloak.

"When will you be back?" The boy hopped off the bed and struggled to lift the bag as Cloud wrapped the long dark royal blue cloak around her shoulder. She laughed at him as he dragged the bag across the floor to the door.

"I won't be gone long. A few days at the most, if anything, Zack and Aeris will be here and Shiva too. Do me a favor," She said as she knelt down to his level and hugged him. "Take care of the palace for me. You're the master of the house for now."

Odin looked proud and beamed at her. "I will! You can depend on me!'

She tweaked his nose and stood up, taking the bag. "Come on, see me off."

They walked down the hall together.

"Mom…" He said as they started down the spiral staircase, "I had a dream last night."

She paused and turned to him, "really, tell me."

"I dreamed of Kadaj, Loz and Yazoo. They told me a soul is waiting to be born."

"A soul?"

"Yeah, their sister." Cloud gasped softly and a tear rolled down her cheek. "Mom? Are you okay?" Odin asked concerned.

She smiled and shook her head, "I'm fine. It is a wonderful gift to hear that."

"Oh, all right." The young boy said and shrugged as he followed Cloud down the rest of the way and saw her off on Sierra with a battalion of army, Ifrit and three knights to guard her.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Vincent looked up from his table in the tent on his side of the battle field that was happening in middle of the great valley of Wutai. Godo's encampment was on the North end while his were on the south. But he knew that Godo wasn't in the encampment but rather, in the Wutai City, hiding in his grand palace. He was starting to suspect that Godo was becoming rather of a cowardly man. He suppose so after finding that the whole world wasn't supporting him yet, he wouldn't give up. He saw three large men in dark cloak, their heads covered, escorting a smaller person in blue cloak and smiled as he saw the small emblem on the latch of their cloaks, recognizing them. "Welcome, Lords." He bowed to the knights and asked, "What news brings you here to Wutai?"

The first dropped his hood to reveal Michael, the one who guarded Ancient City. "You may ask this to Queen Sorano." He said softly as he stepped aside to let the shorter figure through.

"Thank you, Michael. Vincent." Cloud said as she dropped the hood and smiled at the sniper, looking him over to see that he was in full Wutaian warrior regalia. "You are looking well for being in a war."

He chuckled and gestured to the cushions on the floor for them to sit. The knights bowed their heads and stepped outside while Cloud moved to sit on the cushion, accepting tea cup from Vincent. "I have not expected you here." He said.

"They basically kicked me out of the Ancient City, thinking I've moped enough. They wanted me to come here and see if I could talk to Godo and talk to him in releasing Sephiroth." She explained.

"It's not possible anytime soon to get hold of Godo; he had locked himself up and refusing any contact. Each day, he is losing his warriors by fifties and hundred to our side. The first few days were gruesome; we lost about a thousand on each side. Then suddenly, some of the battalion was starting to call surrender on the other side and we learned that Godo was barricading himself and his generals are the one who's running the war, not him."  
"Coward." Cloud spat softly. "I have with me a battalion to help you out. Rufus is ready to send two if you needed. "

"No, I'm gaining more warriors each day, it won't be long until the entire Wutai is on our side. Once that happen, we will invade the city." He paused as he looked up to see his wife, Yuffie enter the tent, pulling the helmet off and wiping her forehead. She smelled of dirt, sweat and horse. "Yuffie." He didn't care of her smell as he stood up and hugged her. She sighed as she leaned in his arms and he led her to the cushion.

Yuffie looked to her side and gasped, finally noticing Cloud, "You're here!" She latched onto the older woman and giggled. "I'm so happy to see you again… it's been gruesome work here."

Cloud laughed softly and took in the younger woman; she was dressed like a warrior queen, full armors over billowy hakama and sleeveless kimono. "Work?" She asked.

"Yeah, setting up camp and reopening the southern city for the refugees from Wutai City, everyone's just leaving that city to get away from Godo. It's going to take a while before the entire city is emptied out."

"And what do you guys plan to do afterward?" Cloud asked, curious, finding the whole plan wasn't going as she had thought it would.

"Invade the city." Vincent replied as he came back with a gourd of cold fresh water and handed it to Yuffie who gladly drank it. "The people in the north are more taken to Yuffie, which is why she had been going out each day, convicting them and bringing them out of the city safely while the warriors fight on the sides. Truth to be told, it is a rather very half-hearted war we have on our hands here. More are wounded rather than killed this time around."

"Yeah. You should get report in about an hour." Yuffie replied as she drizzled the water over her head and shaking her hair, splattering water everywhere.

"I am glad to see that everything is going well in your favor. I'll stay and help; I can't just sit around and do nothing. I would like to take the opportunity to talk to Godo."

Yuffie jumped up to her feet and beamed at Cloud, "Well, I have an idea! You can help with the refugees and the warriors, let them to get to know you and see who you are in person and that would give you the benefit of gaining their favor for you and Sephiroth when the war ends."

"That's a good idea. Do you have any idea how long this might last?" Cloud asked as she stood up as well.

Vincent picked up a scroll and glanced at it. "The way things are going, a month or two at the least. There are still large numbers of warriors still loyal to Godo."

"All right. I hope it won't take too long."

"Great, come on, I'll show you around." Yuffie said as she dragged Cloud out of the tent to show her around the large encampment.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Godo stood overlooking the prison ground. From above, the prison wasn't covered but guarded heavily by the watchmen, watching the prisoners every hours of the day, each day of the week. It was never left unguarded and the place was like a maze of stone and mud walls with individual cells for the prisoners. The watchmen would walk around on the top of the thick wall, guarding the place with watchful eyes. It was nearly impossible for the prisoners to escape for the wall were ten feet high, smoothed over with hard clay and to escape through the door of their cells would bring them to search through the maze and there were only one exit, a very small exit, heavily guarded.

After having arresting Sephiroth, he had entrusted his guards to take Sephiroth to the prison on the far north side of Wutai City, hidden from sight behind the DaChaos Mountain. He stood on top of the warden tower that overlooked the prison and watched as the guards took Sephiroth through the small door and leading him through the maze to the open area where they stripped him of his fine robes and gave him a torn and tatty trouser. After Sephiroth had silently taken in the harsh treatment and dressed in the trouser, he was shoved to his knees and his hair yanked out of the tie, releasing the silver lock of his hair. He watched as his guards harshly grabbed him by his locks and started to shorn them off with clippers for the sheep, giving him rough haircut. The silver strands fell to the ground in locks, shimmering under the morning sun.

It had amazed him to watch how a simple noble proud man changed in seconds to a humbling commoner. Yet, he knew, the fire in the jade eyes still burns with passion and the moment he had announced the arrest for Sephiroth and one look in the green eyes, he had lost.

A long time ago, after he had first met Sephiroth during the Wutai War, he sworn to himself to see the man on his knees, to diminish and destroy his evil soul. To be the one to bring down the monster, and now the day had came and he felt he had failed, for it was not the man he wanted. The monster had been long killed before, by the hand of a simple girl and the way of love. He didn't take the man he wanted but a man whom he had taken from a loving home, from people who loved him and a promising future. He felt like he was the criminal yet his pride made him stubborn. He couldn't face the people, knowing he had made a mistake, as a Lord, he had to follow through his promise.

He shook his head, watching as the guards shove Sephiroth into a cell. He looked to his side to see Chekhov and Staniv, his councilmen and his old war-buddies. Staniv was the serious one, serving as a general for many years, spoke, "You have him in your clutch and yet you waver."

"I know. This is not the Sephiroth I once knew. That monster was long gone…" Godo said his voice tired and weary.

Chekhov said, "Then, what do we do now? Your daughter…" He closed his eyes as Godo spat, "She is not my daughter anymore." Then he shook his head and continued, "She is winning the war. Your warriors are leaving you for their side; they had seen you as an unfit Lord."

"I am not unfit." Godo said harshly and turned, leaving the prisoner compound to his palace, seeking refuge. He felt relief as he entered his cool palace, nearly deserted for over half of the servants had left his household, abandoning him. He went to the dungeon and entered the dark cold room. He lit the torch and the room was bathed in orange light and he went into the hidden door that led to a tunnel deeper underground to a large chamber. It was built several hundred years ago by his ancestors. Only the son was given the secret of the chamber through the generations. Not even Yuffie knew of it.

He pushed the heavy door open and entered the well lit room. His eyes met with the crimson gaze of a young man with russet brown messy hair and handsome feature. He was dressed in red and black leathers of old ShinRa Solider uniform from a hundred years ago.

"When can I get out of here?" The man asked his voice sending icy chill down Godo's spine.

Godo placed the torch aside and turned to the young man. At first, when he had discovered him opening the casket to find a well preserved man, in state of deep slumber. The journal had stated that opening the casket would waken him and indeed the young man woke up, he found the man to be pleasant then learned of the deceiving appearance to the true interior of a cold ruthless monster which reminded him of Sephiroth years ago.

"Genesis, soon." Godo smirked as he sat in the chair facing the youth. "Once I find the second Protomateria, I'll have it set in you."

"Good…" Genesis smiled his cold handsome smile and stood up, pacing the room slightly. "You're losing the war."

"I know, it's just a front before you can go and do your job. Afterward, I don't care what you do."

Genesis turned to Godo and gave a critical eye, "You're dying."

"I've always been dying." Godo replied.

Genesis chuckled softly; it wasn't a pleasant sound to Godo's ears. "No, that's not what I mean. I sense the illness in you, it's eating you away inside. Despite from what you told me happening in the world, not even the Planet's cure helped."

"Hai. My own daughter is disowned, the world is going to the man that I consider an enemy, Wutai had fallen. There is nothing left for me."

"Except for revenge. Mm…" Genesis saw the hint of glint in Godo's eyes and knew he was right. He bowed before Godo and said, "And I'm glad to serve it out for you. This Protomateria will help me to extract my own as well; it works out for both of us."

Godo nodded and glanced to the table where he had left researches he took from the Xin'Tine mansion. He had been lucky to learn that there was a second protomateria on the planet, which happened by luck came with the Calamity of the Sky. It had remained intact when the planet was doomed to its fate and became nothing but a rock in space and crashed upon the Planet. He knew the original protomateria had been hidden somewhere and suspected the scientist that once worked with Grimoire hidden it. It had come to surprise that the sweet young Lucrecia Brown was Grimoire's nanny, then Vincent's lover, mothering Sephiroth. He was appalled to learn that the woman was immortal and suspected she was the one who once was the keeper of the Protomateria and hid it before her supposed death thirty some odd years ago.

"Several of my loyal warriors is searching for the Protomateria, we should have it shortly." Godo said as he stood up. "Once we retrieve it, the war will end and you may go and deal with Sephiroth. I'm just pleasing the people, giving them what they want, they want spectacles of trail and condemnation."

"Yes, yes, a front, nothing more. You intended to let him go, am I right?"

"Yes…"

Godo went back to the door and paused as Genesis's cold voice stopped him, "But you don't want to. He is in your hands and you just can't do anything."

He growled softly and slammed the door behind him as the crackling laugher followed him up to the surface.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

A month later, Sephiroth sat in his cell, running his hand over his short hair. The guards had cut his hair the first day he had arrived and stripped him of his garments and leaving him with a simple tatty trouser to wear. Wutai was hot at the time of the year and he was given a small square of a cell, the wall made of stone and clay and the watchmen were his company day and night, no words were exchanged except for call for meal time. Life in Wutaian prison was crude, lonely and brutal, but his Mako regeneration kept him strong and alive each day, refreshed to do the next day over and over.

For six hours a day, the prisoners were taken out and taken to the labor camp nearby, hidden from sight of Wutai City, to harvest the large farm, grind the mill and doing menial labor. The prisoners were few but enough to harvest and work the farm for the palace. He wondered if Yuffie knew of the system or not. He supposed, once Yuffie and Vincent had taken siege of the city, they would change everything, even though he supported the idea of putting prisoners to work, yet the treatment from the guards were very crude and unnecessary.

Not even once he had seen Godo since the first day and he had been counting the day, patiently waiting and keeping his hope and dream to the future, knowing the time he was going through was short part of his life. Each night, he would dream of the vision he had, the vision of the Ancient City in splendor and glory, of himself with Cloud and their daughter of the future. It kept him sane each passing day.

Very little he learned of the war going on, the watchmen were rather loud in talking with each other. He learned that Godo was losing his warriors to Vincent each day and he supposed Godo had the power of the city left by now.

He looked up to see a watchman he was familiar with standing on the top of the wall over his cell, speaking in Wutaian, telling the other guard to open the door to his cell. He stood up and turned to the door and saw the two guards standing there. They told him to come and follow. He ran his hand through his short hair again and grimaced slightly, it was greasy and matted with dirt. He followed the two guards and saw that he was easily bigger and he knew he could overpower them and escape but he wouldn't, he rather to keep his honor and show the world and Wutai especially that he is an honorable man, truthful and self-sacrificing. There was no need to go back and use the tactics of ShinRa, which wasn't his true face. He wanted to prove to the world that he could be a reliable man, not the man who would have been hell bent to destroy the planet.

The guards led him into the open area where he knew he would be given a chance to wash up. Usually, they would dump lukewarm water over him and shove him out without giving him chance to wash or dry up. This time, the guard wordlessly handed him a bowl and he took it, finding a yellow bar of soap and wash cloth in it. He looked to the other guard and saw he was holding a towel. Deciding it was not best to ruin his luck, he went into the area and stripped before the guards and started to wash himself clean with the rag and soap bar. Several minutes later, the guard tossed him a towel and took his filthy trouser away. He dried up and tied the towel around his waist and followed the two guards to the warden tower outside the prisoner compound.

There, he was given a simple clean trouser and shirt which he dressed in and he saw his reflection in the glass of the window, a humble man staring back at him, his eyes shadowed with the burden of hardship. A new guard came in and the two others left. "Come," He spoke and reached to tie Sephiroth's wrists together with chain. "You got visitor."

Sephiroth frowned and shrugged, following the new guard out and they went to the palace and entered through the back garden and then he was led to the dungeon and shown to a room. He entered and sat down, waiting as the guard left him, locking him in.

"He is through here. You can't stay long, speak quickly and leave. I cannot have Godo find out about this. The trail is this afternoon; he had been brought here for the trail." He heard the guard speak to someone and frowned, the guard was letting someone to see him before the trail he didn't know he was having today.

"Thank you; you will be rewarded greatly when the war is over." The female voice replied and Sephiroth perked up. It had been so long since he had heard her voice and wondered why she was here. He stood up and went to the door and gripped his hands around the bars. He saw a cloaked person come to his door and gasped softly as he saw her face under the hood.

"Cloud… what are you doing here?" He asked softly.

She looked up to meet his eyes and she gave a sharp intake, "Sephiroth! What did they do to you?" She reached up through the bars to touch his face and ran up to run her finger through his short hair.

"Nothing too bad. Cutting my hair off was the worse of it, not that mattered. Cloud, why are you here in Wutai?"

She sighed, "I've been here for a month, helping Vincent and Yuffie, settling the refugees in the southern city. Vincent was waiting for an opportunity for me to come and see you. There are few here loyal to Yuffie and they managed to slip me through. Sephiroth, they're having trail for you this afternoon. Vincent said something is up, Godo was planning to give you a trail and let you go then."

"He is right, something has been up. I have not seen Godo since he arrested me. Why would he take me and put me in prison for a month then give me a trial to let me go? I've been listening to the guards, not much is said but I know Vincent is winning the war."

Cloud nodded. "Yes, he is. He is ready to siege the city; he plans to do this if the trail goes wrong. I can't help but feel something is wrong with this whole thing. They think it's a ruse."

"If they think so, then it is." Sephiroth said softly and looked up to see the guard coming around the corner down the hall. "Go, Koibito. I'll be home soon." He leaned down and pressed his face to the bars and Cloud met halfway, kissing him. He watched as she adjusted her hood and was shown by the guard where to get out. The guard returned to him and let him out.

"Come, it's time for your trial." The guard said and took the chain and led him away.

Sephiroth soon found himself led into an amphitheater west to the Palace. The place was filled to the brim with onlookers. He noted they were finely dressed and realized they were people of the city and he was sure they were loyal to Godo. The guard took him to a stand in the center and latched his chain to the railing. He turned to face the center and saw Godo with his three councilmen appear before him. The amphitheater filled with cheering and Godo raised his hands to silence them.

"Welcome." He said simply and turned to Sephiroth. "This is Sephiroth," He gestured to the silver-haired. "This is his trail for the crimes he had committed years ago in the Wutai War."

Gork, the young councilman stepped forward, "Lord Godo will questions Sephiroth and decide his fate afterward." He then stepped back.

Godo went up to where Sephiroth stood and walked around him. "Sephiroth, you know where you are?"

Sephiroth watched as the lord came full circle around him and stood facing him. He gave a single nod, "Hai, in Wutai City, Wutai."

"Tell us, why are you here?"

"To stand trail for the crimes I am being accused for during Wutai War."

"Good." Godo said and took a scroll from a servant and read from it, "here it states you are being accused for mass murder of Wutai and attempted assassination of Lord Godo Kisaragi. Do you plead guilty to these crimes you have committed?"

To Godo's surprise, Sephiroth bowed his head and spoke clearly, "Hai, I've done these crimes you have stated. I plead guilty; however, I had acted upon order under Roscoe ShinRa, whom I've killed several years ago in my hate and desire to take him out of picture."

Godo remained silent as he turned to the murmuring audience before him. He knew they were talking among themselves, doubting if Sephiroth should have been given trial. He turned back to Sephiroth and studied the green eyes and saw nothing but truth. He could not connect the man he once knew, a ferocious warrior with the strength of a god to this man standing before him, a humbled man who looked every bit a mortal. It felt wrong to him and the guilt was starting to gnaw in him. This was the man that everyone looked to be the King, the powerful being on the planet, the one who hold the strength of a god, yet, before him, wasn't what he expected.

He realized, he had done wrong and it was too late. He sighed and swallowed his pride and continued his questioning and asked him, "Are you the King of Gaia?"

Sephiroth raised his head and looked to Godo, only separated by the railing of the stand and chains. Despite his less than grand appearance, his shorn hair, he still radiated a strong presence. "Is that your question or the others asked you to ask me?"

Godo knew Sephiroth had meant his people, the Wutaian, the people who hated ShinRa. He was starting to have doubts ever since he learned Yuffie's connection to this man. "Am I a Cetra or a Valkyrie? My people demand justice to the man who killed thousands. But I don't see him anywhere. What is it you have done?"

Sephiroth leaned forward, gripping the railing, bringing his face forward to Godo. He inwardly smirked seeing he had caused the older Lord flinch slightly. "My kingdom is here, the entire planet. My subjects are all the people and creatures on the planet, Valkyrie, humans, talking wolves… you name it. But it is up to them to accept me as their king. I was born for this, but I cannot take the crown unless they all accept me. So, what is it that _I_ have done to the people? Was it _I_ who slaughtered thousands of your people? That is up to you, as their Lord, to decide." He pushed away from the railing and stood his face somber.

Godo stared at the taller man, seeing in the green eyes, an honest man, a man who was willing to die for the crime of another. He saw the power of Madoshi in the eyes, a regal man who would bring everyone peace. He saw the future of a King with kind heart and tough rule. He knew it was in his hand to allow destiny happen or destroy it. It was a big burden on his shoulder. His head dropped. "You have asked forgiveness from the world, you have asked forgiveness from my country. They suffered under ShinRa, yet they felt pain as you massacred thousands in mere moment. You were frightening, you were a god. It is hard to prove that it wasn't your intention but ShinRa's. There were witnesses who had seen you, even I. Yet, here you are before me, a dream comes true after all those years and I cannot do this." He looked up to meet his gaze, "I believe now, that you are every bit a victim as I was to the ShinRa. You have avenged us the moment you killed Roscoe ShinRa and saved the world several times over."

Sephiroth sighed, "I cannot bring back your people. But I can bring peace and change the world into a better place. It is a big burden on my shoulders and I had a long time to come to term with it. Anyone would dream to be a king, have all the glory and riches, but I do not, I wanted a simpler dream."

"Simpler dream?"

"Yes, before everything happened in Nibelheim, I was to propose to Cloud strife, the woman I love, turn in for retirement, buy a house somewhere, have children, come home from a simple labor job, grow old and spend the rest of my day with Cloud to the day we die. But no, fate had different for us planned, we are more than that, we are to be the rulers together, to bring this planet as it should be, under peace and prosperity, with the powers of the gods. There are more out there and it is our job to protect the mortals of this planet. We are immortal, we cannot die unless Gaia see fit. No matter how much you and your warriors beat me, you cannot kill me. But it is your choice to accept me as your King or not, that's where you can kill me, but with that, you kill the planet."

Godo nodded, "Yes. You say it is my choice. But as a Lord of Wutai, I cannot make choices unless it is given by my people. I must speak to them and see what they want. I do not know if they are willing to forgive. Personally, I had forgiven you a long time ago, when I saw a young boy turning into a monster. The boy inside the monster was you, a helpless boy bound by the evil, unable to break free. I am glad Cloud had freed you, taken the monstrosity away from and given you a chance to live. "

Sephiroth nodded, "There is no resentment between us now. I will wait the decision."

Godo bowed and left, to the courtyard where he would speak with many of the noblemen of the Wutai. He was deathly afraid for Sephiroth, for his fate, for he had done a terrible mistake and he just had realized it now. He knew if they deny him the crown, the whole planet will fall. Wutai had highly respected Madoshi and Megamiki and he had seen the two in Sephiroth and Cloud, reborn. Yet, his people had not noticed that yet and his deed he had done would surely alter the fate of the planet.

Sephiroth looked to the crowd in the amphitheater and saw few cloaked people. He watched them closely and the one in dark blue's hood rose slightly and he saw the blue eyes. He smiled softly and turned back to the front as Godo came through the door from the courtyard that was adjacent to the amphitheater. Godo came in, looking tired and defeated. He stood before everyone, raising his hand to silence the murmuring and whisperings.

"The decision had been made." He announced and turned to Sephiroth, yet he still spoke with loud voice, "I know Lord Xin'Tine is present along with Lady Sorano and those who are loyal to the South." He nodded to the guard, "Sephiroth, you are free to go." The guard released Sephiroth from the chain and stepped back, smiling at him.

Cloud came flying down from the stand and latched onto Sephiroth, crying and laughing. Sephiroth hugged her and turned to Godo. "So, that is it?" Godo watched the two, holding each other as if they were lifeline for one another. He recalled the moment he had years ago with Yuffie's mother and wished for that moment again. The harboring guilt ate a larger hole in him, seeing the couple before him.

"No." The audience became deathly silence. "Lord Vincent Xin'Tine, please come down here." He said and sure enough, the figure in deep red cloak made his way to the center and dropped the hood, revealing himself. Godo turned to Vincent and handed him a scroll, "I surrender all of Wutai to you." He bowed and then left.

Vincent frowned as he looked to the scroll in his hand. It was a letter of agreement to surrender the rule of Wutai to him. Gork came up to him and whispered softly, "My lord, forgive Godo, he has not been right in mind for a long time."

"Hai. Yet, this cannot be that simple." Vincent said as he looked to his son, holding Cloud. "I wish to see Godo and speak to him."

"I don't think it is possible. Godo wish to not speak to anyone after the trail. Not even to the councils." Gork said and bowed, turning to join the others. The audience started to disperse away, leaving the few in the center.

Yuffie came up to Vincent and threw down her hood, "I know how to get to him. Come, I think father is up to something right now, it is not like him to leave the trial right away."

Sephiroth nodded, "Go, I'm going with Cloud to Sierra and return to the City."

"I shall see you soon, son. It's good to see you're not too badly treated." Vincent said and watched as Cloud lead Sephiroth away with several knights following closely. He frowned, it was not right to see his son without his long silver hair and sighed, and glad to see that was the worse damage that had been done to him.

Yuffie led Vincent through the city to the palace and took him around the garden and through the hidden door that led right into the palace. Vincent noticed that the palace was empty save for several servants. They didn't notice them or even bothered as they passed by. Finally they reached a room and entered. Yuffie showed him to a hidden door and they slipped in, going down the narrow hallway that was between the walls and emerged right into Godo's personal chamber.

"I should've known you would make your way here, Yufi." Godo said from the bed. They found him sitting there, looking weary and tired.

"Father, what are you up to?" Yuffie asked her voice harsh and admonishing.

Vincent laid his hand on Yuffie's shoulder and said softly, "Yuffie, let me talk to him."

"Oh, all right." She said and went through the main door, leaving the two men alone.

"I'm dying." Godo said bluntly as he lay down on the bed. "This is why I surrendered so easily. Having Sephiroth here took a heavy toll on me, my time is near and I can feel it."

Vincent frowned as he studied the older man before him, lying in the bed, spent. He noticed that Godo's appearance wasn't healthy and thin on the side. "You are ill. How long?"

"Way too long. I have been ill since Yuffie was a young girl. The doctors could not find a cure. The illness is eating away inside me and my body is failing, one by one, it had been rather very painful and the last few months were the worse."

"Why arrest Sephiroth and put him on trial?" Vincent asked.

"A last measure that I wish I had not taken." Godo said and coughed, blood spilled from his mouth and he groaned, wiping them away. "Ah, it's my lungs that going." He said roughly and his voice was filled with pain. Vincent stared at the man, wondering how he had maintained a strong appearance before the people. As if reading his mind, Godo answered, "Pain medicine, it only gives me enough time to keep my appearance before my people. It had been wearing thin lately and I couldn't hold on much longer as I used to anymore."

"What last measure did you do?" Vincent asked and saw the guilt creased a deeper frown and making him look several decades older. He realized Godo had done something terrible. "You found the Protomateria." He said simply as it clicked in his mind, knowing Godo had learned of Omega Weapons.

"Hai. My warriors were out looking for it while I had Sephiroth in my jail. I knew Wutai will eventually turn to you and it gave me time. The trial was a ruse, giving enough time for him to leave the city…" Godo coughed again and started to wheeze. To Vincent's acute hearing, he knew Godo's lungs were collapsing.

He went to the bed and laid a hand upon Godo's chest, "Who is leaving the city? Who did you put the Protomateria in?"

Godo coughed and wheezed violently and more blood was spilling from his mouth, he couldn't speak as he kept wheezing. Yuffie came into the room, running to his side, "Father! What's happening?"

Vincent looked to her and shook his head, "He has been ill and he's dying. I'm trying to find out who he put the Protomateria in. He just kept coughing." They looked to Godo as he made a loud cough and a long wheeze. He gripped Yuffie's hand and looked to her.

Yuffie gasped as she watched her father go still and his eyes turn glassy. She stifled a sob as she wrenched her hand out of her father's hold. "No… oh father, you're such an idiot." She turned away and cried softly.

Vincent reached over and drew Godo's eyes close. He stood up and pulled the blanket over his head and reached for Yuffie and led her out of the room.

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The blood red eyes looked to the distance where Wutai City laid. He could see the warriors from the south entering the city, taking siege, taking those who were loyal to Godo as prisoners. He smirked and brushed his brown hair out of his face as the wind whipped around him. He turned his head to north, where his destination lies, "I'm coming… First, I'll deal with you… then it's the Planet that's gonna suffer!" He growled the last part out, clenching his hands. He knew Godo had just died and he chuckled, he was free, however there was one who stood in his way of absolute freedom, Sephiroth.

_**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**_

_**Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?**_


	56. SS:5: End of Sorrow

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S .**

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M .**

Chapter Five: End of Sorrow

Cloud gave Scarlet a grateful smile as the woman opened the bay door to the airship Sierra as she helped Sephiroth onto the ship. "Tell Cid to drive straightway to the City, we'd just like to go home."

"Sure thing, the quarters are all set up for you guys, just relax and lay back and enjoy the ride." Scarlet chuckled slightly as she saw Cloud looking slight green and knew of her motion sickness, "Ah, don't worry, you wouldn't know you're moving at all." She watched as Cloud lead a silent stoic Sephiroth down the hall to the quarters and shivered, hitting the button to close the bay door. She turned and went to the bridge where she would find Cid. She couldn't help but wonder if the experience in Wutai was enough to knock Sephiroth back to his old former self she once knew he had before meeting Cloud all those years ago. She didn't like the man then and seeing how much he had changed in the past few years was enough to give her hope of having another chance with Cid and she was glad she did.

She stepped onto the bridge and greeted Cid with a soft smile, seeing the rough man leaning against the steering wheel. She shook her head, recalling how the man had argued that he wanted an old fashioned ship wheel to steer the top of the line airship. She had to admit he looked at home where he stood. "To the City, make it fast and smooth."

"Aye woman, to the City we go." Cid said as he started the airship and soon, they were in the sky and cruising, even at the speed that would bring them to the City sooner. She went to his side and stood beside him, silently watching the blue sky out of the bay window.

Cid looked to her and a small gruff smile grew on his lip and he reached, flicking on the autopilot on and turned to her, "Hey, you all right?"

"Yeah," She said turning to him and he took her hands into his, holding them. "Just seeing Sephiroth really got me thinking. How much he had changed and all that, now seeing him again, he looked like he was years ago, cold and emotionless, yet Cloud was with him, unafraid of him."

"Old times are gone." Cid said, his voice rough and Scarlet shivered, liking how his voice had changed over the years and regretted not being with him all the years, regretting watching their son grow into a fine young boy, watching Cid mature from a wild youth she once knew into a mature man with a heart hidden under the rough exterior. He reached up and tucked her straying pale blond hair back from her face, "It is a new future, and everyone around us we know is having their second chances. Believe it, here we stand together, after many years, we too have a second chance." He watched as a tear fell down her cheek and reached to wipe it away.

"Oh Cid, I believe, truly so. It's amazing to have a second chance, a new hope, a new future." She leaned forward and rested her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her.

Cloud laid Sephiroth down on the bed and sat next to him, he was exhausted and tired. She reached out and ran her fingers through his short hair, grimacing at how short it was. She was disappointed to not find the familiar feeling of the long strands. He turned his face to her and reached to grasp her wrist, "Koibito, it will grow back again, it's just hair." He simply said.

She gasped softly to meet his emerald eyes and found the familiar comfort and gave a small nod, "I know, it's so different. I like your hair long and now it's hard for me to get used to it."

Sephiroth chuckled as he sat up on the bed and took her face in his hands, "I met you years ago, you had shorter hair and looked like a little boy in the military, now your hair is long and you're a beautiful woman who I will marry. A lot had changed and some didn't. One thing for sure, my love for you had not changed. I am coming home and this week, I am just going to spend time with you and Odin before we can get back to the matters." He drew her closer and kissed her nose and then moved down to caress his lips on her lips then rested her against him, lying back down, bringing her to lie beside him. "Now, just enjoy what we have now and put Wutai behind us for now, it is a small thing in the past, we have our whole future ahead of us and I can't wait."

She nodded and closed her eyes as she listened to his breathing even out and fell asleep along with him, not noticing she was even in the sky, moving at all. All she cared that she was back in his arms again and all the sadness and worrisome had faded away, being left behind in the clouds forgotten.

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Cloud watched Sephiroth sitting with Odin, reading a book in the garden they had found behind the palace. It had been several days since Sephiroth had returned to the City and he went on about as everything was normal, saying what happened in Wutai was not worth to be bothered over, for it was over and Wutai is in the hands of Vincent and Yuffie. He did keep his promise, spending his time with her and Odin in the past few days, doing things together, enjoying their times. Cloud had loved going out in the forest, riding their motorcycles the day before and having lunch by the lake at the temple. Even he took Odin with him to Icicle Inn and enjoyed their day snowboarding together. She had never thought Sephiroth knew how to snowboard and saw a new side to him.

She leaned against the door frame, watching the two reading together from a book that they had found in the large library that the palace had. She listened quietly as Sephiroth's deep voice went over the words, telling him tales from the book. It was the tale about the thunder God of ancient time, how he saved the land from evil and fell, to be bounded for eternity by angering the goddess planet. She found the story to be familiar and realized it was about Odin himself.

She perked as she heard Odin spoke, "Father, I remember my past." He said simply, his young voice filled the air like clear cut.

Sephiroth rested the book to his lap and looked at the young brown eyed boy. "You remember your past, before you chose to be mortal?"

"Yes, I once was a god, a thunder god…" Odin said as he gestured to the book. "I don't remember all the details, but I knew who I was before and I do remember some when I was a summons." He said and looked up to the older man he had come to call Father. "I like being here now with you and mother."

Sephiroth smiled at the boy and ruffled his brown hair. "I'm glad. Why do you want us to be your parents?" He asked curious to why Odin had asked to stay with them after the final battle. It was few days after then that he started to call him and Cloud Father and Mother.

"I don't know. I feel comfortable with you and Mother." Sephiroth nodded at the answer, still astounded how the boy, despite his five years of age appearance still speaks with maturity.

"I was a god, then a summons, and now, what will I become?" Odin asked as he took the book from Sephiroth, flipping through the page to get to the page with the illustration of the thunder god on the mighty eight legged horse, Selipinr.

"Everyone has second chances in life." Sephiroth begin as he looked up to the sky, seeing the beautiful white branches hanging high above him in web, sprouting crystal green leaves and soft red and pink blossoms. He thought to himself having second chance in life and said, "With second chance, we are to make the best of it. Odin, once you were a Valkyrie son, named a god by the mortals who once roamed the planet and now, once again, you are the same, you have the same ability, the same blood of the Valkyrie, but a different life. This time around, you are to make the best of it, enjoy your life and grow up to be the man you believe you should be."

"Is that what you are doing, Father?" Odin asked as he closed the book and placed it beside him, turning around to straddle the bench they were sitting on to face the silver haired man. "They told me you were a General of the ShinRa before."

"Yes, I was. I didn't like the life I had but I couldn't change it until I met Cloud and she showed me that I had much more to my life and I wanted that. I tried to get out but the Calamity of the Sky had a different idea."

"Yeah, I know about that. Zack told me everything."

Sephiroth looked to Odin with a raised eyebrow, "Oh really?" He chuckled. "I hope he didn't give too much detail."

Odin shook his head, his wild brown hair swaying as he laughed, "Nah. He's a good storyteller."

"True. He could exaggerate and made me look like a god, didn't he?"

"Yeah he did! I told him he was being silly."

"Ah. Yeah, second chances. I believe everyone around us is having second chances, including Gaia." He stood up and ruffled Odin's hair and smiled at him, "I call you my son, but you will be much more than that to me. I am going to name you regent prince, for you will stand in my place if anything happens to me or when I am away from the City at the coronation."

Odin stood up on the bench, trying to meet Sephiroth's tall height and grinned, his chest puffed out as he stood proudly, "I will make you proud of me!"

Sephiroth laughed as he grabbed the boy and twirled him around in the air, making him squeal in laugher, "Of course, you will." He set the boy down and watched him run to Cloud who were standing in the doorway.

Suddenly, a vision came to him, he watched as Odin became a young handsome man, running to a woman who looked like Cloud but with long silver hair and blue eyes, smiling at him. Odin grabbed the woman and twirled her around once. He noticed the details that Odin had on was armors, appearing as if he had returned home from war and the woman leaned up to him, kissing him. The vision faded and he saw Cloud holding Odin up, hugging him and poking his nose. He shook his head, knowing what he saw and felt his heart clenches, he had seen a bit of the future.

He went up to Cloud and Odin and smiled at the two and went inside, following after them.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Yuffie stood, dressed in dark kimono, the veil she would wear over her face was around her shoulders as she watched the servants busily prepare the palace for the funeral to happen in few hours. She had decided to give her father a funeral, a final goodwill for her father before she starts taking over Wutai. The Wutaian traditional funeral preparation took a week and it had been a week and they were ready to start. Many lords and important people came from all over the world, including those from the City came too. She was glad Sephiroth held no grudge against her father and allowed the past to be forgotten.

Vincent came up to her, also dressed in dark formal robe. He stood facing her, taking her hands in his. They had been married for little over a month and yet they had no time in being a husband and wife. "Soon, it will be all over. We can start tomorrow, together for Wutai."

She gave a small smile and nodded. "Hai, I can't wait. It's time to start anew, to take our step in the future together. I'm glad it is you that I married, not anyone else. Father left a scroll in his office and there were list of names of my suitors. They're unbelievable." She laughed a little bit.

"I'm glad it's you too… I never thought we'd end up together like this, married to boot." He smirked as he ran his claw on her face, watching as her steel earth eyes held upmost trust and adoring, never flinching once. "I regret that our wedding day has to be short and declaring war right afterward, you deserve a grand one."

Yuffie shook her head, her long earthen hair swayed around her shoulder, "Do not regret. I could have worse, with a beautiful wedding; I might not marry you but someone else, someone who I do not come to love. I have come to love you over the time we were together with the Avalanche and to learn that you are Xin'Tine heir and where our fate meets, I accepted that you were to be my husband and I am glad." She smiled at him and he nodded.

"Good." Vincent said and looked up to see a servant approaching them and bowing, "What is it?" He asked.

The servant stood up again, "It's time, and everyone is here."

"Thank you." Vincent bowed his head and turned to Yuffie, "Shall we?"

"We shall." Yuffie said as she pulled the black veil and covered her face, to show sign that she mourns for her father. Vincent knew she wasn't mourning for her father but rather, mourning for what had to happen and what had come to be, for their relationship was almost nonexistent and it was too late. He took her arm and they walked out of the hall into the grand outdoor court, facing everyone as Lord Godo lay before them on the pillar, ready to be burned.

The funeral was simple and somber. Vincent said few words and Yuffie did too and they both set the fire to the pillar, burning Godo's body, sending him to heaven. They watched as his body burned and the green tendrils rose from the fire, returning to the planet, uniting once again.

"How fitting, from ashes to ashes, dirt to dirt, our lives, our very being came from the planet and when we die, we return to the planet." Tifa said softly as she watched the fire lick the darkening sky as the sun went down.

Barret pursed his lips in deep thought, "True. Years ago, we would not know the meaning, but we all learn." He said.

Tifa gave a soft chuckle, "Yes, the past few years were an eye-opening. We learned a lot, about the planet and where we origins from, I suppose, for a good reason."

"Yea, second chance to make things right." Barret replied gruffly and tugged Tifa closer to him, holding her close as she shivered in the cooling evening.

She glanced over to where the important people sat; she found Cloud and Sephiroth sitting together, also wearing dark formal robes and gown. Cloud had her hair tied up in simple bun. Sephiroth appeared very stoic and somber; he had not said much since he came to Wutai for the funeral, keeping most to himself. She couldn't get over how different he looked, how much he truly had grown since she came to know him all the years ago as the General.

Ever since Sephiroth were rescued and revived by Gaia, she had come to know the man and liked him, however the last one month had changed him drastically, not only in appearance with the shorter hair, which had been trimmed neatly, and also in spirit. She had sensed that his spirit had aged greatly and knew why, the burden of the entire planet had finally settled on him and he accepted it. She was impressed that he had accepted with such grace and knew she could trust her life in his hands.

She watched as Sephiroth turn his head to glance at Cloud and he took her hand, holding it. She smiled, knowing Cloud had found her solace, a place to belong and it was in and with Sephiroth. She looked up to Barret and rested her head on his shoulder as he held her. She knew she also had found the same thing in the most unlikely source and thought of what could come. Barret was right, a second chance at life after everything had happened so far.

Yuffie watched the orange flame burn the pillar, burning her father's body. Her mind was taken away into the past as she remembered her childhood, how her father had treated her. He had never paid attention to her, always busy and focused on Wutai, pushing her into the background.

She remembered the day she got trapped under the rock, losing her leg. Her father never came to her, it was the councils who came and found her and in the end, she lost her leg. She remembered so clearly that with her leg, she also lost her respect for her father. She had sworn to fend for herself, learning the art of the ninja and by the day she turned fifteen, she ran away from home to live on her own.

It wasn't until she was nearly sixteen, she had returned home and her father had brought her to his office and asked her what she wants the most.

"Yuffie, what is it you want the most, I will give it to you." Godo said as he stood before the young teenager.

Yuffie stared at him with scornful look, "I want nothing from you!"

Godo raised his head as he sneered at her, "Surely, there must be something you want, every little princess does."

"I'm no princess. You ignored me for years; you can't stand the pain that I look too much like mother!" She gasped as he slapped her face as she said that.

"How true you are, but you are to never disrespect your parents."

She spat as she glared at him, "If you really want to know, I want Wutai in full glory as it once was. It is not, it's terrible as it is now even under your rule."

Godo's face became blank, "Very well. If it is what you want, then you must go and return the stolen Materias. It was what gave Wutai glory until ShinRa stole it."

"Fine." Yuffie said and turned away and walked away.

She had thought she would prove to her father by taking as much Materias she could find and show him that she was worthy of his attention. However, she met Avalanche a month later in the jungle and little she knew, her life had changed and she was woven into their destiny.

She felt a hand clasping her shoulder and looked to find Vincent looking at her with concerns in his eyes. She shook her head and saw that the fire had died away and realized she had been lost in her own memories for a long time. She turned and walked with Vincent. She had a long day tomorrow and knew she need to rest and prepare.

"What is it?" Vincent asked as he followed her into the palace.

She shrugged her shoulders as she slipped the veil off her head, "Just remembering. Glory of Wutai… my father once said that the Materias held Wutai's glory but I've come to learn it wasn't that. It was the people; it was who ruled Wutai that gave the glory. In the end, he had been proven wrong."

"Hai. Come, let's sleep." Vincent said as he steered her toward the bed and helped to untie her obi.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The next day found several people in the court room of the Wutaian palace. Yuffie and Vincent had low table brought in the room for the meeting that they were holding. They both sat at the head of the table while everyone else sat around them. Staniv, Chekhov and Gork sat near them as Sephiroth and Cloud sat along with Zack, Aeris and Reeve at the other end of the table. There were also tea set and sake bottles on the table along with array of papers and books too.

Vincent looked to his father and then to Staniv, the elder man who looked serious, "So, what is it you wish to speak to us about?" He asked.

Staniv placed his hand on the table and said, "We understand that it is you and Yufi who will rule Wutai next and your intention. There are still few of us still loyal to Godo. We just want to be left alone in peace and allow us live the rest of our days."

"That is understood, we can't afford to have those who are loyal to Godo in the palace or the city that matters." Vincent said simply, "We are turning Wutai over to Sephiroth and Cloud soon."

"We know that, we understand that we are powerless and have no where to go, most of those who are loyal to him are from the old days, comrades from the war." Staniv explained and looked to Sephiroth and his face held slight distain, "We do not wish for you to take crown, but that can't be helped. In end, we call surrender. Leave us alone, and we will leave you alone. We are but a mere mortal while you all sit before us, immortal. What are we to do? Nothing."

Sephiroth closed his eyes and sighed, "Agreed."

Vincent frowned, "Very well. We will give you sanctuary here in the city, but do not expect the others to be kindly toward you, everyone wishes for the new future to begin. However, we are left to clean up Godo's mess and we would like for you to come forward and bring everything out in the open, no secrets."

Chekhov pushed forward the papers he had with him, "Here is all that Godo was working on. I only can say it's too late."

Yuffie took the papers and looked it over. "Hm, we all suspected and already knew these things. Only it confirms our belief what Godo was planning. Sephiroth," She looked up to him, "I'm afraid, we need to be prepared for Genesis and Omega soon. They have been released and they're out there somewhere."

"So, it's true that Genesis have the second protomateria." Cloud said as she was handed the paper from Yuffie and glanced at it.

"Yes." Gork said as he leaned his head on his fist. "In the past week, Vincent had the servants search the palace top to bottom for anything and found a hidden dungeon. It was recently used and we believe that it was where Godo kept Genesis hidden. We found the papers and tomes from Grimoire's house there. There is nothing else we do not know of. The protomateria had been recently discovered by several warriors that was loyal to Godo near the northern land, and brought back recently. We believe Godo found a way to implant protomateria in Genesis."

"It's rather simple, all you have to allow it touch the open wound, even the smallest one on the body of a pure Cetera or Valkyrie to receive the power of the protomateria. It is up to the person to control it. I for myself had tried to connect the Omega weapon but failed to do so. It was too late." Vincent explained. "This is why each planet in the galaxy has only one Omega weapon and one protomateria, for the person who has the protomateria hold the complete control of the Omega, once it is connected, no other protomateria can control the Omega."

"So, if you have known before and connected, then Genesis wouldn't have control of Omega?" Yuffie asked.

"Hai. Let's get to the point here." Vincent replied. He turned to Staniv and Chekov, "Those who are loyal to Godo here in the palace must leave, I regret, you both are off the council."

Staniv and Chekov stood up and bowed. Staniv spoke, "We accept and understood. We are old and tired, we wanted to retire and that is what we will do. I promise you, you will have no trouble from us anymore." He bowed once again and they both left the room together.

Yuffie rolled her eyes and sighed, "At least that was without a fight." She said and smiled at Cloud who chuckled slightly at her. "So, what should we do?" She asked.

Gork sat up straight and pulled a scroll and unrolled it, "Well, we still need to do one more ceremony, to name you two the next Lord and Lady of Wutai. I suppose that will have to be changed since the system of Gaea is going to be put in motion, is that right?" He asked as he turned to Sephiroth.

Reeve spoke, "Yes, it has been set and soon every ruling and governing houses in the world will receive a binder of the system, the law and everything. Not much will be required to be changed, except for the biding to one ruler together." He pulled out a binder and placed it on the table, "All we ask is to incorporate into your system. Vincent and Yuffie will be named Lord and Lady in our system and placed among the other lords under the Gaea system. You can continue with your traditional ceremony in naming them for Wutai and we will need to gather and publicly announce that each five lords of the five countries in the world are willing to hand the world over to Sephiroth, giving him the way to become the new King."

"I see." Gork said as he took the binder and flipped through it. "The coronation, you've set a date for it?"

"Yes, a week after the wedding, which will be in less than two months." Sephiroth said softly and he noticed Cloud's head snap up to meet his eyes and he saw surprise in her eyes and understood that she had not realized the time had passed so quickly. He gave a smirk and she rolled her eyes, knowing the preparation for the wedding had not been completed; rather it was not nearly half done.

"I see, I suppose we will have to do this before the Coronation, I will have it prepared within less a month time and give you guys room for your plans. We don't want to have many events too close to each other, your wedding and Coronation will be just about enough for one month." Gork said as he scribbled a note into his notebook he had with him. He looked to Vincent and saw the other man nod an approval and turned to Sephiroth and got the same approval. He sighed; giving the two men he had reserved high honors for a smile.

Vincent rose from his seat and bowed to everyone, "That will be all. Thank you." He said and turned to Yuffie, taking her hand as he helped her up from her seat. "Please, join us for dinner before you depart to the City tonight." He said as he gestured to the door.

Sephiroth stood up, mimicking his father's action, helping Cloud up and gave a single nod. "Thank you, we appreciate it."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Aeris glanced around as she patted Jules' back, making the baby burp. The back room was already crowed as it is with almost half of the people for the ceremony. She rolled her eyes and sighed in frustration, she was looking for Zack and he was no where to be seen.

"Who are you looking for?" Shiva asked as she waddled over to Aeris. She was already nearing her birthing time with her first child, looking beautiful and graceful despite the swelling belly of hers.

"Zack! He just disappeared off. I need him to take the baby to the room so he'd take a nap during the ceremony but he just went off." Aeris said, her voice hinted with frustration.

Shiva shook her head and took the drowsy baby from Aeris, "Go on, I'll take him to the room, I do need to relax for a bit… how can women handle this pregnancy is beyond me." She said as she patted the baby to her shoulder and waddled off.

Aeris laughed and turned to seek out someone else and found her, "Cloud! Isn't everyone supposed to be out there in the ceremony hall? Why in the world is everyone here?"

Cloud turned to Aeris and shrugged, looking pretty in simple pale blue gown that flowed around her figure like water. "Honestly, some idiot announced that there were some food back here and they came in."

They heard voices over near the end of the room and turned their head to find Sephiroth standing on the chair. "Everyone, please return to the Ceremony Hall and wait there. We are to begin soon." Soon everyone started to filter out the small back room into the Ceremony Hall and the women found Sephiroth holding Zack by the ear.

"Ow, ow, watch the appendage!" Zack winced as Sephiroth shoved him over to Aeris.

"It would be good to put him on a leash now; he somehow spread a rumor that there were foods back here. We had enough hungry people in the Hall." Sephiroth said as he met with Cloud and Aeris.

"Zack!" Aeris admonished and turned to Sephiroth, "I'm so sorry."

"Don't worry about it. That's just who he is." He chuckled as he rested his head on Cloud's head, wrapping his arms around her waist as he relaxed. "We will have banquet served after the ceremony. Where are Vincent and Yuffie?"

Aeris shrugged. "Ifrit went to retrieve them from their room few minutes ago."

Nanaki came in silently and propped himself down next to Cloud and everyone turned to see him. He gave a head nod and spoke, "Grandfather Burgenhagen wishes to return something to you, Cloud."

Burgenhagen came in and everyone's looked lower to see the little old man holding a large tome in his hands. He stopped before Cloud and handed the book back to her. "I suppose I do not need to hold onto it any longer. It was a very interesting reading and studying." He said as Cloud took the tome from him.

"Thank you for holding onto it for us." Cloud said as she flipped the book open to see few new writing in it. It was the tale of her adventure and smiled wistfully, recalling the innocent days before she even started out on her fated adventure. "I see you wrote in it."

"Ah, yes, it was a tradition for one to write in the tome of the Valkyrie. You two were the last of the true one before the Meteor incident. Everything foretold in the tome had come true, you could see the reference on the side," He gestured to the book and Cloud took a closer look and saw that the paragraphs had tiny note on the side of the page with the reference to what page of prophecy were found in the tome, proving that it had come true. "There are very few prophecies left yet to come. It foretold of the birth of a child and her destiny."

Sephiroth gave a small smile, "I suppose, our future daughter?"

Burgenhagen's head rose slightly higher to meet Sephiroth's green eyes and he laughed, "I suppose, the prophecy was very vague; I had to wait and see until it happen to understand it. But, on a good note, I am pretty sure it is your daughter, for it said she was of the true Valkyrie blood."

Cloud's eyes sparkled in hope as she looked to Sephiroth and saw he nodded his head in assurance and heard him whisper in her ear, "Fear not, we will have a child of our own. I've seen it with my own eyes, the tome says so. It's only matter of time."

She nodded against him and turned to everyone else as Vincent and Yuffie came into the room, dressed in simple formal robes and gown of Wutaian fashion. Sephiroth let her go and greeted his father, "I see you are ready, are you?"

Vincent gave a simple nod, "Ready as we can be. Is the ceremony prepared?"

Zack shrugged, "Everyone's here, all things are set; Burgenhagen is here to conduct the ceremony. The foods are cooked and ready to eat. I think we are ready."

Yuffie gave a long sigh, "Good. Let's get this over and we can get on to your wedding, Cloud. I can't wait to see what it will look like, I hear from Shiva and Aeris that it's gonna be beautiful."

Cloud rolled her eyes, "I have no idea." She muttered and looked over to Aeris who were giggling. "They had excluded me from the committee for a while and I have no idea what they are planning, for all I can think of the worse."

Yuffie laughed and launched onto Cloud's arm, leading her toward the door as everyone followed behind. "Ah, I wouldn't worry. Just kick back and enjoy! After all, you did so much for us, you and Sephiroth." She glanced over to the silver-haired man and grinned.

Yuffie let go of Cloud and stepped aside to allow everyone through and followed in last with Vincent. The room was full of the lords and government staff from all over the world, she could see the banquet setting up behind them and the air was filled with wonderful smell of the delicious food. She smiled as she and Vincent went to the head table and stood there with the four other system lords. Couple of scroll was set out in front of them with an elegant pen. She recognized the scroll next to it, from when Sephiroth was arrested the last time around, it had all the signatures from everyone, now the new one were for the five system lords from all five countries in the world, it was an agreement to hand over and delegate the responsibility of the countries to Sephiroth and Cloud, agreeing to accept them as their new King and Queen.

She looked over to see another scroll, the one from Wutai, it was a simple agreement parchment to unify the North and South Wutai and accept their new leaders. The ceremony was combined, as she and Vincent agreed to make things progress faster.

Burgenhagen hopped up to them and stepped on a box that was placed for him to increase his short height and he spoke, "We are here gathered to introduce the new Lord and Lady of Wutai." The room gave a respectful applaud and silenced as Burgenhagen continued as he turned to Yuffie and Vincent, "Lord Vin'Tine of the Southern Wutai and Lady Kisaragi of the Northern Wutai, you have come together in marriage, uniting the two divided countries into one, do you agree?"

They both bowed their heads and said, "Hai, we did."

"Good, do the people of Wutai accept this unity and do they expect to prosper under your rulership?" The old man asked again.

Vincent looked up and said, "Hai, the Southern Wutai is joyful in rejoining with the North and they harbor no grudge."

Yuffie spoke up, "The Northern Wutai welcomes the South with open arms and is extending out their hands to help to rebuild into whole Wutai."

"Wonderful, now to fully bind the agreement and unity before the witnesses of the world, sign the scroll and allow the past be placed where they belong, in the past and bring our attention to the future." Burgenhagen gestured to the scroll before them. Vincent took the pen and signed his formal name and handed it over to Yuffie who followed suit. Then the little grandfatherly man took the scroll and rolled it up, turning to the audience, "It is done. Wutai is one once again and forever." The thunderous applaud rose in the room and he sealed the scroll with a red ribbon, tying it and handing it to Yuffie who held it with Vincent, both smiling. The cameras went off, snapping and lighting the room with flashes.

Sephiroth rose, clapping his hand as he went up to the table with Cloud in tow. "Wonderful, I am happy for you two and the entire people of Wutai. I believe the glory is already in full bloom." He said as he bowed to the two and they returned the gesture.

Burgenhagen held his tiny arms up and everyone silenced once again, "Now, that is put aside, we have one last thing to do before we can proceed with our true future." He turned to the five lords standing before them at the table. "Of the five countries in the world, we come here together in peace and unity, to agree to come together under one rule, one system. Here we have the final scroll to seal the deal and open the doors to the future together. Sign the paper for your country, in demonstration that you agree to aid the King and Queen in their burden for everyone."

Rufus stepped up to the scroll first, he wore a formal ivory and gold ceremony suit fashioned in robe, his hair had grown slightly longer and was tied back in tiny dragon tail. He took the pen and said, "Lord Rufus ShinRa of the Midgar Country agree to join in the unity under one rule." He signed his name and handed the pen over to Vincent, still holding the pen as the tall sniper took it. "Lord Xin'Tine, after over a hundred year, this is the first time in the history that the ShinRa and Wutai come together in peace and stand side by side, as one."

Vincent gave a small smile, "Hai, true. The past is forgotten and the Midgar is forgiven. I, Lord Xin'Tine of Wutai accept graciously to be under one rule." He took the pen and signed his name next to Rufus'. He turned and handed the pen over to Cid, who also wore a deep green and blue formal suit robe. "Baron Highwind, in unity, Wutai extends its hand in friendship."

Cid nodded his head as he took the pen and with his free hand he gripped Vincent's hand and said, "Nibel accept the friendship and brotherhood from Wutai." He turned to the audience, "I, Baron Highwind of Nibel Country accept to one rule." He signed his name next to Vincent's. The towns in the country of Nibel had nominated and voted for him to become their leader of the country, after seeing how much he had done to save the planet couple of times. He had grudgingly accepted and took the burden and still was determined to keep his part time job as the pilot for the City, for it was still his first love to fly.

He stood back up and turned to hand the pen over to a woman from Mideel, she was in her 50s, tall and handsome with graying blond hair. She wore a simple pale blue and violet gown and had an easy look to her feature. She took the pen and Cid said, "Nibel extend its hand to the Southern Island in unity along with the world."

The woman smiled as she said, "The Southern Island thanks and accept Nibel's gracious alliance." She turned to the audience and placed the pen on the scroll, saying as she wrote her name, "I, Baroness Nannaor of the Southern Isle accept the one rule." She stood up and turned to Shiva and handed the pen over to the former Ice Goddess, "The Southern Isle extend its hand in sisterhood to the North."

Shiva grinned as she took the pen, "The North accepts the hands of all in unity." Then she went to sign her name, as the representative of the Northern Continent, "I, Lady Shiva, of the North agree and accept in unity of all, under one rule of the King and Queen." She said with flourish and the room filled with thunderous applaud, louder than before. She smiled as she handed the scroll to Burgenhagen and watched him as he roll it up and sealed it with gold wax and tied it up with silver ribbon. The symbol of the great tree was pressed in the wax.

Burgenhagen turned to Cloud and Sephiroth who were standing nearby watching the whole signing ceremony. He said over the noise of clapping hands and cheering, "Now, we can proceed with the coronation." He said with a joyful smile and handed the scroll over to them. They both bowed and accepted the scroll together and the room became louder with applaud and the flashing of the cameras exploded everywhere. They both stood together, holding the scroll, smiling as the five lords and ladies came to their side and stood together, posing for the cameras.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud looked to the crowd of thousands of people, there had to be nearly a quarter of the population of the world gathered in the grand garden that spread in front of the Council House. Their attentions were toward to where she stood and she glanced, around, finding it was odd, noticing that everything were still, even the people. Not a single thing moved, and everything was not sharp, but rather slightly distorted and blurry.

She looked down to find that she were wearing a beautiful gown, long sleeved with high fashioned neck that was open on the top in the middle and the design went down into the middle with the opening below her thighs, exposing another gown underneath. It was beautiful pale white with blue design, hint of gold and silver every where. She realized it was the coronation for she felt the crown upon her head and reached up to touch it, it was a simple but elegant crown, she took it off and looked at it, it was beautiful, the symbol of the tree in the middle, it's branches tastefully done in Celtic knots flowing down to the sides, intertwining with the root, becoming the band around. There were diamonds, emerald and sapphires placed in the crown and the crown itself was white gold with silver and pale gold combined. She knew the tree itself represented Gaea, the planet, for the tree harbors the spirits waiting to be born in every single blossom.

She looked around as she put the crown back on her head and found Sephiroth standing nearby, he also wore a similar crown but it was bigger and manly while her were feminine. He had elegant robes on, in the similar colors and he looked very handsome. It bothered her greatly that he was standing stock still, holding a scepter toward the crowd, as if frozen in middle of a speech. She realized she was the only one moving.

She wondered what was going on and glanced around, frowning. She felt nauseous, sick and a heavy pit feeling weighted her stomach as her heart clenched. She gasped as everything seemed to explode and everything and everyone came out of unfrozen state, and soon, the air filled with screaming, she whipped her head to see the crowd scattering and parting to reveal a large ominous Weapon creature before them, looming. She gasped and stepped back. From her side shot out crimson and black blur, heading toward the Weapon. She realized then it was Vincent, in his crimson tattered cloak and usual black outfit he wore during the days of their travel.

She gasped as she saw a man walking down the long aisle of white and gold carpet up toward them; he had dark leather pants with buckles on them and ancient Solider uniform of crimson and black and dark brown. His hair was soft brownish blond, in mess, swaying in the invisible wind. He smirked up to her, his eyes blood red, cold and calculating that it sent chills down her spine. She stared at him while he kept coming closer.

Sephiroth moved from her side and shot down, with the Masamune in his hand and suddenly, as if the world started to move in fast forward, they both clashed in frenzied battle. Then suddenly, as it went fast, it stilled as the mysterious man shot his hand out, and dark light exploded from his hand, smashing right into Sephiroth, causing him to fall back. The Masamune had been cast away during the battle, broken and shattered on the ground.

She tried to scream but found she couldn't, everything fell silent, the massive Weapon stood large, it's tentacles stuck deep in the ground and glowing greenish white, sucking the life-force of the planet, people surrounded the place were dying, withering away in old age as if their lives were being sucked out of them.

Sephiroth fell and laid on the ground, the stone, white and gleaming with hint of rainbow hue slowly became stained with deep crimson of his blood, spreading around him. Then, the world flashed around her where she stood, she saw everyone lying on the ground, killed and massacred, from the land of the North to the Midgar, in Neo-Midgar, the brand new city in shamble and ruin, Wutai destroyed and the ground stained red. The Nibel Mountain broken and crumbled, no longer standing in it's tall jagged glory and the island, the forest razed and burned down, the scent of burning flesh, then finally, she found herself standing in the space, distanced from the planet, watching the beautiful green and blue planet with swirling white cloud steeping with red, blood dripping and finally crumbling into rocks and ashes, fading away, littering away in the space.

She finally heard her own voice, screaming, "No!"

She shot up and panted, her breath came in ragged and she glanced around, feeling her head to find that she weren't wearing a crown and she was in her own room next to the main chamber. She sighed and slumped, breathing hard then suddenly, she broke into tears, crying. It was a horrible dream she just had and she was afraid it was a premonition.

After a while, she looked up and dried her face and saw it was early in the morning and figured half of the palace must be awake already. She felt the strong need to talk to Aeris or Shiva about her dream. She grabbed her robe and slipped it on as she left her room, searching for one of the two women.

She found them easily in the kitchen, sitting together at the breakfast table, chatting away about babies while Aeris fed her son some kind of goop she couldn't even figure what it was. They both looked up to greet her and stopped in mid-greeting to find her face blotched and her eyes puffy and red.

Aeris was first to get up, handing the spoon to Shiva and went over to her, "Cloud! What is wrong?" She asked concerned.

"I had a bad dream, I can't tell if it were real or not." She said simply and was led by Aeris to sit at the table. Shiva handed her a cup of hot tea which she took gratefully and sipped it before telling them about the dream.

After Cloud was finished telling her dream, Shiva and Aeris looked pale and horrorstruck. "My goodness, it sounds like a premonition but I am not sure." Aeris began, frowning as she thought. "If it were coming from Sephiroth, I would worry because he does have the ability to see the future, but you? It is not what your ancestors possess."

Cloud gave a troublesome sigh, "That's the thing, Sephiroth and my ancestors line back to Gaia, we are Madoshi and Megamiki's descendants."

"Yes," Shiva began, "that's true. But it was Jenova the Valkyrie that possessed the ability, and passed onto Sephiroth, skipping a generation. You came from Alexander the Judge and it is not in his lineage that has the ability. I would say, it is stress that is causing you to have such dream, with everything going on in the past few years, you only have few weeks in between of peace."

"I sure do hope so. It is so hard, to watch everything fall apart and not being able to do anything."

Aeris smirked and nodded. Shiva and Cloud looked to her confused. "I know what it is. It is not a promotion dream; it is your subconscious telling you your fear. You've always been the one to save the day, no matter what. It is something you do and you were born for and this time around, with Genesis and Omega happening, you have to stand back and do nothing, which bothers you so much. Cloud, you had always put faith in yourself since the moment you came into Midgar with no memories and kept it that way because you only trust yourself, no one else. I remember it was hard for you to trust us, the Avalanchers, right?" Cloud nodded and Aeris continued, "You will have to put your faith into Sephiroth…"

"But I do!"

"You think you do, but your subconscious tells you that you don't." Aeris explained softly, "Trust Sephiroth, trust Vincent. Do you believe in them?"

Cloud closed her eyes and exhaled a long heavy sigh. "I trust and believe in them. I know they can do it." She opened her eyes and smiled, for the first time that morning, she seemed to glow with happiness that truly reached her eyes in a long time. "You're right. It's time that I start depending on Sephiroth and another, you all have come a long way with me and proven your true loyalty and faith in me, it's time I return the favor. I believe…" She looked to Jules in Aeris' arms and smiled, reaching out to the baby and allowed him to grasp her finger. "I can't wait." She said simply and looked up to see Sephiroth enter the kitchen and smiled brilliantly at him. He gazed at her and he knew, just to see her face with that smile, everything was going to be and is all right.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	57. SS:6: Silver Lining

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M . **

Chapter Six: Silver Lining

_Amazing Grace  
How sweet the sound  
That saved a wretch like me  
I once was lost  
But now am found  
Was blind but now I see_

Cloud slept peacefully, warm and comfortable in her bed until several women burst into her room, chattering on the top of their lungs, disturbing her sleep. She groaned and rolled over, trying to ignore them as she pulled the blanket over her head. However, it was pointless as the blanket was yanked right off her, exposing her to the chilly air of the winter that wafted in the room. She realized that someone had opened her window and the cold air came in. She rolled her eyes and sat up yawning as she looked around for the culprit, or rather, culprits. There were Yuffie at the window, grinning wide enough to crack her face in half, holding the large window open. Aeris and Tifa was at the end of the bed, holding each corner of the blanket, they were grinning also.

She found Shiva next to her holding her newborn child, Dahara, a beautiful daughter born only a week ago. She smiled as she saw Dahara cooing and waving her arms around from the blanket wrapped around her. She reached out and took the baby to hold her. Dahara had brilliant red hair from her father; however she got her pale skin and ice-blue eyes from her mother.

Shiva smiled as she watched Cloud coo over her daughter and finally said, "It's time to get up, and we need to do a lot before your wedding today." Cloud nodded as she gave Dahara back to Shiva who put the baby in the roll-around bassinette and got out of her bed and allowed Tifa and Aeris to ambush her, pulling her toward her bathroom and she went in.

Shiva shook her head and went over to Cloud, helping the poor stock silenced woman and gently shoved her toward the large bathtub that was sunken in the floor. "Go on Cloud, take your bath, it is drawn and filled to the brim with honey milk and your favorite flowers petals."

Cloud nodded as she stripped her underclothes and slipped in the hot bath, allowing the warm water sooth her frazzled nerves. The past week was crazy enough for her, with the birth of Dahara, her new goddaughter and the last minutes planning for the wedding. She knew her dress was to arrive that day and was both terrified and excited to see it at last.

Tifa and Yuffie came in the bathroom with a bottle each in their hands and Cloud recognized them to be shampoo and conditioners for her hair, made from extracts of Nibel Flower, only found on the high altitude of the Nibel mountain, which happened to be her favorite flower, it's gentle scent soothed one's soul. She smiled as she recalled the beautiful seven petals flower in hue of pale white with ice blue tip and golden pollen nestled in the center and the silver green leaves covered in soft fine fuzzes.

Aeris sat down on the floor next to the bath and touched Cloud's shoulder, "Sit up, let me wash your hair."

"Sure." Cloud replied as she moved and allowed Aeris pour the pitcher of warm water over her hair and started to wash her long golden hair with the special shampoo. "How ever did you guys find those oils, shampoos and all that made with Nibel flowers?"

"We didn't. It is a gift from Rufus; he ordered them specially made for you when he learned your favorite flower. He said every woman should be adorned in the scent of the flower that suited their personality. I wonder how he had not snagged a wife of his own yet, with all that sweet talks of his."

Cloud laughed, "Rufus' like that with women. He's just too busy to settle down. I am sure someday soon he will find a woman."

Yuffie rolled her eyes and moved over to help to apply the conditioner, using a wide tooth comb to comb the long golden hair. "Eventually." She giggled, "I think he is jealous that Sephiroth got to you first."

Cloud shook her head and was suddenly pushed under the water by the ninja and came up spluttering, "Geez!"

"Come on, get out and dry up! We gotta get you dressed soon!" Yuffie grinned as she held the towel out for Cloud. As soon Cloud was dried up and wrapped in a robe, she was dragged back in the bedroom and Tifa led her to the chair and Shiva came up to her with a box in her hand.

"Open up, you gotta wear this. It's from all of us!" The former Ice Goddess giggled.

Cloud frowned and opened the box and removed the tissue and groaned. "Man! You guys had to go this far?" She held up a skimpy see through tiny underpants that looked close to a thong and a brassiere that was nothing but a scrap of lace, they were white with tiny blue flowers all over it. "How am I going to fit in this?"

"Put it on!" Tifa gushed and pulled Cloud out of her chair and shoved her over to the secluded corner of the room where Cloud went behind the screen to dress in the skimpy undergarment. She soon came back out, still wearing robe.

"Come on, let us see!" Yuffie bounced on her knees on the bed, giggling.

Shiva nodded violently, her bluish hair going everywhere, "Yeah! We have to see if it fits good and all that!"

Cloud rolled her eyes once again and sighed as she slipped the robe. She flushed crimson as the women whistled.

"Fit just right." Tifa commented.

Aeris laughed, "Sephiroth's going to love this!" Then Cloud became several shades redder. "All right, let's get the make up and fix your hair before you put the gown on." Cloud was soon seated in the chair before the mirror and the women attacked her. Yuffie helped to put on the stockings and the white knee-high boots with silver laces while Shiva worked on Cloud's hair. Aeris did Cloud's make up, applying light neutral colors, only bringing out her best feature, her eyes with soft kohl and silver shimmers.

She thought about Sephiroth, excited to see him at the altar. She only barely saw Sephiroth the day before when she took off with the women to Neo-Midgar for girls' day out. He simply smiled at her and waved her good-bye before she was boarded on the airship. Zack and Ifrit both had their babies, watching mournfully as their wives took off as well, leaving them to babysit their children. She laughed and wondered if she would done the same to Sephiroth someday and knew she would, knowing she trust him with her life. He had proven himself to be a good father so far with Odin and couldn't wait to have a child for herself.

"Oh! Brenda's here with the dress!" Tifa shouted as she allowed the brown haired elder woman into the room carrying a large box.

Cloud swallowed hard as she stood up to greet the woman. "Hi Brenda, thank you so much for making the gown for me."

The woman shrugged her shoulder as she placed the box down on the bed, "Ah, it's no problem. I am more honored that you've chosen me to make your gown." She smiled as she opened the box to reveal a stunning gown and pulled it out of the box. "Here you go!" She handed the gown to Cloud who took it.

"Yes! It's just absolutely stunning, the colors are just right!" Aeris chimed as she stood in front of Cloud, taking the gown from her hands to help her to slip it on. She went behind the stunned blonde and buttoned the gown together in the back.

Cloud swallowed again as she looked down at the gown and gave a lopsided smile, it did indeed fit her, hugging her body snugly with the skirt overflowing from her waist to the floor.

Brenda, the dressmaker smiled, "Oh my, I'm glad it fits just right. Let's see what I can do to make some adjustment." She said around the pins that she held in between her lips as she worked on making adjustment to the gown. She snipped at the final thread and stood up."There you go, you are finished."

"No, not yet!" Yuffie said as she came bouncing in the room from the other room, trailing behind her was the long train of sheer veil.

"That's right; you can't call it finished until you have everything!" Aeris said as she helped to pin it to Cloud's golden hair. "Now you are ready… my goodness, you're so beautiful!"

Brenda nodded, "Turn around, take a look in the mirror." She gestured to the three mirrors behind Cloud.

Tifa came back from another room with a large beautiful bouquet and handed it to Cloud.

Cloud turned around and saw herself in the reflection and gasped softly, not recognizing herself. Before her was a beautiful woman in gorgeous wedding gown made just for a queen. The skirt was overflowing from her waist to the floor and trailed behind her several feet. It was divided in the front with the trimming of fine soft fur, exposing the second skirt underneath in same material as her veil, sheer white over the solid underskirt. The bodice was tight over her torso with delicate decorating in pale purple and blue design. She also had on the quarter length white gloves and her veil had matching fur and pearls decorating around the back of her head with strands of pearls hanging down on the ends. It was simply breathtaking to see herself in the wedding gown and suddenly, she panicked.

"I can't do this!" She said as she started to shake and breathing hard.

Tifa, Shiva, Aeris and Yuffie came around Cloud to catch her as she fell down to her knees and tried to sooth her as Aeris consoled her, "Cloud, you can do this. You've been waiting so long for this day! Don't quit on Sephiroth, not on all of us!"

"I'm so gonna screw up the wedding! It's not me! I prefer to wear the old solider uniform; it was so simple then… not like now!" Cloud said tearfully.

Brenda frowned, "Cloud! Aeris is right, you have come a long way, and you made it this far and you can keep going! There is no way you can turn back! Even the gods are watching for your day tomorrow, if they do not approve, they wouldn't allow it to happen. It is going to happen!" She said with determination in her voice.

Cloud looked up to Brenda, wiping her wet face, "It's so different! I just don't know what I will do after today, all I do the best is all I know, to fight, to protect the planet and all that kind of thing, nothing about being a wife, a mother, even a queen!"

Shiva shook her head, smiling as she took Cloud's chin to turn her head to face her, "Cloud, just take this one day at a time, life is easier that way, don't think ahead. I know you're nervous about being a wife, a queen and a mother… you got the mother part down, with Odin, you're doing so great and I can see how wonderful you are with Jules and Dahara. I have no doubt about that. As for a wife, you have a wonderful man waiting for you, he had waited so long to make you his wife and he will not give up. I can see that he would go to the end of the planet, even the universe to have you." She laughed softly as she noticed Cloud's eyes widened, "Yes. Sephiroth will do anything to just have you and marry you; I don't think he will let you go. You will be a wonderful wife, one day a time, you will learn. As for being a queen, the whole planet will not have any other than you as their queen; they look to you as their leader, their guardian, their beacon of hope to the future. Don't give up on us, we are all behind you and we will help you every step of the way."

Cloud hiccoughed and grabbed hold onto Shiva, "Thank you so much. I feel so much better now… just seeing myself in the wedding gown just made everything crash on me all at once. It's happening so fast already."

"I know." Shiva said as she patted Cloud's back. "We need to get you down that aisle today and see you marry Sephiroth at last!"

Cloud stood up and nodded. She turned back around and stared at herself in the mirror. A smile came to her face and she nodded, "You're right, I came a long way, I'm gonna do this, nothing will stop me!"

"Great! Aeris, what was the tradition?" Tifa asked.

The russet haired girl stuck her lips out as she thought, "Let's see, something new, that's her gown, something blue, well, she has blue all over her gown and the undergarments, something borrowed and something old are what we needed."

The knock came to the door and they all turned to the door. "That better not be Sephiroth, he is not supposed to know where she is." Yuffie said as she went to the door and opened it a crack and grinned, "Hey, Vinny, what are you doing here?"

Vincent's voice carried into the room from the door, "I came bearing a gift for Cloud. I am sure she would appreciate it."

"Okay, come on in… Sephiroth didn't follow you?"

"No." Vincent replied and stepped in the room, they all saw he was already dressed and holding a small pouch in his hand. "Cloud, my goodness, you're beautiful." He bowed his head and smiled softly, "Sephiroth would be surprised to see you. I have here, something for you, a gift from Lucrecia." He handed the pouch over to Cloud who took it.

She opened it and pulled out beautiful pearl necklace that she had seen Lucrecia wear in the cave and gasped softly, "I can't take this, this is too precious."

Vincent shook his head, "Lucrecia stayed alive for so long, just to see that her son survives and is set on the right path. It is her wish that the woman who held Sephiroth's heart have this, on her wedding day. She once told me years ago in our short time together." He reached over and closed Cloud's hand over the necklace. "Wear it."

"Aw, that's so beautiful!" Shiva gushed, wiping tears from her eyes, "Aeris, that's taken care of, something old!"

Vincent laughed and looked to the former Ice Goddess, "I suppose you got everything taken care of?"

"Yes, but we still have to do with something borrowed." Aeris spoke up. "I am not quiet sure what's left."

"I think I have the thing." Vincent said and pulled out a thick long black ribbon. "I was going to bring this to Sephiroth; it's for his sword hilt, to replace the other ribbon on it. I suppose you can borrow this for a while until after the ceremony and give it to him." He winked and handed the ribbon.

Cloud smiled as she took the ribbon, "Thanks." She watched as Vincent left the room and looked at the ribbon. "Where am I going to put this?"

Shiva gave a sly smile, "We forgot to buy you the garland," from behind her back, she slipped the said garland in the drawer of the vanity desk and moved to kneel before Cloud, "Let's tie this on your leg in place of the garland."

Cloud blushed and nodded as she pulled her skirt up and allowed Shiva to wrap the black ribbon around her thigh and tie it off in a tiny neat ribbon on the side. "Sephiroth is going to find this funny." She said simply and stood up to look in the mirror, "Wow… I can't believe this, finally."  
"Yeah, finally." Aeris said wistfully. "Well, it's our turn to get ready and then get you in the carrier." Then the bridesmaids went on about getting themselves ready while Cloud waited and watched, chatting with them until it was time to get in the carrier where it would take her to the Council House.

_'Tis Grace that taught  
My heart to fear  
And Grace my fears relieved_

Sephiroth watched wide-eyed as the whole palace was up in the frenzy. Servants and guests were buzzing everywhere and it was early in the morning. He had stepped out of his quiet bedroom after he woke up to find the entire palace in uproar. He watched helplessly as the servant tripped over something and the whole pile of plates came crashing down in front of him and he wondered why in the world the servants were on the third floor carrying plates while it should had been on the second floor where the banquet would be held after the wedding.

He rubbed his head as Zack came up to him, holding Jules. "Hey, morning. Crazy here already, eh?"

Sephiroth simply nodded. "I think I'm going back to bed and hope to wake up to not find this anymore." He started to turn around.

"Sorry, you'll just come back and still find all this." Zack said as he held Jules' hand down from grabbing his hair. "The women are holed up somewhere in the palace, getting Cloud ready, we should get you over to the Council House and get you ready. It's almost time."

Sephiroth simply nodded, the wedding was going to start at ten in the morning and the ceremony was supposed to last about thirty minutes, given if the crowd was under control, once again, many people came from all over the world to watch and there were news people also, with their cameras to broadcast the wedding live all over the world. He was glad he didn't have to do much of the work, since many people were involved in planning the grand wedding. It boggled his mind to find that the grand total of the guest was well over three thousands of people. He wondered and pitied the person who had to do the seating arrangement.

He turned back to his room and headed to take a shower. He locked himself in the bathroom for good thirty minutes, listening to the water running out of the showerhead and several men in his room talking to each other. He could hear Zack joking with Rufus while Reeve fussed over his clothes and ordering the servants around. Reeve had put a lot of effort in planning the wedding along with the women.

As he stepped out of the shower and dried up, he stood before the mirror, staring at his own reflection. His hair had grown slightly since Wutai and was evenly cut, giving him a handsome look, his traditional bang hung low framing his face while everything else were cut short in the back. Staring back at him in the mirror was a different man and he could barely recognize himself. He started as Zack knocked on the door and called to him, "Hey, you all right in there? You've been in there for a good while."

Sephiroth called back, "Yeah, I'm good." He winced as he realized his voice wasn't so convincing. He heard Zack telling Ifrit to take his son and the door opened and he entered the room and closed the door.

Zack found Sephiroth standing at the ancient sink which was more of a beautifully carved basin with a round large mirror above it, framed with white bones of some kind of ancient creature that was long extinct. The surface was fogged yet, he could see where Sephiroth had wiped the fog off to stare at his own reflection.

"What's up?" Zack asked leaning back on the door, watching his best friend stare stoically at the mirror, just only with a towel wrapped around his waist. He could see the silver hair dripping with water and assumed that Sephiroth had just stepped out of the shower and wrapped the towel around his waist, not bothering to dry himself.

"Just thinking." Sephiroth replied quietly and went silent for a long while before speaking again. "Actually, my mind's blank. I just can't think."

"Wedding jitter, eh?"

"I suppose you could call that. I just find it unbelievable that I am standing here, right here, in the Forgotten City, getting ready to marry Cloud, a cross-dressing girl who once was under my regiment and next week, before we know it, we are going to rule the entire world. It's just hard to take in."

"Yeah, it's everybody's fantasy and you're the only one living it and it is not your fantasy." Zack joked lightly.

Sephiroth shook his head in amusement, "Yeah, that's very true. It's like yesterday, we were in Nibelheim, I was planning to propose to Cloud and turn in my resignation notice to the President that weekend after we return to Midgar. But it never happened… things took turn from there and here we are." Sephiroth said quietly once again and pushed himself back from the basin and turned to face Zack. He looked aghast, "We're not even supposed to be alive, not supposed to be breathing and standing here."

"I know. Just be thankful we are all here… Truth to be told, I'm not gonna think twice about the past… I just don't want to lose Aeris again… Jules… " Zack trailed away as he started to think about his son. "He is precious to me and every time I look at him, I find myself thinking that I am in a dream."

"Yeah, I feel the same." Sephiroth replied as he pulled another towel from the rack to dry his hair. "I have to admit, my fear is that I wake up and find myself back in ShinRa barrack, a General to the entire ShinRa army and none of this were real."

"Me too, man, me too. Let's enjoy this dream. You're getting married, to your soulmate." Zack said as he clapped his friend's shoulder and led him out of the bathroom to the bedroom. "Get in those clothes and get your arse over to the Council House and marry the woman of your dream and live this dream."

Sephiroth laughed lightly as he went to his bed where his clothes were laid out. "You're right, I'm just going to do this, enjoy what I have now."  
Reeve became silent after chewing out a servant and turned to Sephiroth, "True, one day at a time. I've lost that meaning in the past few days."

Sephiroth laughed at him as he pulled his pants on. "Thank you for helping us to prepare. Just sit back and let the things roll. I'm getting married."  
The men in the room gave a cheer and helped Sephiroth to finish getting his clothes on. Then, they were all off to the Council House.

_When we've been there  
Ten thousand years  
Bright shining as a sun  
We've no less days  
To sing God's praise  
Than when we first begun_

The Council House was filled to the rim, every single seat full and the audience outside stood, watching and waiting. Reeve had managed to fill nearly thousand and fifty in the Council House and it was filled with the world leaders and those who were close to Sephiroth and Cloud. As for the audience outside, watching on from the garden were just people from everywhere who came to see the wedding. The large temporary screens, two of them were set outside hanging down from the rim of the ancient stone building to act as a large television to give the audience the viewing of the wedding that would take inside the council house.

The weather was beautiful, despite the winter going on around the city; snow filled the valley where the city sat in. Half of the city, where the area surrounding the palace and the Council House looked as if it were late spring, in full bloom with thousands of flowers showing off their brilliant colors, the sun also shone from the open blue sky, shining upon the city with its warm ray whilst the cold winter clouds were held back. It was the work of Gaia, who had decided to bless the wedding day with warm and beautiful weather.

Everything was in place, Sephiroth walked up the long pale golden aisle from the beginning of the garden of the Council House to the inner sanctum to where he would stand at the altar. He looked around and saw the faces of thousands of people. Zack, Ifrit stood on both sides of him while Rufus and Vincent stood behind, flanking him, they all wore similar formal robes in black with silver trimming. Sephiroth himself wore royal blue with silver and gold trimming and he had thin golden band circling his head. He looked handsome yet his face held no emotions for he was all jumbled up inside. Just to see the faces of thousands of people staring at him reminded him of what would come in the future. He would be responsible for every single soul on the planet, for their happiness and their future and it was overwhelming for him.

He gripped his Masamune which were sheathed and resting at his hip and it comforted him, to have his familiar accessory with him. It had been with him since the day he changed, it brought him destruction and peace all the same and it would be with him to the day he dies. He turned to face the four men who were close to him and saw their faces held anticipation and happiness for him and he finally smiled.

Zack stepped up to him and placed his hand on the silver-hair's shoulder. "Sephiroth, this is your day, by the end of the day, you will be with her, alone and together at last, as one mind, one body and one soul. Tell us now before you walk down this aisle to the altar, was the journey in the past few years worth it?"

Sephiroth closed his eyes and bowed his head slightly. He felt the four men's eyes watching him, waiting for his answer. Then finally he opened his eyes and looked to Zack, "You've been my first friend and only friend for the longest time, you had stood by me and saw everything I've been through. You know how much I have gone through," He turned to Rufus and reached out to clasp the young Midgarian lord, "And you too, even in the past, we were not close but we knew each other and developed trust and friendship over the past few years, I would not give all that up for anything." He turned to Vincent, "Father, I am honored you are here with me, even your father, my own grandfather who would be watching as well. I wouldn't give that up either, even though I regret that Cloud has no relative to be here with her on this day. It is her who I am truly thankful and blessed to be here, standing here right now with all of you as my closest friends. She is the reason why I am here, alive with a purpose, a destiny." He sighed and looked up to the sky and smiled, "It is not only Cloud and I had came a long way to this day, it is also Madoshi and Megamiki who also had to wait so long and suffer to have this day together, to be truly together without hiding, without shame and have everyone's full concord to have this union. Madoshi and I are one, I have his heart and love for Megamiki and Cloud who is also one, it is strong and true, and nothing will stop us."

"Then, you are ready." Vincent spoke softly, bowing his head to Sephiroth, giving him a smile that a father would give to his son. "I am honored and proud to have you as my son, Sephiroth, walk the aisle and marry the woman of your heart." He gestured to the long golden aisle.

Zack gave a loud whoop and clapped Sephiroth's shoulder, turning him around, "Go on then, we are behind you all the way!"

The silver-haired future king laughed and turned to face the path he would walk and took the step forward from the road where he stood, entering the boundary of the garden and started to walk steady, flanked by the four men to the altar in the inner sanctum of the Council House. As he kept going forward, the sea of unfamiliar faces began to become familiar as he kept going. Within the inner sanctum of the house, he was surrounded by familiar faces watching him end his journey at the altar and stood there facing Burgenhagen who wore robe of ivory with gold and silver trimmings standing on the altar, almost tall as Sephiroth himself, smiling at him with his ancient smile. Zack stood next to him and Vincent, Rufus and Ifrit took their place as well.

Sephiroth glanced around the sanctum of the Council House, seeing many familiar faces he knew and had met in his life, they were sitting in the stadium, watching with smiles on their faces. He felt at peace and turned to face the aisle where he would see Cloud coming to him from the far end of the garden, it was a long walk, yet it was part of the ceremony. The proceeding of the ceremony, typically would take not very long to go through, but with three and plus thousands of people watching, it would take twice longer.

He could see through the open doors to the outdoor where the garden is, at the end of the white aisle, two beautiful pure white chocobos trotted up pulling a covered carriage in pearly white colors with golden trims came to stop where the aisle begin. He held his breath, watching as the coachman stepped off and opened the door, letting down the steps. He smiled fondly as he watched Odin step out, decked out handsomely in ivory outfit trimmed with silver. He stepped and stood by the coachman, waiting as Denzel, dressed in similar outfit stepping out and holding his hand as Marlene stepped out in simple ivory and silver gown, holding a white basket in her arm. He was proud of the children, behaving as they did what they were taught to do in the ceremony.

As soon Denzel held his arm out for Marlene to hook her arm around, Odin quickly scurried to the front and started to yell at the top of his lung and Sephiroth groaned, covering his face as he heard the boy's voice carry clearly across the garden and into the Council House, "Make way for the most prettiest woman in the whole world! She's gotta marry Sephiroth and no one's gonna stop them!"

Everyone had to stifle their chuckles as they watched on. Denzel reached out with a scowl on his face and bopped the younger boy on the head, "Shut up! That's not what you're supposed to do! Move it and walk!"

Marlene looked about ready to wail, "Aw come on! You guys are so totally running it!" She threw Denzel's arm down and stomped forward to stand in front of the two squabbling boys. "Boys! I'll never marry either one of you! You're so immature!" She turned her head up high and started to march down the aisle, tossing the flower petals around, scattering crimson, violet, light blue and pale pink petals over the golden white cloth.

The boys stopped and stared at Marlene, already making her way toward the Council House gaped and ran to take their place and started to walk with her, shooting one another glares.

Shiva giggled softly as she stepped out with the help of the coachman, decked out in pale blue gown that accented her figure and features. She stepped aside and waited as Tifa stepped out in violet gown of similar cut and moved to wait beside Shiva. Yuffie came out in silver gown and finally Aeris came out in gold, being the maid of honor, for her gown was mixture of the bridesmaid's gowns and Cloud's wedding gown. She smiled as she turned to wait.

Sephiroth gasped softly as he watched Cloud step out of the carrier. She was simply breathtaking to him, with beautiful white gown flowing around her legs and her head tastefully tied up in coiffure with long golden strands hanging down her back, covered by the long veil. The gown made her blue eyes stand out so brilliantly that he could pick out the color from such distant. She held a large bouquet of white roses with tiny blue and purple flowers in the nest of pale silver green leaves and tied with ribbons that matched her gown.

The four bridesmaids took their place behind Cloud and picked up her long veil and held it. Cloud started to make her journey down the aisle toward Sephiroth at the altar. She saw him at the end and she felt her heart skip, seeing the handsome man in dark royal blue robe, standing there waiting for her. She remembered what Shiva had told her earlier and knew she was right, Sephiroth would fight and go to the end of the universe to marry her, no matter what. She smiled as she kept staring at him, their eyes locked at one another while she made her journey down the aisle.

Three thousands of people did not matter to either one of them, it was as if they were in a dream, knowing they had finally came to the end of their journey, to begin a new one. As Cloud reached to the altar, she stopped before the steps as each groomsmen came down to escort the bridesmaid to their place on the steps. Sephiroth bowed and came down the steps to take her hand.

Once her hand touched Sephiroth, she shivered in excitement as she saw the love and devotion in his emerald eyes, directed only just for her. Burgenhagen held his hands up in the air, his voice carried out through the stadium of the Council House, "The couple come together to join in the holy matrimony, speak out now if you shall object their union or forever be silenced."

Sephiroth and Cloud stared at one another, knowing; no matter if anyone were against their union, they would fight to the end of their lives to be joined in union. Silence passed and finally Burgenhagen smiled at them, "Then, Sephiroth, you shall bring her forward, if it is your wish for her to be your wife."

Sephiroth grinned and nodded once, "It is my wish." He said and guided her up the steps to stand before the altar where Burgenhagen stood.

They stood facing each other, their eyes only for each other as Burgenhagen spoke, holding a pure white sash in his hands. "Today, on this very special day we are all brought here together, under same purpose, same dream, same wish to see the union of Sephiroth Crescent Valentine and Cloud Sorano Strife." He bowed his head to the two before him and reached out, wrapping the white sash around their clasped hands, tying them together, "I tie thee, Sephiroth to Cloud, bound forever as one mind, one body, one heart and one soul. Say your words, Sephiroth and forever seal your fate to her."

Sephiroth gave a long sigh and smiled softly as he stared at Cloud, "As sure as the dawn rise, shining brightly in the depth of my heart, you walked into the darkness of my soul; so sweet and brilliant: your presence awoken a fury hotter than brand new sun, a fierceness of love that I knew not. My love is not worthy for you, yet you remain, shining beacon in the darkness for me to find my path to you, to your sweet self. Through my troubles, my suffering, you held me high and mighty and never gave up on me. For I am yours alone for eternity and all of my being is yours alone." He bowed his head and a tear fell from his eye, staining the white cloth that covered their hands. He saw a second tear splash upon the cloth and realized it wasn't his own. He looked up to find Cloud smiling at him, her eyes wet.

Burgenhagen nodded once and turned to Cloud, "I tie thee, Cloud to Sephiroth, bound forever as one mind, one body, one heart and one soul. Say your words, Cloud and forever seal your fate to him."

Cloud swallowed hard and clenched her hands over Sephiroth's hands under the binding, "Deep in the forest, my heart was lost, left behind and forgotten. My soul was lost among the stars, dimmed in the infinite darkness, yet you found me, brought me out of the shadow of deceit and showed me love, compassionate and made me felt worthy for who I am. Many times, you've been ripped away from me and each time, you had my heart, my soul with you always, and I searched and found you for that I did not only find you but myself. Never again I shall let you go, for I am also yours forever and always, beyond death and the end of the world, together, we will shine as one star, bright and true." Tears were already streaming down her face as she finished.

Burgenhagen smiled at the two and brought up a bowl, pure white, carved from the white tree of the palace. "Here is the water of the ancient life pool deep in the heart of the planet, blessed by every soul that passed on to the Lifestream, drink this, for you both will never be divided or parted as the water flow in your body, strengthen your souls to unite as one." He handed the bowl to Sephiroth, who took it with his free hand and cradled it in his hand, taking a sip, drinking half of the fresh pure water. He handed it over to Cloud who also took it and drank the rest of it. "And exchange the symbol of your heart to one another." He gestured to Odin and the young boy came bouncing up the stairs and pulled out the small pale purple pouch from around his neck and opened it and turned it over to drop two rings into Burgenhagen's hands.

The ancient short man handed one ring to Sephiroth and another to Cloud. He stood back and watched as Sephiroth slip the beautiful Celtic knotted band over her finger to meet the previous one he had given to her for engagement and wondered in amazement how long she had that ring and knew their love would go on after the rings fades away into nothing long in the future. It was just simply a symbol.

Cloud took the matching ring and slipped it over Sephiroth and felt the pride of finally sealing her fate to the man she love so much. Looking up to his face and saw his smiling face and realized how lucky she was to be standing before him on this very day.

"Before the witnesses, you are one, husband and wife. I am honored to present to the world, Sephiroth Crescent Strife-Valentine and Cloud Sorano Strife-Valentine."

The stadium exploded in loud cheer and everyone outside cheered as well, filling the entire City with joyful shouts and celebration. Cloud and Sephiroth turned to the audience and smiled.

Sephiroth, still his hand bound to Cloud's led her down the steps, being mindful of her gown and they both walked the long aisle to the garden and to board the carriage to be taken to the palace. The audience cheered and threw bird seeds over them as they passed and the snow began to fall from the clear blue skies, falling down over them, creating beautiful illusion.

Zack and Aeris followed, arm in arm while Yuffie and Vincent took second and Tifa and Rufus took third and Shiva and Ifrit took the rear. The children cheered and ran around them, tossing the birdseeds and flowers around following the wedded couple and they watched as the two boarded the carriage and took off to the palace.

_  
Amazing Grace  
How sweet the sound  
That saved a wretch like me  
I once was lost  
But now am found  
Was blind but now I see  
I once was lost  
But, now, now I'm found  
I once was blind  
But, now, now I see_

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_


	58. SS:7: One Hand, One Heart

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M . **

Chapter Seven: One Hand, One Heart

Cloud and Sephiroth, was the first to reach the palace got out of the carriage and entered the palace still tied together, they were rather speechless knowing they were finally married. They went to the private chamber that was near the Grand Hall where everyone would soon join them for the banquet and party.

Sephiroth turned to Cloud, smiling as he took her in with his eyes, amazed. "How long did it take us to be here, just to be married at last?" He asked quietly, afraid to break the spell and wake up from the dream.

"Too long." She said simply and they kissed passionately from their heart. Finally after breaking apart for breath, "It feels like a dream…" She whispered, "I'm afraid to wake up."

"Me too, me too, Koibito." Sephiroth said with same tone, caressing her face. "I can't think of anything else but you as of the moment right now and I have no clue what to do."

She laughed as the tears fell from her eyes once again. She moved up closer and rested her head on his chest, allowing him to hold her securely in his arms. She felt safe where she was and sighed, "Let's just enjoy this, take things little at a time, we will learn what to do next. I suppose we are supposed to wait until everyone is in the Grand Hall before making our appearance."

"Oh, I hope that wouldn't be a long wait, then again, I don't mind waiting a long time as long you're with me." Sephiroth said, chuckling as he played with the pearl necklace on her neck. "Lucrecia's necklace. I suppose that was when Vincent disappeared for a short time this morning."

"Yeah." Cloud fingered it too along with his hand, "He came to see me and gave me the necklace, saying that Lucrecia would want me to have it."

"I'm sure she would. It's nice to see it on you."

She hummed her agreement and looked up to his emerald eyes, "Is this all you imagined? All of this, everything?"

He shook his head and sat down, bringing her to sit on his lap, he realized that the gown was rather heavy. He helped her to push it around until she was sitting comfortably on his lap. "No. I had only imagined of proposing to you, given the little time I decided on it years ago before Nibelheim. I had planned a dinner for both of us in one of the restaurant in your town; I believe it was called Nibel Café where I made the reservation. I had intended to finish with the mission and return to the town and take you to dinner and propose. Zack and I had a meeting the following Monday,"

She interrupted softly, "Yes, I remember." She shook her head, "Meeting for me to come out with the board and the president then. There was more to it, wasn't it?"

He nodded, "Yes, I had also planned to hand in my resignation notice and announce that I was retiring and marrying you. I knew ShinRa would expel you from the army, there was no other way around for you to remain."

"I see… wow…"

"Yes, but that was far as I had gotten. I did imagine a house somewhere in the open country, you and me sitting on the porch together, watching our children play in the field. That was about it. It was a short simple one, not like this; a grand palace, the whole world watching us and thousands of people around us."

"A simple life or a life of gods…" Cloud murmured softly as she rested her head on his shoulder, "It's funny how my mother told me a long time ago, 'you can't always get what you want.' What we wanted was a humble dream, a simple one, yet we were blessed with more than that and we don't want it. How ironic."

Sephiroth chuckled. "We will make the best of it; get what we want out of it. We still can keep our humble dreams and use it inside the grand splendor of a life we have."

She snorted in his neck and slapped his chest before sitting up again to face him, "Grand splendor? Sephiroth, with all of this came with a large burden."  
He grabbed her hand on his chest and grinned at her, "I know. It doesn't say anywhere or by anyone that we can't have as many vacation in simple life, hm?"

"I like what you're thinking." She leaned down and kissed his nose.

By then, the knocks at the door shook them out of their reveries and they looked up to find Zack entering, "Hey you two, we're all ready for you to make your appearance."

Sephiroth helped Cloud to stand up, "Already, how did you manage to get three thousands people in the Grand Hall so fast?"

"It had not been quick enough, you two were in here for good hour now." Zack commented, grinning.

"An hour already!?" Cloud asked, looking to the clock in the room and saw it was indeed a little over an hour and shrugged her shoulder. If time went by fast with Sephiroth, she wouldn't mind eternity with him and smiled at him at the thought. With their joined hand together, they both exited the room to follow Zack and met with their groomsmen and bridesmaids before the doors to the Grand Hall.

Shiva and Ifrit entered first together, followed by Tifa and Rufus, and then Yuffie and Vincent and finally Aeris and Zack went in, leaving Sephiroth and Cloud to enter a moment later.

Sephiroth tugged Cloud's hand to bring her attention to him, "Aishiteru, Koibito. I am glad we made it, from this day on, we are together in everything." He said as he caressed her cheek with his free hand.

She smiled at him and joked, "Weren't we together always before this?"

He laughed softly, "Well, this time, it's a bit different. We're inseparable now."

"Yes." She said and turned to face the door and clenched his hand. He returned the gesture and the doors opened and they walked through and they were washed over with cheering from the guests.

As they reached the head table where their friends sat and stood where they were to sit and waited for the applauding to subside. Sephiroth helped Cloud to untie the sash so they would be free to use their hands. Once the room quieted, he stood up and bowed his head and took the microphone that Zack offered him. "Thank you all for coming to celebrate our union. I'd like to thank the gods for giving us a beautiful day and the chance to finally marry at last. I also thank for the blessing for the food we are about to eat and blessing for you all for coming today to support our joining in marriage. Thank you. Please, let's eat our dinner and we can get onto with the fun!"

The applauding roared to deafening level and Sephiroth sat down with Cloud in their chairs and the servants started to file into the room with the food, serving everyone. In less than thirty minutes, everyone was served and they all began to eat. They all enjoyed the delicious food and wine served by the palace and after about an hour, Zack stood up, taking the microphone and attentions were on him. "Wow, that was a good dinner, wasn't it?" The guests made noises to agree. "Great! Are you all ready for dessert?" Then more agreements and the raven haired man laughed, "All right, well, you all are going to have to help us to reduce this cake down!" He threw his arm to the side to gesture toward the door which opened to reveal a monster of a cake entering the room. Everyone gasped because it was about six feet tall, tiered in layers towering up and on a large stroller being pushed by four servants. It was all out in white with beautiful decoration of purple, blue, silver and gold with sugar covered Nibel Flowers tastefully decorated all over it.

Sephiroth laughed as he stood up and Cloud followed as the cake arrived in front of them. They went around the table and stood by it, the cameras flashes went off for a few minutes as they waited and was given a knife to cut the cake. Zack came around to their side and grinned, "Well, you have choices, either smash the cakes in each other's face, Cloud you could toss him into the cake, or Sephiroth, you can just jump in with her into the cake, or just simply give everyone a piece and enjoy the dessert?"

Cloud rolled her eyes at Zack, "We will serve, beside, it's too beautiful to destroy in a mere second!"

"I agree." Sephiroth said as he held the cake cutter. With their joined hands, they both cut the cake as everyone watched on and they held the cake up to serve, however Cloud smirked evilly as she quickly shoved the piece right into Sephiroth's face, smearing with frosting.

"Heh, got you one." Cloud smiled and gasped as Sephiroth grabbed her face and kissed her, in process of smearing the frosting onto her face. She laughed and kissed him back, both locked in few seconds of sweet passionate kisses while the guests cheered. Then the cake was served out.

After Cloud had finished her cake, she sat back, smiling while she looked around. She saw everyone she knew and came to love in the past few years chatting happily at the tables in front of the head table where she sat and waved to them. Suddenly, she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up to see Vincent standing there, bowing to her. "May I have the honorable dance?" She blinked and realized the music was playing. She smiled as Sephiroth nodded. She stood up and allowed Vincent led her to the dance floor. Zack was already standing with the band, grinning like a mad man.

"Well everybody, it seemed like it's time for the father and the bride to dance! Vincent Valentine is on the floor with our beautiful bride!" Zack announced and turned to the band and gave them the single. Cloud watched him with puzzled look while she and Vincent stood together, getting ready to dance.

Zack smiled at them and winked. The music started to play and Cloud laughed as she realized what song was playing. It was of an old jazz song and she smiled as Zack started to sing to the song, 'Unforgettable'. Vincent moved her across the floor as everyone watched on, their moves and grace was perfect and beautiful, together.

As the music ended, they parted and bowed to everyone and Sephiroth came on the floor. Zack spoke up, "Well, here we came, a long way, back on the floor. Sephiroth and Cloud here had asked me to choose the song for them, their song to dance on their wedding day and it didn't take me long to figure this one out. Here we go," He snapped his fingers and the band started a new music. Cloud and Sephiroth's eyes widened as they stood together, remembering the music from a long forgotten memory. It was the third and final dance they danced together at the Ring of Dance from years ago when they 'first' met.

They danced together, with more grace than they've ever done as if they were one body, one mind and one soul. The song was long, beautiful and they simply danced together as if they were the only one in the room, their eyes for one another. Then, finally, as the song ended, they slowed down together, still looking at each other.

They blinked as the new music came on and danced once again, with the guests joining them. The dancing went on for next three more music and finally Cloud and Sephiroth retreated back to their chairs together.

Vincent cleared his throat and stood up, holding up the crystal glass and rang it with the side of the knife. The sweet high sound spread through the room, cutting the air getting attention from everyone. He saw sea of head turns toward the head table and placed the glass down and tugged his jacket down and spoke, "I know it is traditionally in most culture at the wedding for the father of the bride to speak up. Cloud's father died many years ago when she was young, unable to give her away for this day of her wedding. However, she had asked me personally to speak in the place of her father and I am honored." He turned to Cloud and bowed to her, smiling. She smiled back and listened as he continued, "I'd like to thank you all for coming on this special day for Sephiroth and Cloud's wedding. None of us here would expect such a grand wedding for these two people. I'd also like to thank to Gaia, for making this day beautiful, especially for her 'daughter'." He winked to Cloud and turned back to everyone in the room as he started to walk around the table on the stage to stand in front of it and lean back on the table, still holding the microphone in his hand. "Cloud here, as to the reason why she had asked me to toast in her father's place is because she personally told me she felt that I was the closet being to her father in the past few years. I've also came to find her like a daughter to myself as well since the day we first met.

I am sure you're all curious about how we met, it was several years ago in Nibelheim when she was on her journey to search, either to kill or rescue Sephiroth here, I know you all know the basis of the story. When the Avalanche opened my coffin, waking me up from a long cursed sleep, I found myself meeting Avalanche and Cloud was the last person I laid my eyes upon, she was the strangest character out of all of the group, a simple young ragged ex-Solider which everyone believed to be a male, not a female. I was disoriented and she told me then, that I was having a long nightmare. I denied them and told them to get out and it was the beginning of their nightmare. She startled me by telling to repeat and told me about Sephiroth and how she was already in a nightmare. I decided then, out of curiosity to join their journey for Sephiroth because I've heard the name once before my cursed sleep, years before, of my own infant son I've met once, Sephiroth."

He sighed and looked to Sephiroth and smiled sadly, "I was astounded to find that about thirty to thirty-five years passed and everything was in shamble, the world was on brink of destruction, evil clones out there leaving messes behind. I learned more on the journey about each individual of the Avalanche, grew attached to some, developed tolerance for some. When I came to learn of Cloud's secret and her history background, I felt protective and a sense of duty to watch over her and stand behind her like a father would to his teenage daughter on a journey to become a woman. It was a strange relationship we had developed; I respected her for her strength, determination and courage. It was her who I had chosen to accompany with me to see my former love the first time, and there, she got Lucrecia, Sephiroth's mother and my blessing for her union with Sephiroth." He chuckled slightly and turned to Cloud and grinned, "Cloud, despite your cross-dressing, you made a bad male ex-solider, I am just astounded that no one truly noticed until the end."

"Well, some of us thought he was gay! But it turned out he's a she!" Cid shouted from the table and the room chuckled with laughers before silencing down to allow Vincent to continue.

The tall sniper glared at Cid at the nearby table, "And what does the other thinks of you, a fan of Loveless?" The room erupted in roar of laugher. "Now, now. As the tradition goes, it's time to talk about Sephiroth… what are his highlights, his achievement and character?" He shrugged and moved over to Sephiroth's area of the table and picked up the glass and took a look at it. "A glass is either half empty or half full; it is up to you to decide. Sephiroth here is like this glass, half full or half empty, no one truly know his history, his background except for himself, and possibly those who are closest to him. Sadly enough," He placed the glass down. "As his father, I am not one of those who are closest to him, I am only the outsider. I've only been in fraction of his life, thanks to a man who met his end for good. To know him is to know me and my father. For endless cycle of our generation, father and son never had developed a relationship, my father," He gestured to Grimoire who also sat at the table where Cid sat. "Lord Grimoire Xin'Tine of the Southern Wutai in his time was a busy man. He was already a middle-aged man when he received his firstborn son and only child, me. I was to become the next lord of southern Wutai but I took that and crumbled it up and tossed it out of the window by running away to join up and became a Turk. I never had a relationship with my father. My life as a Turk also denied me the chance at relationship with Sephiroth. I met him once when he was born, got to hold him, to kiss his soft face and hear what he had been named by his mother, Sephiroth Crescent Valentine, then I was killed, revived and put in cursed sleep. The next time I met him, I learned he was on brink of destroying the world, but rather, a soul prisoner of a witch who used a clone of him to destroy the world. It wasn't until after he and Cloud was revived, I got to know him and started a relationship bridge with him. At that point, he was already a grown man, with a burden on his shoulder. We had a silent agreement," He looked over to his son and saw him nod. "That we would not persuade a relationship of a father and son, but rather, a friendship. That's what we did. I cannot tell you his highlights, his achievements and characters, for I was never there to witness it or to know it. I've only heard from him and his friends about him. I shall leave that up to Zack, his best friend and best man to tell you this." He nodded to Zack who smiled and nodded back.

"I'd like to thank you both, Sephiroth and Cloud, for giving me this experience, this life, the second chance. It is because of Cloud that I'm alive again, it is because of her, I met Yuffie who I had recently married." He looked to Yuffie and grinned, "It is because of Sephiroth who forgave me and my father for our cursed family cycle and broke it, to establish relationship between three of us." He picked up his glass and held it up, "I'd like to toast to two of them, Sephiroth and Cloud, I wish you for your long life, health and happiness. I'd like to quote an old poem from the book of the Valkyrie for you two; it's called 'Heaven Sent'."

He cleared his throat and spoke from memory, "

_Love ruled the day when spirits came to meet_

_Sweeping them up and off of their feet_

_Neither of them knowing what the future would bring_

_Two hearts together and one destiny_

_Today it's a promise, so sweet and so pure_

_Together forever, for love shall endure_

_A blessing from the Lifestream, this story is told_

_A love to last a lifetime and a hand to hold_

_It was no accident that this came to be_

_Now you must realize that it really takes three_

_So, go hand and hand to a future unknown _

_Knowing that with the spirits, you will never be alone_

_With the spirits still near and dear to the heart_

_This couple shall prosper and never grow apart_

_For it's not always the eyes that is the first to see_

_What really matters in life and what is meant to be_

_So remember that to love is time well spent_

_And what brought you two together was Heaven sent_."

The entire room erupted in thunderous applaud and Vincent looked over to see Cloud's face wet with tears and smiling brilliantly while Sephiroth grinned at him. "That was written by Nibenne Gold, a Valkyrie from over a thousand of years ago. I believe she had this poem in mind for the special couple, a thousand year later. Cheers to Sephiroth and Cloud." He raised his glass and everyone chorused together with him, "Cheers to Sephiroth and Cloud."

As Vincent made his seat, Sephiroth stood up and took the microphone from Vincent and smiled to everyone, "Thank you, father for the beautiful poem. I am thankful that the day had came together and is going very wonderfully, knowing how much troubles tend to find either me or my wife. We are just walking bait for troubles." The guests laughed and quieted down, "I am grateful that Cloud had found the kinship in Vincent to ask him to speak as the father of the bride though he is not." He turned and gave a long look to those who were familiar to him. "What Vincent said was the truth, my past was shady, I am either half full or half empty, yet, on this day and now on, I am full, whole with Cloud, my beautiful wife, my soulmate." He turned to Cloud and saw her crying again and squeezed her hand, they were still joined. "I'd like to thank some people here in this room with us today, for their support, their understanding and kindness as well forgiveness. First of all, I'd like to thank Avalanche, a team of misfits, who stood behind Cloud all the way through, not even knowing her true intention in finding me. In the end, when they learned the truth, they could have abandoned her but they didn't, they forgave and accepted her."

"Damn right! We went through too much together!" Barret shouted and was slapped by Elmyra to shush up.

Sephiroth chuckled, "Trust the team of Avalanche to not keep their mouth shut, I wonder who would be next to interrupt." The guests laughed once again and he continued, "Cloud died for me, to be with me in the Lifestream. She stood by me the entire way through. You wouldn't believe what the spirits in the Lifestream wanted to do with me. They thought, believed I was the one who had the intention to destroy the planet. Cloud…" He sighed deeply and looked up to everyone, tears was in his eyes. "She didn't give up and Gaia saw this and decided to give us second chance, rather, everyone a second chance at life and put so much faith in both of us to ensure a future for you all, for the entire planet. It is because of Cloud's love and determination, we are here today, and finally joined in union to be one soul, one mind, one body and one spirit. And for those who stood behind Cloud and urged her on, I'd thank the Avalanche, the Turks; even they were another bunch of misfits."

"Hey! That's not fair!" Reno called out from another table.

Sephiroth laughed at the red-head. "I know you all too well and I know where to find you if I ever suspect you guys did something wrong." He pointed to them with the microphone and grinned as Reno shrank back in his chair. The room was filled with laugher.

"Onto thanking people, geez, there are way too many people to thank, so I am going to make this simple, short and sweet. Thank you all everybody for making this possible for us. Thank you all for attending, I wish you good wishes in your life, your future, and everything, including the wedding gifts you all had brought." He turned his head to the far end of the room where there was pile of gifts stacked to the ceiling, given the ceiling was pretty high. Then he turned to Cloud and helped her to stand up, "Cloud Sorano, there was no other woman before you, even though many tried, some men too," Chuckling was heard through the room and he smirked, "Until you came along in my life, you were one big mystery to me for the good first few years I've known you. You continued to baffle and amaze me with your talent, your skills and ability, then that one fateful night, I found you, nearly dying in the alleyway, I learned of your secret, of who you are and my whole world was turned upside down. From that point on, it was a beginning of the journey for me, through you; I've finally found my own identity and with that, my heart. I cannot ignore my heart then, even now, for it cries out to you, it desire, wants and loves you so much. I had promised many times over, I will search to the end of the planet, to the end of the universe, just to have you. Now today, for I am glad it had arrived and happened, you are my wife and I am thankful because you've done so much for me. I love you, always, Cloud, my Koibito." The guests cheered. "I'd also like to thank these four men for helping and supporting me in the past few days to prepare for the ceremony, Ifrit, for his steady wisdom of marriage, he must be the only one on the entire planet to have a long standing marriage, how long have you been married to our beautiful ice goddess?" He asked as he turned to Ifirt who stood up and leaned over to answer in the microphone, "We're somewhere in our two thousandth years of marriage." Winding whistles and 'ooh's were given by the guests in amazement.

Sephiroth laughed, "Thank you Ifrit. I will continue to rely on your wisdom and support in my marriage with Cloud. Rufus, for he is the only man I know in my circle of friends to be still single and dateless." Roars of laugher as Rufus blushed. "Thank you for your constant support through my trials and troubles. I doubted you in the beginning because I wasn't sure where you stood but now I know and I am glad my trust in you is not destroyed." Rufus bowed his head then Sephiroth turned to Vincent, "Vincent, my father, even in short few years I know you, I thank you for being there for me, supporting me even though you were not there for me in my childhood and it could not be helped, that is all forgiven. Thank you for being here for both of us, Cloud and I and for your wisdom, your vigilant and involvement in to make all of this to happen." Vincent stood up and bowed at the waist and Sephiroth did the same. Finally, Sephiroth turned to the audience, "I'd like to thank you all for coming today." He then sat down and fought a smirk on his lip while Zack stared at him.

"Hey! Hey! What about me?" Zack asked. His voice was clearly heard through the room since the microphone was set on the table between him and Sephiroth.

"What about you?" Sephiroth kept a cool face, turning to him. "I made my speech, and I am done."

"Hey!" Zack stood up and became red slightly due to frustration and embarrassment, "I'm your best man, you're supposed to finish the speech with thanking me and give me the microphone so I can make my best man speech!"

"Oh… that. I think we should get this over with, knowing you tend to give out a long winded speech." Sephiroth stood up, coolly staring down Zack.

Zack's jaw dropped as he stared at the silver-haired man and started to curse but was silenced as Sephiroth laughed at him, "Just kidding." Sephiroth turned to everyone and picked up the microphone, "I love to tease him too much, he's so easy. Thank you Zack, for your constant support through the years, standing by my side every single turn and all that tribulation I went though. I am constantly amazed how you stood by my side every time I was painted evil with intent to destroy, main, kill everyone and everything. I also want to thank you for those early years, trying to bring Cloud and myself together, even if it was your intention to make us a friend, it took for her exposure to both of us to bring us together finally."

Zack grinned as he took the microphone from Sephiroth's hand, "Aw, shut up. I knew you were kidding. You're welcome and I am going to stand by your side, both you and Cloud because you two are the closest being to me next to my wife. Between four of us, we're inseparable. It will take so much more for you guys to get rid of me." He grinned and clapped Sephiroth's shoulder, "Go on, sit down and hold onto those pants of yours. I know you want to drag her out of here and drop your pants. I don't know how much longer you can stand, waiting around for that chance with her." The room erupted with laughers and Sephiroth rolled his eyes and glared at Zack while he sat down next to Cloud who was blushing red.

"Heh-he. All right, all right." Zack waved his arms to settle everyone down. "Good. Well, I'm Sephiroth's best man; after all, it was automatic. Maybe, maybe not." Light laughers rose again and he shook his head, grinning. "I'd like to open with a toast then start on to telling you some stories about those two, then I will conclude the toast with something and send them on their way, I think they've waited a little bit too long." He grinned wide and cleared his throat while he pulled out a sheet of paper, "Ah-hem, well, this little tidbit was spoken at my father's wedding a long time ago by his best man, who happened to be my godfather and he told me this. I thought it was great and funny.

'You k now, the trouble with being the best man at the wedding is that you never get to actually prove it.' I can understand that. What's the point in being the best man when the real best man is the groom himself!" He chuckled and continued, ignoring the guest's laughers. "'Love is a thousand miles long but it comes in six inch installments.'" He choked right there and snickered, it took him a good minutes to calm down, "Trust me, I need to change that, it's not six inch, but I will leave that for Cloud to find out." The laughers became louder. "'Married life has many ups and downs…" He snickered for some more, "May all of yours" He turned to Cloud and Sephiroth, noticing they were already red in face. "…be in between the sheets!' I think that line spoke for itself." Many of the guests were already crying with laughers, "'A honeymoon should be like a table: four bare legs and no drawers. Easy on the throttle, steady on the gears, roll her over gently and she'll last for many years.'"

Sephiroth stood up and grabbed the microphone, "Is this going to keep getting raucous?"

Zack took the microphone back, grinning, "Shh, shh, let me finish!" He snickered and continued, "'To our wives and lovers – may they never meet!' I wouldn't worry about that one, Sephiroth didn't have any past lovers except for Cloud… 'She offered her honor, he honored her offer, and all night he was on her and off her.' Oh man… Now I really understand how my mother always called my godfather a dirty old man. 'To the two secrets to a long-lasting happy marriage: Here's to good sense of humor – and short memory!'" He raised his glass and gave a whoop, "Shh, two more lines to go. 'Never go to bed angry… always stay up and argue.' True, ture, it's a torture to sleep and argue in your dream when you know in reality, you didn't win yet! 'Always remember the three magic words: "You're right dear." And Sephiroth, it works, trust me, Aeris is always right in our marriage." He turned to Ifrit, "Does it works with Shiva in those two thousands of years of marriage?"

Ifrit nodded and said, "That's right, Shiva is right every single time and I'm still alive after all."

"I'm so gonna get you for that!" Shiva shouted from her side of the table. The room erupted in another round of laugher.

Zack grinned and tucked the paper back in his pocket. "Well, that's the toast. But I'd like to add something from my own experience. 'To the groom: Early in your marriage you will find it difficult to get the last word in any discussion. With time, though, you will learn how to always get the last two words in every discussion. Just to make sure the words are "Yes dear.". Marriage is like a violin. After the music is over, you still have the strings.'" He grinned wide as Sephiroth rolled his eyes. "There we go," He raised the glass, "Cheers!" Then took a sip. "Now, onto the story part, I'll try my best to not be so long and exaggerating. Vincent said something about the past and Sephiroth said something too. But I'd like to tell you from my experience and knowledge of those two, their history, how they came to be and how they met… and how much harder it was for them to get to this day to marry than any other couple on this planet."

He cleared his throat and took a sip of water from another glass and moved around to front of the table and leaned back on it. "Their love story did not truly begin the day they met at ShinRa Academy; rather it was thousands of years before. You all know of Madoshi and Megamiki, they were also known as Meteor and Holy. It was their tragic tale, their tragic love that formed our lives for over thousands of years. Long ago, Megamiki was the first daughter of Gaia, a beautiful goddess, I can tell you this, because I had met her personally for short time, some of us did. Boy, she was gorgeous and Madoshi fell in love with her, however, it was forbidden for Madoshi to love Megamiki or even to associate with her, Madoshi was Gaia's enemy.

From different countries in this world, we have a different perspective on how they got together and how they proceed to hide from Gaia, but we all know, they hid their romance for a long time from Gaia and many other gods in the cosmos, long enough for them to have twin children. A son and a daughter who we all come to know as Alexander the Judge and Jenova the Valkyrie." There were soft gasps in the room from some of the guests. Zack ignored them and continued with his tale, "When Gaia found out, you all know this too well, she was mad, tried to separate them, but it failed, because Madoshi and Megamiki had a plan, they knew it would happen that Gaia would find out, they killed themselves in order to release their souls before becoming cursed. Well, it half worked, half of their souls were trapped, becoming a summon each, Megamiki became Holy and Madoshi became Meteor and banished for eternity apart from one another. Where did the other half of their souls go?" He stood up and turned to Sephiroth and Cloud, who were also listening avidly. "They're right here," He gestured to the newly married couple, "Sephiroth, the descendant of Jenova the Valkyrie is the reincarnation of Madoshi and Cloud, the descendant of Alexander the Judge is the reincarnation of Megamiki. Their souls brought them both together, to a second chance at love and life but fate had a different plan, Madoshi made a mistake, he released a virus upon the planet, the Calamity of the Sky, which nearly cost them their chances with each other. But their wills, their determination and their love were so strong, that they overcome it and healed Gaia, everyone here on the planet, giving us all a second chance." Zack grinned as he turned back to the guests, "You see, it wasn't just their first time at meeting one another in this life time, they met each other and fell in love years ago, as their own previous incarnation. Love pass on through many generation, many lifetime, through many reincarnation, no matter how long, how far, or wherever, it is powerful.

Now, let me tell you of a simple story of each individual of what I know the best about them." Zack said as he moved around the table to stand next to Sephiroth, his hand on the silver-haired's shoulder. "Sephiroth was born to Lucrecia Crescent Brown, one of the two last Valkyrie women left from the Nibel Mountain, amazing enough, the only Valkyrie to live for two thousands of years to make sure Madoshi have a chance at love again and to Vincent Valentine here, our former Turk and former young lord of Southern Wutai. Sadly enough, in babyhood, he supposedly became orphan and was raised by Hojo at ShinRa, as their lab rat to become a super-solider. I met him when I was fifteen, enlisting as a cadet in ShinRa Solider and he was seventeen, already a General and damn, he looked older than his age (which was due to his Valkyrie heritage when he grew up suddenly when he was eleven or twelve then)," Zack laughed as he looked to Sephiroth, "I still remember it like it was yesterday, I noticed that everyone was scared pissless and never bothered him. He had no emotional expression or anything, he looked like a robot. I decided to try something, I talked to him, teased him, provoked him into fight, he resisted every time until one day, I provoked him far enough into a fight that we actually fought. He beat me and from that day on, I never left him alone. It took him a while to get used to me, trust me and everything. I didn't give up on him." Zack squeezed Sephiroth's shoulder, "I got to learn who he is and what he thinks likes and everything and man, I was shocked when he told me one day, that I was the only living being, the only one on the entire planet who knew him very well. It made me proud and sad at the same time then to know this, to have access to his soft spot. Years later, I was promoted several times and finally landed myself into Class Two and one day, here came another cadet who caught my attention." He moved to stand by Cloud's side. "A little frail boy walked in my dorm room one day. There he was, well at the time, I thought she was a he then. Boy, she was skinny little kid; I thought she was twelve or something, too young to become a cadet. She told me and Reno, who also was our roommate then, that she was going just for the academy and had gotten a scholarship for two years. Reno and I started to encourage her to get into Solider training, if she wanted to get the full scholarship. She did, despite her tiny size, her wild blond hairdo and bright innocent eyes, she endured the six week basic training to my shock, and she was good! I will tell you this now, don't mess with her with the sword, she's too damn good!" He laughed and rubbed the back of his neck, "She was untrusting, she wouldn't let anyone touch her, she kept to herself, a shy little kid fresh in the cadet training and in academy, and she didn't try to make friends. I saw a challenge, another one, just like Sephiroth, I put my heart, mind and soul in to getting her to trust me. Over the time, she indeed trusted me and that was nearly shattered several times with my foolish actions, which is just another story for another time. Three years later, Reno here brought up something that caught my attention. A book."

Reno laughed loud and everyone turned to look at him with puzzlement. Zack chuckled, "That's right, a book. In fact, it was a secret box, shaped like a book. Reno, our resident idiot actually had a brain! He was researching for his psychology project and chose Cloud as his subject, studying her for a week, to record her behaviors and analyze why and all that crap. Don't ask me, I failed psychology myself then. Reno mentioned that Cloud would go out every day for one week a month with the book and return shortly after. He learned it was what Cloud hid a good load of chocolate candy in it and eat a whole box full a day. Reno could not figure this behavior out!" Zack laughed, "You see, Elena," He gestured over to where Elena sat with Reno and the other Turks, "She said the answer would had been easier if Cloud was a woman. It hit me then and I thought about it for a while, I studied her and watched her. It was also around the same time Sephiroth was studying about the Valkyrie myth, to find it was real. One and one started to fit together, and I knew it that Cloud was actually hiding her gender. I made sure no one catches on, stopped Reno from studying Cloud more and distracted them. I also challenged Cloud to reveal her secret before the Ball. She was trapped then, do you remember this?" He asked Cloud and she laughed, nodding her head. "Yeah, I kept her safe, her identity was safe with me and Sephiroth, as he had no idea made arrangement to put Cloud under my total care, under my legion and everything, ordered me to train her for Elites. It was perfect, Cloud decided to attend the ball as my date, and it was my first time to see her as her true self. She was beautiful in the simple gown she had on, I remember it was pale blue, right?" Cloud nodded again. "Her hair was tricky but she managed to fix it and she looked different. I took her to the ball and she introduced herself as Sorano, said she was Cloud's twin sister. I could not believe it; everyone fell for it, even Sephiroth!" He laughed along with everyone else. "The ring of dance sealed their fate, they danced three times together, and that was it! They met three times in the dancing game and Sephiroth fell in love with her. Cloud ran off, leaving our poor General confused and lost, sound familiar? I think she's just pulling a page out of Cinderella book. Let's fast forward to few weeks later, Cloud was upset after the Ball, afraid for her identity; she wouldn't talk to either Sephiroth or me. I asked Sephiroth to go after Cloud, the male Cloud to clear things up about his so called 'sister' and all that. But Cloud took off and was taken into an alleyway, being beaten up by a group; she almost died when Sephiroth came to her rescue. He took her back to his condo to heal her. When he did, I came up and saw what had happened. When Sephiroth moved to clean Cloud up I couldn't stop him, it was too late, Sephiroth found out that Cloud and Sorano was one and same person. That's how he learned of her secret and right there then, he could have expelled Cloud out of the academy and Solider but he didn't. He kept her secret and their relationship, forbidden it was, bloomed." He grinned and stood in between where Cloud and Sephiroth sat.

"Let's fast forward, Nibelheim was when Sephiroth wanted to propose, and that was years ago. On the night he was going to propose, something came up and they were separated, Sephiroth was lost, kidnapped by a evil clone of himself and Cloud and I was presumed dead to the world, but stashed hidden away in the Mansion for the next couple years as experiments to Hojo. I broke us out and escaped, Cloud wasn't so lucky, she was weak, her memories were gone and she couldn't do anything. Basically, we both were left for dead before we reached Midgar. She was abandoned, assumed to be left to die in the wilderness and I was taken back to Midgar, revived with Hojo's cloning and Cloud regained her strength, assumed as a male ex-solider, on a quest to rediscover her memories, and through that journey, her purpose changed every time she gained more memories and in the end, to save the planet, bringing many of us together. Both of their journeys were hard and terrible, but at the same time, it was the only path they could take to arrive to this very day, to finally marry, to finally have happiness and a new adventure together." The entire room filled with cheering and clapping.

Zack held up the glass and everyone followed suit, "I know I'm breaking the tradition by skipping a lot of things and getting to the point. I'd like to thank you all for coming, I hope you all are enjoying yourself and the bridesmaids, you all are beautiful and I'm glad you're here to support and stand by Cloud all the way through. Shiva, you've met Cloud as a summon and Sephiroth through the astral plane and became their friends, I'm happy you're here with us too today and thank you. Tifa, you've turned out to be a wonderful woman, so understanding and supportive to Cloud, forgives us and thank you very much. Yuffie, we couldn't continue without your cheerfulness and bounciness, you're like Cloud's personal cheer-leader, urging her on, giving her energy and reasons to keep going, thank you. And finally, Aeris, my beautiful wife and best friend, you've come to become Cloud's sister in the past few years, understanding and supporting her all the way through, thank you my love." He turned to the guests, "Thank you all for coming, please enjoy the rest of your stay, I believe, it's time to send those two off." He grinned and gestured for the wedded couple to stand up, "I'd like to toast you with this final words before sending you both away to enjoy one another as a husband and wife; remember this always in your heart, love is patient, kind, it does not envy or boast. It is not proud, rude, or self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no records of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with truth. It always protects, trust, hope and always perseveres." He raised his glass high and everyone followed, "Love is forever." And everyone echoed him, toasting.

Cloud and Sephiroth smiled together as they toasted along with everyone else. Zack grinned as he came up to them, slipping his arms over their shoulders, "Everyone, seeing that there is three thousands of people here, we're going to continue celebrate and enjoy the party while they disappear off to some private place." He laughed, "Cloud will not be tossing the bouquet, but rather, pulling this rope." He handed her a rope that was dropped down from the ceiling. "Go on, pull it." He grinned.

Cloud shrugged and pulled the golden thick rope and suddenly, from the ceiling came down flowers, confetti and balloons spilling everywhere over everyone. The guests laughed and cheered as it kept raining down on them for a while, covering everything. Cloud laughed and hugged Zack. "You're brilliant." She said and smiled.

"When you guys leave the Grand Hall, go outside for a bit, we need to do some photos before you two have your fun." Zack winked and announced, "Let's send them off!"

Sephiroth and Cloud, joined at the hands with the white sash stood at the table while the guests parted a path way for them to exit. Zack grinned and said, "Go on, it's your night now." He grabbed a small cup and tossed the confetti in the air and everyone cheered as Sephiroth and Cloud walked through the path to the doors, shielding their faces from the tossing confetti and rice.

Soon as they left the Grand Hall, they made detour to the front garden of the palace and met up with their bridesmaids and groomsmen and their closet friends and family. The photo session didn't take long as several photos were taken by the personal professional photographers.

Aeris was the last one to hug Cloud and she whispered in her ear, "Don't be afraid, trust him, relax." She winked at Cloud and stepped back, to see Cloud's baffled look.

Zack let go of Sephiroth after hugging him, saying with low voice, "Treat her good, and make it all about her."

Sephiroth shook his head and smacked Zack's shoulder. "Go away." He laughed as Zack cracked up. He and Cloud went back to the palace and made their journey to the master bedroom.

As they reached the master bedroom, they stopped before the door together, looking at each other. It struck Cloud what they would do in the room and realized she had not given herself time to think about it and felt nervous. Sephiroth noticed this and touched her face, caressing her skin softly, "Koibito, if you're not ready, I can wait."

Cloud shook her head, "No, you've waited so long, so have I. It is our night and I trust you." She smiled as she finally understood Aeris' words. "Let's go in." She reached up and kissed him then gasped as he picked her up and kicked the door open to carry her over the threshold into their room.

She giggled as he placed her down near the large bed. The bedroom was decorated beautifully, white pure drapes covered the bed with hint of silver and the floor was covered everywhere with soft sakura petals and roses, perfuming the air with every crushes of their foot upon them. Candles were lit and giving soft glow of light everywhere in the room, making a warm romantic atmosphere.

Sephiroth stared at her as he slowly unwove the tie that held their hands together since the wedding ceremony. He dropped the white silk onto the ground and reached up to help her unpin the veil from her hair. Her golden hair was soon free and fell in golden waves behind her, free from it's bound of coiffure. She blushed shyly at him and fidgeted with the gloves on her hand. His hands went down from her hair to her neck and over her shoulder and down her arms. "Koibito, Let me show you how much I love you." He said softly and then captured her lips in heated kiss.

He reached behind her and undid the buttons to her gown and soon, as they broke away from the kiss, he stepped back and she allowed the gown to pool around her feet, revealing what she wore under. His eyes widened as he looked her over. Then he stared at the black ribbon around her thigh."What is that?"

She blushed and laughed softly, fiddling with the tiny black bow on it. "It's your sword ribbon, Vincent let me borrow it. You can have it back." She said slyly as she sat back down on the bed and waved her leg up to him.

He grinned as he knelt before her and asked, "What am I to do?"

Cloud blushed several more shades of red as she sat back, "I believe, you have to take it off with your teeth." She gasped as he kissed her knee and up her thigh, stopping at the bow and started to pull it free with his mouth. Once it came off, forgotten on the floor, he crawled up to her and kissed her lips while her hands went to unbutton his clothes.

Soon, their clothes were tossed aside and their fleshes met one another finally for the first time. The entire night was filled with sensual dances and merging of their souls into one.

Cloud stretched her body and woke up, she felt wonderful and very comfortable, and more than anywhere she could be in. She smiled as she watched the sky through the branches; it was a beautiful day despite the winter time. She turned over to see Sephiroth lying beside her, still sleeping. She reached out and traced his face softly with her finger and brushing his hair away, it had amazed her that it took very long time to truly be together. She giggled as he wrinkled his nose and his eyes opened. "Ohayo." She said, using her father's native language.

"Morning, koibito." Sephiroth's voice was low, nearly a growl when he pulled her closer and nuzzled his head into her neck, enjoying her bare flesh pressed against his. They stayed that way for a long while, their hands slowly roaming, mapping one another's body until they heard voices outside the bedchamber.

"The Coronation is next week! We have to start the preparation!" Reeve's voice carried through the door.

Then they heard Zack's sleepy voice, "Aw, shut up. We just finished the wedding yesterday, at least let them have a day or two."

"They have an appointment with the fitting today!"

"We got their measures, just leave them alone!"

Ifrit's voice came through, and they knew people were starting to gather in the hallway, "Don't make me toss you out on your butt."

Then suddenly, there was a lot of overlapping voices from many of their friends, arguing about preparation for the Coronation and leaving the newly wedded couple alone and then the argument went into many different options.

Sephiroth's eyebrow rose and he looked to Cloud who looked exasperated. "What is our option?" He asked after he had heard so many of them.

"Run away until a day or two before the coronation?" She suggested with a twinkle in her eyes.

He smirked, "I like that idea. Do we need our clothes?"

"Not where we are going." She giggled and got out of the bed, throwing on her Fenrir outfit and he grinned as he followed suit by putting on his gray-black outfit and they grabbed their swords and slipped right out of the window.

Outside in the hallway, Zack held his hand up as he heard loud noises of the motorcycles revving outside. Everyone became silent and Aeris came up to him, "What was that? Did it sound like Fenrir and Loki?"

"Yes…" Zack said and went to the bedchamber doors and hesitated there and decided to open it wide. Everyone gasped as they all saw the bed was empty, clothes were tossed about. Tifa went in and looked around with several other women.

"Well," Tifa announced, "They took off with just one clothes on their back, nothing else. We all know they can survive long time out there without anything else but their clothes, sword and motorcycles. I think they took an early honeymoon." Tifa giggled.

Reeve looked aghast, "But, how can we plan the coronation without them!?"

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_


	59. SS:8: Coronation

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M .**

Chapter Eight: Coronation

Sephiroth stood with Loki between his legs, glancing to the entrance of the grand beautiful city in the valley below the hill where he was on. Cloud was next to him, also standing holding Fenrir upright. He saw the city in a different perspective, it was like a child to him, his burden to care for, to make sure it thrive and grow and by tomorrow, it would be his full responsibility. He saw the irony to the concept, where in the past few months when he first started to live in the City, preparing it and making plan, like an anticipating father waiting for its child to be born.

He glanced to his side where his wife of five days stood and grinned at her and she returned the gesture in kind then flipping her long golden hair over her shoulder to be caught in the wind, flapping behind her like a banner. They had retreated from the City and away from the chaos for peace and quiet, doing what they did the best, traveling and camping out like the old former days of Solider mission trips. They had been all they could carry on themselves and the motorcycles.

The five days of solitude in the wild was the best adventure they ever had together alone, getting to know one another intimately and they agreed that they would do this every year for their anniversary. Now they had to return to the city and start taking up the burden of the world, to be their figure leaders. He sighed as he spoke softly, his strong voice still carried over to her ears in the strong wind, "Here we are, and tomorrow's going to change everything."

Cloud's smile faltered slightly as she recalled her nightmare. "Yeah… Sephiroth…" She turned to face him, she had not told him of her nightmare and wondered why she had not. She supposed it was because in the past few days, she basically forgotten it since the wedding and enjoying her last minute honeymoon. "Something is going to happen tomorrow."

Sephiroth turned to her and studied her face, noticing the slight weariness and concern in her eyes. "Cloud." He started, "what is it?" He had learned to take her concern and words, for it seems to always save his life or make something out of it.

"I had a dream before the wedding, about the coronation. It was horrible. Genesis had everyone maimed and killed in my dream, and he…"

She choked as she looked away, closing her eyes. "You were killed in the dream."

Sephiroth frowned and quickly moved to right his motorcycle and stepped off it to reach Cloud and take her in his embrace, even though awkward when she was still sitting on her massive motorcycle. She leaned into his arms and sighed deeply, "I told Aeris and the other women, they believe it was just dreams revealing my worse fear. I have to trust you and believe in you. I do." She looked up and her blue eyes clashed with emerald eyes. She smiled as she saw the strength in them and drew from it.

"Genesis will come, he will try to do anything to stop me from becoming a King, he will kill in his path, but I will be there to stop him and Vincent will be there to stop Omega. We've been preparing for a while and we're just merely waiting for him to show up. Yes, I agree he must be stopped but have faith, I had foreseen our future, hazy and vague."

Cloud nodded as she reached up and touched his lips with her fingers, "Shh… you've told me enough to give me hope. Let's go home… I suppose, see this through."

Sephiroth kissed her fingers and let her go to return to his bike and got on. The motorcycles soon made loud noises and they were off, roaring down the hill into the City in the valley.

As soon Cloud and Sephiroth took a step into their palace, they were ambushed by the Coronation preparation committees and their friends, shouting at them, demanding to know where they were and then dragged away to get their clothes fitted for the next day and given lecture of what to do and what will happen. They simply took it in with stride and survived through the day and were finally together by nightfall, lying together in bed in the grand bedroom, silence finally filling the air, even though it wasn't like the wilderness.

"It's too quiet." Cloud murmured as she snuggled deeper into Sephiroth's arms as he held her.

"I know. But by morning, you would hear the birds sing in the tree above us." They looked up to the dark skylight where they barely could see the shadows of the branches above them.

"I know we have to take the responsibility and become everyone's King and Queen, but I do wish sometime our life were much more simpler, you know, just like we did last week, just riding off in the wild, traveling and living by the ground under us and the sky above us."

He laughed and nuzzled her head with his face, "We will have chances to do that when we have time available. Let's sleep and get tomorrow over with." She nodded and closed her eyes, enjoying being secured in his arms and fell asleep.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The morning of the Coronation was in flurry, much like the morning on their wedding day. Cloud stepped into the hallway, a toothbrush hanging out of her mouth and a loose robe draped over her pajama which was a boxer (Zack's old one from solider days) and white tank top. She watched the people go back and forth in the hallway and wondered the same thing Sephiroth had wondered the day of the wedding, why everyone on the third floor when they should be on the second or the first?

"Do not ask me why they chose to be busy here on this floor of all the place in this palace." Sephiroth said as he stepped behind her, also in similar attire Cloud was wearing. His short hair was in disarray, sticking out in every angle as he watched blearily as the same servant came rushing, this time around, carrying pile of bowl instead of plates and winced as he crashed into another servant and the bowls went all over the place. "Remind me to replace that servant; I believe this is the second time."

"Yeah…" Cloud murmured as she kept on brushing her teeth, watching as well.

"Ah, there you are, awake at last and hasn't run off yet." Reeve came up to them holding a clipboard in his hand and a pen in another. He also took charge in preparing the Coronation and Sephiroth was beginning to suspect that the smaller man liked to prepare events.

Sephiroth held a finger up to shut Reeve up and said, "What is your real job around here anyway?" He asked.

Reeve stammered and shrugged, "Well, no one seemed to be taking charge of the preparation… so I took it up to myself to do the job."

"Right. You're hired as the palace official planner, knowing I need one tomorrow." The silver-haired man said grumpily as he turned around and went back into the bedroom.

Cloud shrugged. "What's up?"

"You both need to get into your clothes and get over to the Council House so we can go over the last minute planning. Everyone else are almost ready."

"Okay…" She said and turned around, disappearing into the bedroom, leaving Reeve to roll his eyes.

The palace soon became quiet as the hour went by, nearly everyone was already headed over to the Council House and the ceremony was about to begin shortly. The city was covered in glistening white snow, blanketing the ground and the rooftop of every building and the tree in the valley of the City. The Ceremony was smaller than the wedding, however still large for it was a full house, filled to the brim with the world leaders and important people. The news was also there, taking record of the event.

Sephiroth came into a room where several people were waiting for him. He was dressed in fine suit of dark royal blue, covered with the formal armor that was similar to his own yet more elegant design decorated the shell of his armors. He also had on a breastplate that had carving of a planet on and a large tree in the front of the planet. He had found irony that there was a meteor added to the design, shooting toward the planet across his heart, which was a new symbol for the symbol was also mounted in the center of Neo-Midgar. Hanging down his back was the long velvet cloak of black and silver, he looked every bit a blue-blooded royalty.

He noticed Cloud had not shown up yet and asked, "Where is Cloud?"

Reeve looked up to smile at the silver-haired man, "She'll be here soon." He stood up from the table where he had sat with Zack, going over the planning sheet. "Everyone is ready; you and Cloud are the last to be here." He gestured to the room and Sephiroth saw that everyone was indeed in the room. He bowed his head and went to sit at the head of the table.

The doors opened to reveal Cloud, wearing a simple beautiful white and ivory gown. To his surprise, she had half armor on her, the breastplate only covered her torso and was silver with gold trim on it, it looked familiar to him and he finally realized it was her Valkyrie armors and wondered where she was able to find it. The gown was not like her Valkyrie outfit but more decent and proper for the ceremony rather than the battle. Aeris came in following behind her with deep blue cloak in her arms.

"Cloud, you look beautiful." Sephiroth said as he stood up, taking her hand and kissing it. She smiled at him and brushed her hair that was left loose down her back over her shoulder.

"You're not so bad yourself too." She teased and sat down at the table while everyone moved to sit around the table.

Reeve stood up and smiled, "I'm glad you're all here. I know many of you were wondering why you were asked to be involved in the ceremony, for no one know what they're going to do except for some of us." He said and glanced down to the paper in his hands. "Sephiroth, you may have the honor." He said as he handed the sheet of paper to the silver-haired man and sat down.

Sephiroth bowed his head to Reeve as he took the paper and stood up, "Thank you, Reeve. Welcome everyone." He glanced around the table and the room. The thirteen knights stood against the wall, in their full armored regalia. He saw Odin sitting next to Cloud, also wearing miniature armor and suit similar to his own, and studying his finger.

He cleared his throat and spoke, "The rest of the world had already settled in and abiding by the new law that were created for this purpose of this day and from now on. Yet, no one knew who would be in the royal court of the Ancient City palace. Cloud and I would like to announce few members of the royal court; Odin." He turned to the young boy who snapped his head up at his name. "You are named Regent Prince of the court." The room was filled with smattering applaud as Odin blushed. "Any children Cloud and I will have together will be the royal prince or princess of course, being the heir to the throne one day." Sephiroth glanced at the paper and smiled, "I'd like to announce High Chancellor and his Lady of the court, Zachary Jules Donovan and Aeris Gainsborough Donovan." He gestured to the two shocked couple as they stood up.

"Wow, I didn't expect this. Thanks you Sephiroth, for such high honor." Zack stammered and bowed while Aeris cried.

Sephiroth grinned at them, "I wouldn't trust anyone else than my best friend to stand next to me through this, you've been with me since the beginning and I simply ask you to be with me to the end."

"You got it." Zack said as he sat down with Aeris.

"I've also appointed three councilors in the Palace, I have not truly decided until this morning, taking my time to find the ones I trust and believe in. First, I'd like to introduce Lord Grimoire Valentine, the former Lord of Wutai as one of my Councilor."

Grimoire stood up and bowed, "It's a honor. Thank you."

"No, thank you." Sephiroth replied, "the next Councilor, I bequeath the honor to Cloud's trusted friend, the one she relies on for wisdom and guidance, Nanaki Wolf, of Cosmo Canyon."

The quiet red wolf's eyes went wide and he bowed his head, "I'm honor to accept."

Cloud smiled at the wolf, "I told Sephiroth that it wouldn't be the same without you around or nearby."

"Then, the final one, after he had done so much for us in the past few months, especially in the past two weeks, Reeve Tuesei, the man who prepared our wedding and the Coronation. I don't think we would had all of this happening without his help."

Reeve looked shocked, "I thought you were really kidding this morning." He said as he stood up and bowed. "Thank you Cloud and Sephiroth, I am truly honored."

"No, thank you all and the floor is your again Reeve." Sephiroth said as he sat down again.

"Great." Reeve said and stood there for a moment, apparently lost in thought and he finally snapped his fingers, "Ah, right. I've drawn up the placement plan," He picked up a remote and behind him the screen came on with the map of the Council House, then he went on telling everyone the process of the Coronation and where everyone should be sitting or standing.

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Cloud looked to the crowd of thousands of people, the stadium in the Council House was filled to the brim and the clear glass dome above showed beautiful glittering white blue sky and snow covered the edge around them. She shivered as she recalled her dream; at least it wasn't like her dream for there was so many differences. She glanced over to the box that held the crowns on the altar and wondered what the crowns looked like and slipped back into the small chamber that she were standing with the others before the ceremony would begin.

She smiled at Sephiroth who held his hand out to her and took his hand. He guided her around the chamber to the entrance of the Council House. They stood together, arm in arm, their cloaks dragging down behind them as they waited. The others had entered and took their place up on the dais where they would walk up to and approach Burgenhagen, who would conduct the ceremony.

When they heard the music playing, the ancient song of the Valkyrie filled the air, Cloud's stomach clenched and she gripped tightly onto Sephiroth's arm. He glanced down to her with questioning look and saw she was pale. "Koibito, what is it?" He asked quietly as they made their way down the aisle, thousands of people watching.

"I am nervous… I can't help but feel that something terrible will happen." She whispered back, plastering a fake smile for everyone to see.

The snapshot of photos was going off everywhere as they continued walking.

Sephiroth nodded slightly, "I know. I trust your instincts and we will face it when it comes to it. Cloud, please, let me take care of you and everyone else."

They were near the dais and Cloud looked to him, indignant in her eyes, "I can help too, you know that."

Sephiroth paused as they reached the bottom of the stair and turned to her, bowing to her as he was supposed to, "Please, this is my fight with Genesis, he has vendetta against me, not you. I know how to handle him."

Cloud rolled her eyes and bowed to him and then took his hand as he guided her up the stairs, approaching the altar. "Why can't I help?"

They approached the top and stood facing everyone with Burgenhagen standing on the altar behind them, his arms raised. Sephiroth whispered under his breath, "Cloud! Not now…" He said urgently and smiled softly in amusement as she squeezed his hand rather hard before letting go.

Burgenhagen's eyebrow rose slightly as he heard their whispering argument and smirked slightly, they were perfect for one another and he was more than happy to announce to the world their beloved royal couple. He spoke the prayer he had found in the Tome, "I was joyful when they said unto me: We will go in to the house of Gaia, our feet shall stand in thy gates: O Gaea, Gaea the planet to house thy souls in unity. O pray for the peace of Gaea: they shall prosper in love and peace under the heaven and grow in plenteousness across the lands."

The short old Cetera turned to Zack, "Lord High Chancellor Zachary Donovan, of the North, you place your power and wisdom," He watched as Zack went and stood in his place on the north face of the altar. Then turning to Grimoire, "Lord Chancellor Grimoire Valentine, of the West, you place your power and wisdom," Grimoire did the same, taking his place at the west of the altar. "Lord Chancellor Nanaki, of the South, you place your power and wisdom," He watched with pride as his grandson take his place at the south of the altar then he finally turned to the last one, "Lord Chancellor Reeve Tuesei, of the East, you place your power and wisdom." He bowed as Reeve took his place at the east of the altar, the four councilors surrounded Sephiroth and Cloud with the thirteen knights standing behind Zack, standing proud, holding their weapons in front of them.

Burgenhagen turned his head upward to the sky and spoke, "O lords of the heaven, you have chosen before our time that these two would step forward and guide the people of the planet in unity into the future with all of their power and strength, their mind, bodies and souls. You've blessed them on this day and allowed them to receive their crowns, to signify the people that they are their leaders and they've accepted their destiny."

He brought his head down to speak to the two, "People of Gaea, I here presents unto you, King Sephiroth Strife-Valentine and Queen Sorano Cloud Strife-Valentine, your undoubted King and Queen: Wherefore all you who are come this day to do your homage and service, are you willing to do the same?"

The thunderous voice of the people spoke all the same, "Gaia, save the King and the Queen!"

Burgenhagen smiled widely as the box opened beside him to reveal two beautiful crown of silver and gold, intertwined around the band, simple and elegant with the symbol of the great tree in the front and wings spreading out from the base of the tree, halfway encircling the crown. The king's was bigger than the queen and had clear white Materia set in the center of the crown, embedded in the tree trunk and the queen's were similar but with white and blue Materia.

He picked up the King's crown first and held it over Sephiroth's head, "Is your Majesty willing to take the Oath?" He asked.

Sephiroth bowed his head and spoke, "I am."

"Do you solemnly promise and swear to govern the planet of Gaea, to lead the people into a new millennium, to your power cause the Law and Justice, in Mercy in all of your judgments and matins and prosper the kingdoms?"

"I solemnly swear." Sephiroth said, as he raised his fist to his chest and closed his eyes as the crown was settled upon her head. He opened his eyes as he heard the thunderous cheering as the people said, "Gaia saves the King! Gaia saves the King!"

Burgenhagen smiled as he picked up the Queen's crown and held it over Cloud's head. He saw the woman shaking slightly in front of him and felt twang of pity for the woman, knowing she was very nervous. "Is your Majesty willing to take the Oath?" He asked her, his voice strong, yet soothing and he saw Cloud took a deep breath.

"I am."

"Do you solemnly promise and swear to govern the planet of Gaea, to lead the people into a new millennium, to your power cause the Law and Justice, in Mercy and all of your judgments and matins and prosper the kingdoms?"

"I solemnly swear." Cloud said, a tear fell from her eye as she felt the crown settle upon her head and her heart swelled as she heard the people.

"Gaia saves the Queen! Gaia saves the Queen!"

Burgenhagen handed the two their scepter that matched their crowns as they turned to face each other and then watched as they turned back to face the crowd. The Chancellor of the North and East came to replace the cloak on Sephiroth, taking his dark blue cloak to place on a long white and silver cloak on his shoulder and the South and West came to do the same for Cloud.

Finally, Sephiroth turned to Cloud and smiled at her, saying softly, "At last, we can begin now." He held out his arm and Cloud interlaced her arm with his, smiling brilliantly up at him.

They walked around the altar to the North end of the Council House and ascended up the steps from the altar to the throne at the top. As they reached the top, Sephiroth turned to Cloud and helped her to sit in her throne and finally Sephiroth sat down in his seat.

"Gaia saves the King and the Queen! Gaia saves the King and the Queen!" The people shouted as they were seated.

One by one, the thirteen knights stepped from their place and faced the new King and Queen, bowing to give their eternal vow to serve them. Sephiroth and Cloud watched, bowing their head at each one of them, accepting them. Then finally, the Chancellors of the Royal house came and did the same.

Slowly, each lords and ladies from the five countries came to the throne and bowed before the King and Queen and received their acceptance from them.

As Odin came up from his place the stadium, he made his way to the top and Sephiroth stood up, announcing, "It is my first act as the King to announce the regent prince." He turned to Zack who were standing by his side and took the small prince crown from him and turned back to place the crown upon Odin's head. "Regent Prince Odin DeLune." He smiled at the boy who beamed up at him and made his place next to Cloud.

"Gaia saves the regent prince! Gaia saves the regent prince!" The people shouted once more.

Burgenhagen, from his place on the altar turned to the people and announced, "The King and Queen would like to invite you to the Royal Banquet at the Palace!" With one final cheering, the people began to move to leave the Council, however, as the first few people who attempted to leave found they couldn't, for they were locked in.

Sephiroth noticed this right away and stood up, frowning, "What is going on?" He asked, his deep voice carried over the loud noise of the people.

The silence filled the stadium as the crowd parted from the entrance to reveal a man walking up the aisle, wearing dark brown and black leather pants and red overcoat over bare chest. His shaggy brown hair hid his eyes, one red eye peeped through the fringe. He carried no weapons but Sephiroth and Cloud could sense the dark power simmering from within him.

Cloud gasped as she recognized him from her dreams and gripped onto Sephiroth's hand. "Is that?"

"Yes, that's Genesis."

"He's wearing ancient ShinRa uniform!" She whispered as she stood up.

"I know. He was one of the first Super-Solider created."

"I sense something else in him… he was a Cetra, a pure one. Tainted!" Cloud closed her eyes and started to sway. Sephiroth turned to her to grab her and sit her down, "The darkness within him is too much for me to handle, it's not like Jenova or Maleficius Sephirt, and it's much more…" She whispered.

"Let me take care of him."

"Sephiroth!" Cloud said as she watched him step down the stairs. About the third way down, he paused as Genesis approached the altar and stood there, smirking up at him.

"What do you want?" Sephiroth asked.

Genesis looked up as he brushed his hair from his eye and grinned, "Your death, what else?"

"You know you will never achieve that." Sephiroth said as he adjusted his grip on the scepter, it glowed and shifted, as the bright light shone, the scepter changed into crystallized Ultimate Sword and with his free hand, he drew out Masamune. "You're not only dealing with me, but Seraph." He said softly as his back broke out two beautiful massive wings that shimmered for a moment and settled into ebony colored with multicolor reflection from the light.

Genesis laughed and threw his hands up in the air and two demonic wings broke from his back, it wasn't like Maleficius Sephirt's but rather ominous and darker, dragon wings. "All right, Seraph, I'll introduce myself. I am the prince of the darkness, for years I've slept, abiding my time to be set free, to take over the world and bring Gaea down to her knees and suffer at the wrath of the Serpent Lord."

Sephiroth frowned and it dawned on him, for this was the first of the Calamity of the Sky, the true origin. Maleficius Sephirt, Jenova and Dark Sephiroth were simply the souls of the people of the Calamity and this was the god of Calamity of the Sky, the one Gaia had rivaled many eons ago and destroyed. For where the information came to him, he had no idea and suspected it was his Valkyrie memories telling him from the depth of his soul.

"So, you've embedded your soul into a mortal and bided your time to extract your revenge upon Gaia. You should had stayed dead, it had been eons and you have no powers here on this planet." Sephiroth said as he leaped down from the steps, his wings guiding him over to the altar landed on the top, looking down at Genesis.

The people scattered, to make wide breath in the stadium, giving the two rooms. Cloud gasped as she watched from above. Zack and Aeris was standing by her side. Vincent had joined her and told her softly, "Do not interfere, it is the battle between those two… I do not know why but it is their battle, not yours."

Cloud looked aghast, "How can I help?"

"Trust Sephiroth." Vincent simply said.

Odin looked up to his adoptive mother and asked softly, "If you can't go there, at least, can you do what you did when Sephiroth fought Maleficius Sephirt?"

Cloud's eyes shone in recognition and turned to Vincent, asking, "At least, can I?"

"I don't see any harm in doing so, but you must ask him."

Cloud nodded and closed her eyes, connecting her mind to his, '_Sephiroth, at least let me lend you my power. He is so powerful.'_

Sephiroth glared at Genesis who smirked back at him. He heard Cloud's pleading in his mind and replied, _'We are not dealing with a simpleton, and this is a god reborn in a mortal. I accept, for we are one.'_

Cloud sighed in relief and stepped away from her friends and stood on the top steps, closing her eyes and clasping her hands together. She felt the depth of her soul, the song of Seraphim rising and she could feel the love of Megamiki and her own increasing the power. She opened her brilliant blue eyes and shot her hands out and two golden white wings shot out from her back and she brought her hands back together to direct her powers to Sephiroth and from her hand a beam of light in white and gold connected to Sephiroth, transferring her powers to his. His wings changed colors, its ebony feather took on golden sheen and Cloud returned to normal on the step and staggered, nearly falling to her knees as she was exhausted.

Genesis saw this whole ordeal and growled, "So, your beloved gave her power to you. Ah, that's nothing; you both are not even gods." He jumped up and with a snap of his wrist a devious sword appeared in his hand and with lightening reflex, he clashed with Sephiroth. Soon, they both rose in the air, their wings beating and their swords clashing dangerously and fast, reverberating in the stadium.

Sephiroth glared at Genesis as they finally broke apart, hovering in the air. The stadium of the Council House may had been large, but it was still an enclosed space, and he did not want any of his people to get hurt. "This isn't the place." He simply said.

Genesis looked haughty and arrogant, "Why not? One dead today, more will die soon. I'm just here to introduce myself and give you my warning." He said with a snarl and attacked, sending them both into antoher flurry of battle.

Sephiroth slashed and shot back away from Genesis, smirking, knowing he had hit the other man and saw that he indeed did. Genesis wiped the blood from his face, smearing the crimson liquid across his cheek and his glove.

Vincent frowned as he watched his son fight with Genesis. He turned to Cloud who were sitting on her chair with worry on her face, drained of her power. She had given almost all of her power to Sephiroth, and he realized, she could feel everything Sephiroth feel and every time Seraph get hit or wounded, Seraphim feel it. It was the price of sharing powers and souls. He noticed something and knelt beside Cloud, "Something's not right here."

"I know." Cloud replied. "Omega is not here."

"Yes. It's just the prelude of the battle…"

They watched as Sephiroth and Genesis battle one more time for few minutes before Genesis shot higher in the sky and shouted, "I'll be back, and Gaea will suffer as I have done!" Then he shot upward, breaking through the glass dome and disappeared into the sky.

Sephiroth sighed as he ascended and landed down on the altar and allowed Ultimate Weapon disappear from his hand, reverting back to the scepter. He looked up to see Cloud sitting wearily on the throne and ran up to her. "Cloud."

"I'm fine; it took too much for me to give you my power." She said simply. She reached up and touched his chest. He felt her power returning to her and his wings disappeared, returning him to normal. He knelt down to her, brushing her hair out of her face.

"It shouldn't have done that." He said as he watched Cloud's skin return to pinkish color from paleness.

"Don't worry." Cloud said and sat up, "What did he want?"

Sephiroth stood up and faced his friends, "Gaia's business is unfinished." He simply said and the air beside him shimmered greenish and silver, then Gaia appeared herself.

"You're right." She said as she greeted everyone.

"You have a lot to explain." Sephiroth said as he gestured to the door behind the throne. "Shall we?" He turned to Reeve and asked, "Do you think you and the others can escort the guests to the palace and allow them to enjoy their banquet and explain our lack of presence for a little bit?"

Reeve bowed his head in agreement, "I was going to. Go on and talk with Gaia." He bowed at the waist and turned to deal with the people with the other chancellors.

Sephiroth helped Cloud from her chair and gestured for Gaia to go ahead into the other room. Zack, Aeris, Grimoire, Vincent, Shiva, Ifrit and Odin followed as well.

As everyone was settled in the meeting room behind the throne, Gaia spoke, "You may know the history between Madoshi and Megamiki, how I denied their union and Madoshi's anger caused me pain. Well, you all know that he used a rock from space as a weapon to hurt me but he had not known it was a rock of a former planet, the Calamity of the Sky. It was a planet eons ago from when I was a young god. The god of the planet was named Ouroboro, he was a terrible being, he thirst for power and his planet were full of evil people, always seeking to increase Ouroboro's power to make him much more powerful god and it was his desire to set dominion of the universe. Many other gods were afraid of him and wanted him to be brought down and cast away into the darkness forever."

"So, how did you do it?" Aeris asked, curious, knowing Gaia had done it.

"Yes… I will get to that point. There is something about Ouroboro you need to know. He was Ouranos' brother and he was jealous that Ouranos was the king of the gods and wanted to take his power." Gaia closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead, "You are aware that every planet has a weapon, Omega and a protomateria to control it. Well, when I was a young bride to Ouranos, no gods knew of this except for Ouranos, it was a safety procedure that Ouranos created in every gods and their planet, if ever one of them decided to turn against him. I discovered this secret by getting him to tell me. He was angry at me for tricking him but asked me to never reveal it to the other gods. Well, when I saw Ouroboro getting out of hand, I knew I had to use the Omega weapon on his planet to destroy him and lock him away before he ever harmed my husband."

"Why didn't Ouranos do anything about it?" Cloud asked.

Gaia turned to Cloud and touched her face, seeing her own daughter into Cloud's eyes. "Ah, Megamiki asked me this once a long time ago." She smiled softly and replied, "Ouranos was blind to his brother's greed and hate. He loved his family so much that he ignored the signs of danger. I love Ouranos and feared for his life, I stole away one night and went to the planet myself and disguised as a mortal among them, searching for a capable soul. I finally found one, in the ruler's palace, a sweet little boy, and it broke my heart, knowing I had to use him. He was the son of the Emperor and the Empress on the planet, which you have come to known as Maleficius Sephirt and Jenova the Calamity, their true name were long forgotten, but I never forgot the boy, his name was Mikal. For several years, as Ouranos and Ouroboro did not notice, I masqueraded as the boy's nanny until he was a teenager. He was nothing like his twin brother, who was terrible like his father and mother. Mikal was special, he knew he was different; he knew he was destined to do something great and terrible. He confined in me that one night, and I told him who I was and he accepted without doubt. He found the protomateria took it in his body and raised the Omega Weapon, and in one mere night, he destroyed his home world." Gaia was crying.

Sephiroth frowned. "This Mikal is brave and honorable. You had to do what you had to do, in order to save your husband and the entire universe from Ouroboro."

"Yes." Gaia said as she wiped her eyes dry. "There was one thing my husband neglected in telling me that in order to lock and cast away Ouroboro after Omega Weapon done his job in sucking every souls of the planet and draining Ouroboro's power is to turn it into a black hole, which would forever seal Ouroboro away. I clearly had no power in doing that and I never told Ouranos what I had done until the day I was wounded. The planet, I left it floating in the space, forgotten until Madoshi used it against me. He had no way of knowing what it was, but once the remains of the planet crashed onto my planet; I discovered that Ouroboro and many other of the souls of that planet had infected me. I told Ouranos this and he said it was my punishment for many of my mistakes and left me alone to deal with it. This was why I created several more Weapons on my planet, allowed my daughter's people to thrive in hope that in the end, my own planet will survive and fight for my survival." She sighed deeply.

"And indeed we survived, in forgiveness and love, Madoshi and Megamiki helped you." Vincent said softly, looking to Cloud and Sephiroth. "It is their love that will redeem you in the end. We have come this far, fighting and eliminating the Calamity of the Sky from the face of Gaea. We defeated Dark Sephiroth, Jenova the Calamity and Maleficius Sephirt. Now we will fight to survive against Genesis and Omega."

Sephiroth nodded in agreement, "Yes. That's right, that's what we will do."

The air behind Gaia shimmered and a form became solid and everyone gasped as they were looking at Ouranos himself. "Gaia, you've done many thing wrong, broke many of the gods laws but I've forgiven you many times over because you are my wife." He said as he helped Gaia from the chair and held her to his body.

"Oh Ouranos, forgive me my love." She said softly, crying once again.

Ouranos nodded and turned to Sephiroth, "It is you who would have to face Genesis, who once was my brother, Ouroboro. If it weren't for Gaia's disobedience, I would be dead and the universe would have fallen to destruction to Ouroboro's power. The reason why I didn't stand by Gaia's side when she had objected to Madoshi and Megamiki's love and union, I knew it was Madoshi who has the capability of stopping Ouroboro. It was Madoshi, that all the gods who feared his mischievousness that has the power." He grinned at Sephiroth.

Then he turned to Vincent, "And, you a mere mortal, granted the curse of the immortality, has the power to stop Omega. It is in you that you are only one capability to put Omega and hold the planet's life in your hand."

Vincent frowned and spoke, "I may have the protomateria in me, but it is Genesis who has the power of control to Omega. How can I control Omega?"

Ouranos gave an knowing smile. "You will know when the time comes soon. After all, the fates are my sisters and I have ways of knowing the future." He then turned to Cloud and bowed his head to her, "Cloud, you cannot help or give your power to Sephiroth, for you need it for yourself. If you attempt that stunt one more time in giving Sephiroth your power, you will die." He warned and then, with the shimmer of light both Ouranos and Gaia disappeared.

"Why?" Cloud asked a bit too late and sighed in defeat. She looked to Sephiroth who looked worriedly at her.

"Please, I don't want you to die, don't do that again, for me." Sephiroth said pleadingly as he took Cloud's hands and drew her into his arms, holding her tight.

"I promise." Cloud murmured against his chest, wondering why.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_


	60. SS:9: Genesis

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M . **

Chapter Nine: Genesis

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Genesis sat back in the dark cave that was hidden in the mountain near the entrance of the great city that lay below in the valley. He was scowling horribly, glaring at the shadows on the wall caused by a small light that shone beside him. The cavern was large and barren, it looked as if it were created by some kind of blast from a Materia years ago, he wasn't sure which but didn't care, it just provided him a simple place to stay until he was able to complete his mission.

He recalled when he first woke up, he had no idea where he was or who he was. He kept to himself, allowing the man, Lord Godo tell him everything he needed to know. He even got the chance to learn about the planet's history and it was then when he finally learned who he was and made connection from his past to the present.

He was shocked to learn that he was on the beloved planet, Gaea of Gaia's daughter, Megamiki and learned that Megamiki and Madoshi had long passed away thousands years before and their people had thrived on the planet and now, the said man, Sephiroth, who Godo wanted him to kill will become the King.

He found everything amusing when he learned that Madoshi had used his own dying planet to hurt Gaia, the irony of it. He wanted to hurt Gaia so much but that part had already been done, well played by Madoshi, however it wasn't enough and he knew he had to take action and the idiot Lord Godo gave him the opportunity, by giving him the protomateria. He knew exactly to the extent of how much damage the Omega Weapon could, it was enough to harm the planet and kill the god or goddess of the planet itself.

When the protomateria had been given to him, he immediately knew it wasn't the original protomateria for the planet itself, but rather for his own planet from eons ago. He wasn't sure if it would work for the Omega Weapon of the planet and allowed the protomateria join his mortal body and made contact with the Omega Weapon, it pleased him that the other protomateria had not made the connection and now whoever had the original could not, the Omega Weapons was in his control now.

Biding his time had rewarded him greatly, he got to know more about what was going on and who was who. It was to the greatest irony that the idiotic Emperor and Empress from his planet tried to take over the world and failed by the hands of the two people which he had came to be wary of, Sephiroth and Cloud. He soon learned that they were the reincarnation of Madoshi and Megamiki and holds their powers and it was a perfect opportunity, to strike two birds with one stone. Kill Gaia using Omega Weapon and extract revenge upon Madoshi. Then in the end, he could get what he wanted, Megamiki.

He grinned to himself and stood up to stretch, it was rather boring to sit in the cave all day and do nothing. He moved to leave the cave and was stopped as voice came to his mind.

_"Do you really think your plan will succeed?"_

Genesis scowled, "Who are you and why are you in my mind?" He turned around to see if it was indeed in his mind he was hearing voice. There was no one else in the cave with him.

_"Stop looking around. It's you who is in my body. Yes, that's my mortal body you're using. I'm called Gackt. I was a mere Solider for the ShinRa and they used me as an experiment and infused you into my body and put me to sleep in order to not wake you again. Do you remember?"_

Genesis frowned as he thought back to many years ago. He did indeed wake up from his eons of sleep before now. He recalled waking up in a cold barren sterile room and threw a fit, screaming and shouting demands. He remembered being forced to give medicine to calm down and under control. He grinned as he remembered the bloodshed he had caused before he was shot down and put to sleep once again. "Yes, I remember."

_'Good. It took many years for me to find out who you are. With your deep sleep and our combination of souls in one body, I was able to research in your mind and find who you are. You're a dangerous being; I cannot allow you to do what you're going to do. You've met your end and you must stay dead."_

Genesis scoffed, "I'm alive and I'm going to do what I can do. I am a god, and I will get my revenge!" He snarled as he turned around sharply.

Gackt, as Genesis could feel in his mind, rolled his eyes. _"Really, you've met Sephiroth, and saw his power. Including Cloud too… they killed Maleficius Sephirt, Jenova Calamity and Dark Sephiroth, who happened to be the former Emperor, Empress and their son from your planet eons ago. They failed against them. They are powerful, they are Madoshi and Megamiki, the most powerful gods in the universe next to Ouranos and Gaia, and it is their love that makes them very powerful. You have no chances against them. You're in a body of a mortal, the more you use the power, the more damage you do to the mortal body. Didn't you just came back from encounter with Sephiroth and fall asleep? My body is too weak for you."_

Genesis scowled knowing this Gackt was right, "Fool! I have ways. I have the power of Omega Weapon in my hands. You forget, this is a Materia Cave, it will give me enough power to sustain the mortal body."

_"Seriously Ouroboro, you're fighting a losing battle. I understand your vendetta against Gaia… you want to hurt her because she was the one who gave a mortal boy the protomateria and activated the Omega Weapon, killing your planet and weakened you. But what about Madoshi, what did he ever do to you?"_

"You didn't look enough into my memory." Genesis muttered and sat down, leaning back against the rock and reclined, "He pulled enough pranks on me in the past. When I first saw Megamiki, I wanted her for myself. She would make me more powerful, her power, so pure and untouched, so beautiful. A perfect queen for me, but Madoshi got to her and…" He scowled deeply. "In the end, it was because of him, he got her killed! She was supposed to be mine!"

If Gackt had more control of his body, he would have smacked his face in exasperation. _"Why is it everyone is always after Megamiki? I mean, Dark Sephiroth tried, Maleficius Sephirt tired… heck, even Jenova Calamity tried and they all failed. They were destined to be, Megamiki and Madoshi, she belongs to no one but Madoshi. They're married and they're more powerful than ever now that their souls are united. Think about it, you can't do anything."_

Genesis or rather Ouroboro smirked and said darkly, "You're a mere mortal, you have a thinking and capability of a mortal whereas I am an immortal and I know things gods know. Their union had one benefit to me…" He chuckled evilly as Gackt became shocked at the thought of what he was going to do to increase his power.

_"No! You can't do that; you would destroy the whole…. Noooo…." _Gackt became silent as Ouroboro pushed him away into a cell in the back of his mind and shut him out.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud sat on her throne chair, smiling as she nodded at the person who came up to her and told her his trouble and she gave him an advice and bade him farewell and saw to the next person. She learned that she had to do this twice a month, to see to her people and listen to them. It was one of the old traditions in most of the countries before ShinRa rose to the power and she agreed it was good to bring it back, to establish relationship between the royal house and the people.

However, she had quickly learned it was one of the most boring processes of her job; listening to one after another for their troubles, requests and asking for advices. Some of them were outrageous, some of them were pretty common and some were just downright foolish but for every single one of the person who asked her, she smiled at them, gave her wisdom and comfort despite how badly she wanted to stand up and walked away.

She looked up to see Zack approaching her. She smiled at him, her friends had picked up to wearing royal style and Zack was looking rather dashing in his Chocobo riding outfit, jacket with tail and breeches with high boots. He even had helmet under his arms and a stirrup in his hand. His hair looked slightly windblown. She smirked as she heard the women in the lines waiting to speak with her swoon at the sight of him. "Zack, what bring you here?" She asked.

Zack grinned at Cloud, much like he and everyone else had taken up to wearing clothes fitting for their title, Cloud was wearing a beautiful gown of pale violet and she had the crown of the Queen upon her head. He bowed to her, finding the formality strange between the two of them, "Queen Sorano," He started and knew that he had to be formal to her in front of the people and stood back up, "I've come to inform you that Sephiroth had sent a message." He pulled out a scroll from his jacket. "Will you be joining us for supper tonight?" He asked, hoping she would take up the offer. She had been declining in the last two weeks since Sephiroth had to go and do business tour around the world, making sure everyone in every countries are doing fine and making peace wherever he was needed.

Cloud smiled as she took the scroll and unrolled it. Her smile remained and became wistful as she came to the end of the scroll. "He's coming home soon." She looked up to her best friend and nodded, "I'll join you all for supper. I'm sorry; I just had not been feeling too good lately to eat dinner. I think I can manage tonight." She stood up and turned to the line of the people and gave them a head bow, "Forgive me. My courier will see to you and I will be informed of your need."She smiled slightly as she saw the people who were waiting to see her wasn't entirely disappointed and walked away with Zack, her arm wrapped around his as she leaned slightly on him for support.

It had been a month since the Coronation and Genesis had not made an appearance. Two weeks later, Sephiroth decided it was safe enough for him to do his annual trip around the world as a King to see to everyone and left, leaving Cloud to her duty as the Queen alone. He regret to leave Cloud alone for a long period of time but knew he had to do his duty as the King. Cloud knew this as well and said her farewell with strong spirit and anticipation to see him again by the end of three week tour. However, a few days later after Sephiroth left, Cloud's health was starting to dwindle and she had been declining to eat supper each night, not feeling well enough to eat. Almost any food made her nauseous and she was lightheaded most of the time, yet she remained strong and concealed her illness by keeping herself busy.

Zack frowned slightly as he led Cloud out of the throne room into the hallway. He could feel Cloud was leaning on him, using his weight to support her. He also noticed that she looked rather slightly pale and there was concealed dark circle under her eyes. He stopped and gave a passing servant his stirrup and helmet and turned to Cloud, holding her shoulders as she swayed slightly when he let her go earlier. "Cloud, what is wrong?" He asked.

Cloud was starting to feel hot and dizzy since she left the throne room and wondered how she had managed to hold out so long meeting with the people. "I… I don't know." She finally said as she looked up into Zack's eyes. Her eyes was seeing two, no three of him. "Uh…" She groaned as she reached out to grasp his face but missed.

Zack's eyes grew wide as he saw that her naturally bright blue eyes became pale and she was sweating bullets. "Cloud!" Luckily for him, he was holding her when she started to roll her eyes and collapsed, fainting away. He picked her up and told a servant to get the palace physician and the others. He rushed to her chamber and laid her down on her bed.

Not a minute after he arrived in her room, the door open to reveal Aeris, Shiva and Ifrit with the palace physician. "She collapsed after I took her out of the throne room. She's getting worse." Zack explained as he stepped back from the bed.

"Is it because of the stress?" Shiva asked as she peered from the end of the bed worriedly.

The physician shook her head and looked up from inspecting Cloud. "No. I think you need to call Dr. Severem, she is better than I am to finding out what is wrong with her. All I can decide that she is weak and malnourished. She is not running a fever or anything; I don't really know what is wrong with her."

Zack cursed under his breath and flipped out his cell phone he had on him and dialed a number. "Reeve!" He shouted as the phone was answered. "Connect me to Dr. Severem; we need her here right away. Have Cid pick her up soon as possible." He sighed in relief as Reeve replied he would immediately and connected him to Dr. Severem.

It wasn't even an hour later that Dr. Severem arrived and rushed into Cloud's bedroom. By then, Aeris and Shiva had dressed Cloud in her comfortable pajamas and put her under the duvet and Tifa had arrived, with Odin, standing on the other end of the bed, watching on with worried look on their face.

"All right, what's going on?" Dr. Severem asked as she saw Cloud lying in the bed, pale, with wet sheen to her skin and a bit thin on the side. She frowned as she sat on the bed and started to inspect Cloud. The physician told the doctor her prognosis and stepped back, to let the doctor do her job.

"You're about right, she is malnourished and weak." Dr. Severem announced as she sat back up from taking Cloud's temperament.

"Then, what is causing her to be like this?" Zack asked, worriedly as he was holding the cell phone to his head, trying to get hold of Sephiroth.

"I suspect something but I cannot decide unless I take her blood test." She answered as she rummaged in her bag she had brought with her and pulled out syringe in a plastic case and broke it to remove the syringe. Odin gasped from the side of the bed. "It's okay; I'm just going to take a little bit of her blood." She announced and proceeds to take the blood. The syringe filled with blood, red at first then suddenly turns bright green. "Ah, still does that, once it hit the pure oxygen in the syringe, it turns green." She slipped the syringe with the green blood into the capsule and closed it. "I'll need a place to process the test." She stood up.

"Come, use my office." The physician said as she gestured her arm to the door. Dr. Severem followed but was stopped by Tifa's questioning.

"I don't understand when Cloud and Sephiroth battled, they got bloodied, it was red."

Dr. Severem turned to face the concerned brunette, "Like I said, pure oxygen, the air is not completely pure, so that's why the blood remained red. But when in the pure oxygenated environment, like this syringe, the air is untouched and pure; it attached to the blood hemoglobin and turned green right away. Naturally, before we all were turned by the Geosigma, our blood, with the pure oxygen are blue, and turns into red when hit with oxygen. For those two, Sephiroth and Cloud, they're different, their blood work and system are totally Mako-enchanted, their blood turns from blue to red then to green, becoming pure Mako."

"How can you test it if it is already pure Mako?" the physician asked, surprised to learn such thing.

"Despite it being a pure Mako, it has all the other things that a blood would have, the virus, the white blood count, the DNA and everything else, it's the hemoglobin itself that changed into pure Mako. I've studied Cloud and Sephiroth's blood enough to know the difference. Now, shall we proceed?" She asked the physician and left the room.

Zack sighed as he closed his cell phone. "Sephiroth is in Wutai and Cid's heading there to get him now. He should be here in few hours. I'm glad we have Cid or else it would take days."

Tifa sighed as she settled on the bed to wipe Cloud's face of the sweat with a cloth. "Good. I don't think Sephiroth is going to be too happy when he finds Cloud in this condition. He's already overprotective as it is."

"Yeah." Aeris murmured as she held Odin to her, the boy looking frightful. "Shh, it's all right."

"Is mother going to die?" Odin asked in small voice.

Shiva smiled as she ruffled the boy's hair. "No, she's just sick. I don't think she will ever die."

"That's right." Ifrit added, "She's immortal. All of us included." He simply said.

Zack looked up to Ifrit with surprise, "Immortal, I thought our lifespan had been added to some extent but not that long."

"Despite what Gaia may say, we all, of the Royal house, not everyone, but those who witnessed the final battle up close's lives are extended to immortality, we will live for thousands of years until the gods decided otherwise. Those two, Sephiroth and Cloud are basically demi-gods, since they had received the power of Madoshi and Megamiki and are their reincarnations. Sephiroth had told me once recently, he does not wish to be worshipped as gods among the people; he wants to simply be their ruler, be one of them. I don't think he plans to stay alive forever. For death is our choice now."

"Hard to accept." Zack murmured as he watched Cloud. "So, we can't just die?"

"Not naturally or by any illness." Ifrit said.

"So we can die if someone kills us?"

"Yes. This will be a bit hard."

Zack sighed deeply and rubbed his forehead, "So, if Genesis manage to kill Sephiroth, he's going to die?"

"Yes."

"Don't say such thing!" Aeris admonished as she put Odin down, "This is not a place to talk about death! Now, Sephiroth will defeat Genesis, and Ifrit, I would suggest you to keep your mouth shut, you're scaring Odin now!"

Ifrit bowed his head, looking shamefully. "I apologize. I think I shall check on Dahara and Jules now." He looked up to Zack and tilted his head in gesture to join him.

"Yeah," Zack grinned sheepishly and rubbed his head, "I think I should too." Soon, both men made a hasty retreat from the bedroom before their wives decided to chuck anything at them.

"Men, no manner of conversations!" Aeris huffed as she sat down next to Tifa, handing her a clean cloth.

Tifa laughed, "I know, I had to deal with Barret since the day I met him, my goodness, the way he talks… I surprised that he improved over the years."

Cloud started to wake up and groaned, feeling massive headache in her head, "What's going on?" She asked wearily as she felt the cool cloth settle on her forehead, helping her headache to reduce a bit.

Tifa and Aeris jumped and started to chatter. Shiva rolled her eyes and held her hand out to shut the two up. "Really." She shot at them and turned to Cloud. "You fainted in the hallway and Zack took you here. You're in your room and the physician couldn't figure out what was wrong with you so Zack called Dr. Severem to come and she just checked you over and took your blood. She is doing some test right now. We will know what's wrong with you soon. Also Sephiroth is on his way home now."

Cloud sighed, "I don't want to worry Sephiroth about this. I am sure I got some kind of flu or whatever. I just had not been feeling good in the past two weeks." She said as she sat up slightly and winced as she felt her arms and hands shake from the effort of pushing herself up.

"Now, now, don't push yourself; you're weak as it is." Aeris said as she helped Cloud settle back on the pillows. "Do you think you can eat something?"

Cloud shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know… maybe something simple."

"All right, I'll have the soup and toast brought to you." The pink-clad woman said as she stood up and went to the door to flag a servant down.

The weary Queen smirked at her friend and turned to Tifa who was by her side again, "How are the kids at the orphanage?"

Tifa smiled, "They missed you. They want to see you soon."

"Bring them here sometime soon when I have a free day. I miss them too. I am sure Odin would like to play with them again."  
Odin hopped from his place on the bed, "Yeah!" He crawled up to sit next to Cloud, "Are you going to be all right?" He asked.

"I will be. I just need to get better, which is all." Cloud said softly as she wrapped her arm around Odin and held him to herself.

As Cloud's dinner arrived, she ate her dinner with her friends in her room, chatting quietly among themselves until the men was brave enough to return with their children. Cloud allowed Jules and Dahara play on her massive bed while her friends surrounded her, supporting her and discussing things. She wouldn't let her Queen duties to be put aside while she was bed ridden. It took her some convicting to the physician and Dr. Severem that she can do her duties while being in bed, they were reluctant but allowed as long they wouldn't exhaust her.

Sephiroth finally arrived, looked haggard and worried as he burst into the bedroom to find Cloud surrounded by their friends and he went over to her side and sat beside her, his hand on her forehead and looking searchingly in her face. He frowned as he noticed she looked slightly pale and her eyes were light in color with dark circle under her eyes. "Cloud! Have you been pushing yourself?"

Cloud shook her head, "No Sephiroth. I've pushed myself to the limit before and this is the first time that I felt tired and weary over doing simple things." She said softly as she waited patiently for Sephiroth to finish looking her over.

Zack stepped up as Aeris and Shiva retreated to put their children down for bed and Tifa did the same for Odin. "Sephiroth, she fainted earlier and I took her here and brought in the physician and the doctor to check her over. They're not sure what's up with her." He shrugged his shoulders, "She's doing all right, as long she stays in bed. In the past two weeks, she wasn't hungry for most of the meal and ate very little. We couldn't convince her to eat more than she was able to."

Sephiroth turned to her, "Is that true?" He asked.

Cloud nodded in affirmation, "Yes, most of the time, I would find myself sick to eat and I just ate little to keep going. I often go to bed early after I'm finished with my duties. I was just tired often."

The silver-haired King gave a long exhale, "I don't want you to push yourself anymore. Could it be the effect from giving me your power a month ago?"

"No, it wasn't even that." They all turned to see Dr. Severem entering the bedroom. She had folder in her hands. "I just completed the test and I had to do it several times before I was sure." She grinned at them. Sephiroth looked exasperated and Cloud looked curiously. She laughed at them. "I have no bad news, just good news."

Aeris, Shiva and Tifa returned and stood by the bed, waiting. "Well, get on with it before we worry too much." Shiva quipped.

"Well, as for Sephiroth mentioning about loaning her power to him, it should had not drained her so much, but it did because she has to keep the energy to herself in order to nourish another." Dr. Severem smirked as she watched the people's face go blank.

"What do you mean?" Sephiroth stood up, his face had confounded written all over it.

"She's pregnant, or rather; you both are going to have a child in two months!" Dr. Severem announced, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

Cloud's eyes went wide. "Pregnant?" She gasped and then for the second time that day, she fainted.

Sephiroth looked like he was shot. He gaped and stood stock still. Zack gave a loud whoop and slapped the silver-haired man, snapping him back to reality. "Well, you're a daddy now! At last!"

"Oh my… I think you better help her." Aeris said gesturing to passed out Cloud on the bed. Sephiroth finally blinked and turned to help Cloud and fan her face.

"That's so great!" Tifa gushed as she bounced on her feet.

Shiva grinned and turned to the doctor, "Well, we all thought she wasn't able to get pregnant."

"Technically, she couldn't." Dr. Severem smiled as she moved to the end of the bed and watched as Cloud began to wake up. "Are you all right?" She asked.

Cloud nodded wearily, "I think so… you said I'm pregnant?"

"Yep, congratulation. I was about to explain how it happened. I have a theory and I think it is most likely. Would you like to hear it?"

"Please do." Cloud murmured as she was helped to sit back up and Sephiroth moved to dab her forehead. She was sweating and shivering at the same time. "But first, why am I so cold?"

"Ah, that's just shock you're going through, it'll pass in few moments once you have the concept settled in." Dr. Severem laughed. "As I tested your blood, you came up pregnant and I was surprised, knowing that you have no way of conceiving a child despite how healthy you are. Your system works, it was just that your body didn't have the normal balance and chemistry that anyone has, because it was altered with Mako and has higher acidity balance. If you were to conceive with any other man, their sperms would not survive a moment in you, you're practically a Lifestream itself, the sperms will die upon contact with your fluid. Sephiroth's body is much the same as yours, so my theory is, his sperms have the resilient to your body fluid because it is also higher acidity, able to reach your egg with no problem and conceive a fetus. I will need to keep a close eye on you and see how your pregnancy progress."

"Then why isn't she handling it well?" Aeris asked curiously, knowing her own experience with pregnancy.

"Not all women are agreeable to pregnancy. You were able to glide right through without a problem, but that's not common for any women. Seeing that Cloud's body had been abused with pregnancy in the past, her body still holds the memory and is causing some difficulty for her to handle it. It's much like women who miscarriage the first time and after that, their bodies has higher chances of miscarriage again. In Cloud's case, she carried three babies at once, without control or knowledge and was removed with force, so naturally, her body is confused." Dr. Severem went to Cloud's side and gestured to inspect Cloud's stomach. Cloud nodded and allowed the doctor to draw the shirt away from her belly and started to feel around. "The womb is in the right shape and with enough rest and careful watch; I suppose you will be able to make it through." She said as she stood back up. "Since its so late now, I'd like to check you thoroughly tomorrow. I would like you to stay in bed tonight and tomorrow until after I finish checking you out. My order for now is to drink enough water and try to eat as much you can to feed that child inside you. I will find out what I can get you so you can not get sick every time."

Dr. Severem smiled and left the room then their friends came to her side and congratulated her and Sephiroth before leaving them alone. When they were finally alone, Sephiroth went to change out of his clothes and slipped into bed next to her, his hand on her stomach and a silly grin on his face. "Well, we will have a daughter sooner than we think."

Cloud looked at him, her cheeks rosy red, "A daughter? How can you be sure it's a girl?" She asked as she laid her hand over Sephiroth's.

"I know it is a girl. I dreamed of her." He said simply as he leaned down and kissed Cloud's belly. "I can't believe it…" He murmured softly. "Hello little one, Daddy's here, he will always protect you no matter what."

Cloud swatted Sephiroth and laughed as she settled down in bed and rested her head on his shoulder. "I'm glad you're home earlier. I was missing you too much."

"I missed you too. I'm glad you gave me a reason to come home. But I don't want you to get sick like that again ever. I was worried the whole way here when I found out."

"I'm sorry for making you worry so much." She murmured as she drifted off to sleep.

"Don't be. It's my job." He said softly as he kissed her forehead.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud learned that she was one of those women who usually have difficult time handling pregnancy whilst Aeris and Shiva was one of those rare ones who didn't have a problem at all. Tifa had wondered how she would handle pregnancy when the time comes and Dr. Severem mentioned that every women and every pregnancy are different, if Aeris were to have another child, the chances were high that it wouldn't be the same as the first and there were no real way of knowing beforehand. She ordered Cloud to rest a lot and try to eat as much she can to support her pregnancy weight and take vitamins every day. Even she moved into the palace to keep closer eye on Cloud and check her up every single day.

Sephiroth decided to remain close to home and went out of his way to bring his touring duties to the City so he'd stay closer to Cloud. He was more excited to have a baby on the way more than anybody, even Cloud herself. He even went to the extent into looking into having the attached bedroom that once was Cloud before the wedding to be remodeled for the child. Zack told Sephiroth he has eight weeks to prepare for the child the day after they found out and Sephiroth went over the edge saying that eight weeks were not even enough time. Now it was already about a week to the due date and he was frantic.

Yuffie and Vincent came to visit and to remain until the birth of the child and Vincent was sent to pacify the uptight Sephiroth while Yuffie went to visit Cloud in her bedroom.

"Hey! One more week!" Yuffie said as she entered the room, her trademark grin wider than usual as she went to sit on the bed next to Cloud.

"I'm stuck in bed and I can't even give you the news first! That's not fair. Who told you?" Cloud pouted as she placed her papers aside and turned to the younger woman, glad to see her.

"Vincent told me, he heard it from Grimoire who happen to hear from about everyone in the palace. Vincent is kind of torn in being happy the baby is his grandchild and weirded out because I'm like your friend and all. I told him I don't care. I'm so happy for you. I remember how you were so mopey about not being able to have a child."

"I was mopey?"

"It was pretty obvious. You were mopey ever single time a baby is mentioned; I don't think anybody missed it, well, maybe except for you. It broke Sephiroth's heart every time when he sees how mopey you were."

"Seesh, I didn't think it was that bad. At least I can have a baby now!" Cloud smiled as she rubbed her swollen belly. It was interesting for herself to watch her belly grow from a flat plane to a beach ball size within mere few weeks time span. Even her belly button had popped out and she was hanging pretty low, signifying it was almost time to have her child. To her dismay, her breast even grew in size as well, full of milk, ready to feed the baby as soon he or she was born.

"You're so luckly, you get to carry the baby for just three months, while the rest of the world, including me have to carry for nine months. I mean, nine long suffering months of backaches, cramping, mood swings and all that scary stuff." Yuffie said as she reached out to touch Cloud's belly and grinned as she felt the small kicking from the baby. "Ooh, it's so different…"

Cloud laughed, "I was sick for a while but it turned out it was this baby in me. I still can't believe it. I don't know who is more excited, me or Sephiroth."

"According to Zack, its Sephiroth, he's already overboard about this whole thing." Yuffie said as she turned to sit cross-legged on the bed, facing Cloud. "Vincent and I talked about having a baby; we're gonna wait until everything is settled down and all that things. We have so much to do to smooth Wutai out. And I think Vincent mentioned that I'm way too hyper to have a kid. It was an insult when he said I'm a kid myself."  
Cloud laughed at the youth, "He's right in some way… do you remember how we first met?"

Yuffie rolled her eyes, "Oh, please do not mention that! It's bad enough that I joined up with you guys and I was only sixteen years old."

"We thought you were twelve."

"Hey! That's not fair!"

Cloud laughed outright at Yuffie. "We love you no matter what. So, everything is okay in Wutai?"

"Yeah, pretty much. But there were some strange earthquakes going on in Wutai. Sephiroth is sending some specialist to check it out. Vincent believes it has to be Omega Weapon; after all, the big guy is buried deep under Wutai. We don't know if he's gonna burst out through Wutai or go under the water like Emerald did before."

"Interesting. I am sure Sephiroth and Vincent will figure it out soon enough. How is Vincent doing with the protomateria and Omega?"

Yuffie shrugged her shoulders as she flipped her lengthened hair back, "He has been researching everything he could about those two. I don't think he is getting anywhere. Ouranos and Gaia didn't leave us enough information."

"I know. Ouranos really is cryptic. Now we know what he means by that I would die if I lend Sephiroth my powers again, it would take too much from me and the baby to do that."

"Yeah. Have there been anything from Genesis lately?" Yuffie asked as she glanced over at the papers that Cloud had put aside and saw it was requests from the people and picked few sheets up to read them.

"No, not really. If there were anything, I don't think Sephiroth or anyone would tell me. They don't want me to worry too much. They stuck me here in the bedroom; leave me with those easy and boring duties. So I've been going over them," Cloud gestured to the papers, "replying to every request from the people. It's so boring because most of the time, they ask the same thing or they want me to solve their personal problems."

Yuffie giggled softly, "Yeah, I have to do the same thing in Wutai sometime growing up. My father hated that job and has me to do it for him. After a while, you pretty much get used to it and come up with a system to sort them out and how to answer them. Most of the time, I divide them in groups and send them the right people to handle them. I can show you how later, if you want."

"Please do, I am going to be stuck with this for the rest of my life unitl the day I die, which won't happens." Cloud mutters darkly and the younger woman giggled. "Ugh, help me out of the bed; I want to walk around for a bit." She said as she pushed the cover off her and Yuffie helped her up.

"All right, let's just walk slowly. Sephiroth told me to not let you do too much before I came to see you."

"That overbearing pompous…"

"Ah, ah, I wouldn't go there." Yuffie grinned as she held Cloud's arm and allowed the taller woman lean slightly onto her. "Come on; let's just make a short slow walk around the third floor."

"Yeah."

They walked out of the bedroom and made a slow walk around the third floor, talking about just everything they could think of. Then Cloud decided she wanted to get on the second floor and walk around, saying she was bored of the third floor. They went down the stairs slowly and walked around.

"We're getting reports from all over the city, people getting hurts and strange epidemics of people becoming ill, their energy drained." The voice carried out from the office and the two women stopped just before the door. Cloud held her hand up to Yuffie to tell her to stay quiet as she listened.

Sephiroth's voice carried out, "It's increasing by days, these reports of the epidemics. What do you think is causing this?"  
They heard Vincent's voice answering, "It's unheard of, however, I suspect its Omega Weapon doing this. I've been looking through the old researches and files and it says that the Weapon is designed to suck the life from the planet, including the people and the nature, slowly killing the planet."

"That's right." Cloud was surprised to hear Burgenhagen's voice in the room. "Every life-force is connected to the planet itself, once the life dies, its energy returned to the Lifestream. It seems that Genesis is controlling the Omega Weapon, to drain life-force one by one."

"But where are the energy going, since there has been no reading about it anywhere on the graph." Sephiroth said.

Cloud frowned and looked to Yuffie, "I can't believe they're not telling me this."

Yuffie sighed softly, "Not many know, but Sephiroth doesn't want to burden you. You have enough to worry about."

"But still, I should know this. Shh…" She whispered and listened again.

Reeve's voice came up, "We have massive reading under ground of Wutai, we had confirmed it is Omega Weapon and there was tendrils going from Wutai to all over the world, there are one tapped into the underground of the City. I suspect these tendrils are what draining the life-force of the people."

"Looks like you are right, since there are also reports of the same epidemics from everywhere else too. Is the Weapon showing any sign of moving?" Sephiroth asked.

"Yes. However, it is moving deeper underground."

"We think it's moving deeper to get to the underwater so it would move away from Wutai." Vincent said.

"That's going to be a problem, once it gets deeper enough, we will lose it on the radar."

Sephiroth's voice sounded like he had stood up and was pacing the room, "That's what Genesis wants. I've just learned from Madoshi's memory and researches on Genesis, it is Ouroboro we are really dealing with, in the mortal body of a man named Gackt, who happened to be Iflana Gainsborough's brother."

Cloud and Yuffie gasped softly. "Aeris' uncle?" Yuffie asked quietly. Cloud nodded.

"There was not a single mention of Gackt in any of the known records. I found this in a personal journal of Dr.Gast a long time ago and I didn't realize until recently that it was Genesis that Dr.Gast were talking about. Dr.Gast spoke to the extent on what he knew about Genesis and he was against the idea of using Mako injection in humans. This was one of the reasons Hojo had Dr.Gast killed." Sephiroth explained. "Gackt, himself is a blue-blooded Cetra, which mean he was one of the last few pure Cetra, powerful and strong to harmonize with the planet and the power of the planet. Aeris is one another because she is also of the family line. That's why Hojou used him as an experiment and it went pretty bad. We all know that it is only the pure blooded Valkyrie body can handle alien soul, after all, we are the children of the gods."

Vincent added, "That's right, in Hojou's personal report, he mentioned that Gackt showed signs of a different personality, hostile and defiant also murderous. Several people had been killed in trying to restrain him before Hojou was able to stabilize him and lock him up in a coffin."

"Much like Hojo had done to you?" Reeve asked softly.

"No. Hojo was just sadistic; he just wanted to lock me away. He had no idea that Lucrecia slipped the protomateria in me during the operation. Gackt was just different, the Cetra, as pure they may be, they were not strong enough to handle Calamity of the Sky souls, which is why they were nearly wiped out before. The Calamity was like virus to them."

Cloud sighed and shook her head, "Take me back to my room; I don't want to hear anymore." She said softly to Yuffie and with the ninja's help, Cloud slowly returned to her room, her head hurting from the information she had just learned. In a way, she was glad that Sephiroth decided to keep her from knowing what was going on and in another way; she was upset that she was left out. She decided it was best that she doesn't bother with it and place her trust in Sephiroth to take care of the problem, no matter how bad it seems.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth glanced to the door; he had felt her presence outside of the door and knew she was listening in. He couldn't help but feel disappointed that Cloud had audacity to eavesdrop on the meeting when she shouldn't be involved or know of anything. He didn't want her to worry. But he knew that if he denies her or admonish her, it would make things worse. So he just left it be and allowed the meeting to continue and it was good ten minutes before he could feel Cloud leaving. She had heard the worse of the situations and he felt the headache coming on and knew Cloud was having one too.

Ever since they had joined in union, he could sense and feel whatever she was feeling and she had the same from him, but he had learned quickly to block his emotions and pain from passing on to her to ease her burden for her pregnancy. The mood swing was the worse of all he had gone through and wondered how he would handle the birthing. Cloud had not yet learned to block her emotions and feelings from passing onto Sephiroth yet and he worried that he would also have to experience the pain of the birth when the time comes but did not voice it.

Vincent gasped softly as he grasped his chest. Everyone turned to him and Sephiroth stepped up to him, whispering softly, "Father, what is wrong?"

He shook his head, "I've been getting these pain attacks… I didn't know what it was at first, it's the Omega Weapon. Since I have the protomateria in me, I can feel every pulls that Genesis makes to the Omega Weapon. I can't tell where or when Genesis is controlling Omega." He gasped loudly and fell to his knees, sweating. "It's worse now…" He groaned and fell again, fully on four.

Sephiroth frowned as he kneeled next to Vincent, "What is happening, why is it worse?"

"The Omega is moving fast now. It had gone under and is away from Wutai now. Genesis is making his next move. It won't be long before Genesis comes and announce his battle." Vincent said between breaths as he struggled with the pain in his chest.

Zack came to Sephiroth's help and helped Vincent up and into a chair. Vincent waved them off when he was seated. "It's stopped. Reeve, it would be better if you check where Omega is. I don't think we will find it on the radar anymore."

"The pain stopped?" Zack asked.

"Or rather, why didn't you tell us of this before?" Sephiroth said, his voice held slight hint of displeasure.

Vincent looked up to his son and saw a serious man before him, a true King who he could not disobey. He saw no hint of his own son but a hard man that he could not deny. "Forgive me, milord, I did not wish to burden you so with my troubles." He said softly with his head bowed.

Sephiroth felt like pulling his hair out, "None of that, you're my father and your wellbeing is my priority. It would have helped me to know if the pain was associated with Omega beforehand, but that does not matter now. Are you all right now?"

Vincent nodded and looked up to see Reeve quickly returning, "Anything?"  
Reeve shook his head, "You're right, Omega disappeared off the radar, however, before it disappeared, it was heading in one direction. To the City."

Grimoire decided to speak up. "It's almost time. I believe Genesis is using Omega to draw the life-force for himself."

They all turned to the silent man. Zack cursed slightly, "Now I know where that spook-everyone-with –your-silence Vincent gets from. I didn't notice you were here."

"Sephiroth can do that, if he wants to. It's a family thing." Grimoire smirked and turned to Sephiroth, "Genesis, I think by now realizes he has a mortal body and cannot go against you unless he increases in power. This is why he is using Omega to drain life-force all over the world from random people." He flipped the papers down on the table that he had been reading since the beginning of the meeting. "I noticed connection with all of those people; they are the one that has more Cetra or Valkyrie in their blood."

Sephiroth sat down and rested his head on his hands as he looked at the reports. "You're right; I didn't notice it at first. Genesis is really going to be a difficult one. He drew enough power to give himself ability to equal to myself." He looked up to meet Grimoire's eyes, "I thought there was something off when we battled after the Coronation. He was too easy even when my power were doubled with Cloud's."

"It is natural for you to miss it when your concern is elsewhere, why else would we all be here to help you?" Grimoire said simply and retreated back to his corner, almost erasing his presence. "He will not attack for a while; I think he is biding his time. His goal is somewhere else. He must have a motive."

Zack flipped his head from Grimoire to Sephiroth, "What does he mean by that?"

Sephiroth replied stonily, "He meant that Genesis wouldn't be doing this if he didn't had a motive, so we need to find out his motive to remove the danger out of the way when he attacks." He frowned for a moment and recalled the battle when he first encountered Genesis. "His eyes were on Cloud before. It couldn't be." He looked up and gasped softly as the empty space between all the men in the room shimmered slightly and formed as Ouranos appeared. "You know something." Sephiroth accused as Ouranos became solid.

"Indeed I do, my son." Ouranos said. "Genesis, as you all know, was Ouroboro, my brother. He had his eye on Megamiki and lusted for her."

Sephiroth became pale, "So he wants Cloud, pretty much like Dark Sephiroth and Maleficius Sephirt wanted her."

"Much more, he wants your power, he wants to kill Gaia and take Cloud for himself. The child within her holds so much power because she also has combined force of your own and hers'. He wants the child's power more than anything." Ouranos said with such dread in his voice.

Sephiroth became several shades whiter as the men gasped. "He is after Cloud and my daughter. You're telling me that, anyone on the planet alone, Cloud is the most powerful person and she has the ability to stop both Omega and Genesis?"

Ouranos nodded, "She's powerful enough to kill me, the god of the gods. However, if she uses one dose of the power, she dies because she is still mortal by the gods' standard."  
Sephiroth closed his eyes and cursed softly under his breath, "So much more complicated."

"I am sorry." Ouranos said with regret in his voice.

Sephiroth stood up to face the king god, "You could prevent everything from happening. You have the power, you are a god yourself. Why are you not doing anything?"

Ouranos shook his head, "Since the beginning of the creation, we cannot interfere with mortal lives, it is forbidden. But we've been bending the law by helping you all out, giving you enough information to stop Ouroboro; he broke the law and needed to be punished severely. However, he is in the mortal plane, in the mortal body, he is bound to be handled by the mortals, not the gods. All we have to do is to stand by and watch, wait to see how things unfold."

Sephiroth growled softly, "This is idiotic. Gaia interfered before, causing the end of Ouroboro's world."

"I know and she had been punished, she was stripped of her powers for an eon when we learned this." Ouranos explained and then turned his head to the window. "I fear, I must step aside." He murmured.

The ground shook violently and the building creaked and rumbled as the earthquake sends everyone to scatter. Sephiroth took a look out of the window and gaped, the ground broke apart in the center of the city and the sky darkened, and swirling around much like it had done when Bahamut Sin made his appearance. Out of the ground, a massive being shot out, it's neon blue tendrils waved in the sky as it lumbered onto the surface.

"Omega." Sephiroth whispered.

Vincent winced and stood up, glancing out of the window. "It's my battle. I must stop Omega from taking any more lives." He said and with a leap, he shot out of the window and vanished, only to appear shortly from one spot to another, reaching Omega in the center of the city in blur of crimson and black.

Sephiroth turned and ran out of the office; his main concern was his wife. He ran up the stairs and into the bedroom, his heart nearly stopped as he saw that the bedroom was empty. "Cloud!"

"I'm out here." Cloud called from the balcony.

He sighed in relief and ran to the balcony and saw that Cloud wasn't alone, Yuffie was with her. "You need to get back inside and hide in the shelter, Genesis is after you." He turned to Yuffie, "Go and get the others and meet Cloud in the secret chamber." Yuffie gave a vigorous nod and bounced away in haste.

Cloud turned to Sephiroth, gaping, "What? Isn't it enough that I've been sought after by every villain we faced?"

Sephiroth shook his head in amusement despite the world is shaking under their feet. He took her arm and drew her closer to his body, "Actually, Genesis is after the baby. Right now, with the baby inside you, you're very powerful, much more than Ouranos himself until the baby is born."

"What? How did you find this out? Why can't I help if I am very powerful?" Cloud asked as she allowed Sephiroth lead her through the bedchamber to a hidden door near the grand bed and slipped through.

"Ouranos informed us just now. Our child has both of our powers combined and being a new soul herself, she is very powerful." Sephiroth explained as he pushed another hidden doorway in the small dark tunnel-like passage, bringing her to a stairway that leads straight down underground.

"You keep referring our baby as her; you're so sure it's a girl." Cloud said softly.

He smiled at her as they reached the bottom and went through another doorway, leading Cloud into a hidden chamber furnished like a den. "I am very sure it's a girl, please; stay here so Omega or Genesis won't find you."

Cloud sighed in resignation and nodded, "I love you, be careful." She said with worried laced in her tone. She reached up and cupped his face. "I so much want to be with you, to fight by your side."

"I know, Koibito. Be safe, for our daughter's sake." He said as he touched her swollen belly and he felt a soft kick. He kneeled down and kissed Cloud's belly and rested his head there, "You be good for your mother. I will be there to see you born, I promise." He said and stood up; he saw tears falling out of Cloud's eyes and wiped them away. "Fear not, I've seen glimpses of the future, I know I will be alive after everything."

Cloud nodded despite the growing fear and doubts in her mind. She gasped as the ground shook again. "Go." She said and watched as he left the hidden chamber, closing the door behind and leaving Cloud alone in the room. She knew he would send the others to join her.

She gasped as she felt the sharp pain spread in her hips and her back. She doubled over and clutched her belly. She knew she was feeling pressure on her pelvic bones for the past few days and her back was killing her but this was terrible. Another sharp pain came and she glanced down, feeling the warm wet fluid wash down her legs, soaking her gown. She looked up and whispered, "Oh no… I'm in labor already?"

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth ran out of the palace, his Masamune in his left and the Ultimate Sword, shimmering in the sunlight in his right. He ran to the center of the city, where Omega raised high above, sucking the life-force from all around him. People were lying on the ground, their life-force gone from their bodies and the plants and the surrounding area was dark and withered away. He doubled over in pain and paused as he reached the edge of the center. The pain was coming from his hips and lower back and he realized Cloud was in labor. He cursed under his breath and pulled the barrier in his mind, blocking his link to Cloud and felt the pain go away.

Standing back up straight, he saw Vincent battling Omega, trying to prevent the Weapon from sucking any more life-force. He heard a voice calling to him and turned and found Genesis standing off the side from Omega, there were a bluish glow, much like Omega's tendrils coming from his chest. He gaped as he understood that Genesis was using his connection of the protomateria to Omega, drawing the energies to himself.

"Well, well, here we have King Sephiroth, to save the day. However, it is the day you're going to die!" Genesis shouted and black dragon-like wings unfurled from his back and a dark crude looking sword appeared in his hand, the dark shadows swirling around him ominously.

Sephiroth glared at him, "Ouroboro! You should've stayed dead eons ago. You do not belong here or anywhere in the universe!" He said, his voice carried clear cut through the roaring of the wind that whipped around him. For the first time, he was glad that his hair was short, not getting in his way. Two great black angelic wings shot out from his back and spanned out proudly, gleaming silverish and greenish in the faint light under the storm.

Softly but harsh, he said, "Prepare to die." Genesis leapt and attacked Sephiroth who defended and soon, they were clashing against each other, their swords slashing and parrying, sending out sparks of powers. Sephiroth noticed the energies were from his own planet's life-force and he was enraged.

While in the hidden underground chamber, Cloud groaned as she settled down on a chair and winced as another contraction hit. Aeris, Tifa, Shiva, Yuffie and Odin had just joined her and found she was in labor. Yuffie had yelped and ran out, saying she would find the doctor.

"There is no time." Cloud said in between breath, "The baby is coming and now!" She winced and scooted back on the chair to lie down halfway.

Aeris checked and said, "Yes, she's right, the baby is already crowning. How can you not notice you were in labor already?"

Cloud shook her head, "I am not due for a week but I think with everything going on, it triggered." She yelled as another painful contraction hit her and she gripped on the pillow of the chair she was lying back on. Tifa came around and held her leg and dabbed at Cloud's forehead.

"The physician is in Neo-Midgar today and Dr. Severem went into the City earlier to check on some patients." Yuffie announced as she came back with a bowl of warm water and towels in her hands. Shiva came and took them from her.

"Take Odin and keep him occupied, I think he's scared enough to watch. We're gonna have to do this ourselves." Shiva said as she went over to Cloud's side and knelt beside Aeris.

Odin, standing on the other end of the chamber gasped and yelled, "Look out!" He pointed to the ground and the ground exploded beside the women and they fell away. Cloud screamed as the bluish tendril wrapped around her leg.

"What the!" Tifa said as she stood up and saw Cloud screaming as she fought the contraction and the tendril wrapped around her leg. "How the hell did Omega find her!?" She rushed and tried to remove the tendril but was shocked back. "I can't touch it!"

Aeris stood up and drew her power and attacked the tendril. It didn't make any impact, rather the force was absorbed. "It's absorbed the energy. Cloud!" She rushed to Cloud's side and saw Cloud's eyes growing pale and fainting. "You have to push!"

The blonde Queen nodded weakly as she tried to focus on pushing. She didn't find the strength to yell or bother with the pain but pushed with all of her might. Shiva came down between her legs and waited as the baby was being pushed through. Tifa and Aeris held Cloud's legs apart and supported her while keeping watch for the tendrils. They noticed Cloud's energy was draining faster and was dying.

_To be concluded in the next chapter of Seraph & Seraphim: Omega_

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!?_


	61. SS:10: Omega

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R A P H . & . S E R A P H I M . **

Chapter Ten: Omega

_Aeris stood up and drew her power and attacked the tendril. It didn't make any impact, rather the force was absorbed. "It's absorbed the energy. Cloud!" She rushed to Cloud's side and saw Cloud's eyes growing pale and fainting. "You have to push!" _

_The blonde Queen nodded weakly as she tried to focus on pushing. She didn't find the strength to yell or bother with the pain but pushed with all of her might. Shiva came down between her legs and waited as the baby was being pushed through. Tifa and Aeris held Cloud's legs apart and supported her while keeping watch for the tendrils. They noticed Cloud's energy was draining faster and was dying. _

Sephiroth gasped and shot back from the intense battle he was fighting against Genesis and hovered in the midair where he had been battling. He glared at Genesis who smirked at him with malice and the shine in his eyes were terrible, it had reminded him of Maleficius Sephirt, the darkness of the being itself, the pure evilness.

It wasn't what Genesis had that broke the battle apart, it was a feeling that he had, a feeling where a part of him was dying. Despite the barrier he had up between himself and Cloud, he felt her life draining away. He became pale, knowing he cannot leave Genesis and Omega alone to go to Cloud. Cloud had to fend on her own for now and he felt the fire, the driven desire from the depth of his soul burn bright white hot as he plunged back into the battle, fighting against Genesis, becoming the offense.

Genesis had not expected this, to see the burning desire to kill him from Sephiroth. It was the first time in his entire life; his entire immortal life that you must never, ever interfere with the power of love itself, for it is the purest thing ever in the entire universe, as if it was the principle and the unshakable foundation itself. For the first time, he felt fear.

"Like I told Maleficius Sephirt," Sephiroth grounded as he pushed against Genesis, slashing and parrying with the swords that burned with pure energy from his own, "This is my paradise! Cloud is my soul, my life and with everything from her, I live and burn for! Get the hell out!" He screamed and slashed, wounding Genesis, sending him to plummet down to the ground.

Across the center of the city, Vincent heard Sephiroth and his anger; he knew something had happened to fuel Sephiroth's anger. For the anger his son's burned, he was driven and fueled as well. He thought of Yuffie, his love of his life, of Cloud, who he had come to love like his own daughter, of his future granddaughter that was to be born soon and knew Omega has to be stopped. He leapt high from the ground and bounced off the creature several time and arriving to the head-like structure and hovered there. Omega had missed attacking him at every jump and ended up wounding himself more.

The burning anger grew from the core of his heart, and exploded outward, transforming him into another being, one called Chaos. He threw his head back and roared, his purplish demonic skin was bright contract against his crimson cloak and his ebony hair was wild like snake around his head. He grew wings and hovered, glaring at Omega, the being that was sucking the very life of the planet and its people.

He bowed his head down, clasping his hands together, calling from the depth inside his blood, his heart, his spirit, praying with all his might and found the small spark of light inside him. He smiled, recognizing the light, the love and the desire and knew it was the key core of defeating Omega, the protomateria within him.

He could feel the protomateria activating within his bloodstream, giving him the power, he felt it overpowering the other one that controlled Omega. He gasped slightly as he connected the other protomateria, overpowering it. The other protomateria, being inside Genesis wasn't fully connected to the man himself, for it still carried the soul of the boy from eons ago. He felt the soul, it's desire, it's love and sorrow for the Calamity of the Sky planet that once was. He felt its memories, it's terror and fears as well the happiness in the memories. He knew then, Genesis had no true control over Omega and the Weapon itself had no purpose, only acting upon order, draining life and energy.

To his surprise as he learned that Omega had not killed one soul since it had been awakened. It simply drained energy enough, only leaving the souls it drained from to hang on brink of life. He smiled to himself then, glad that the true factor of the key to destroy the planet was to have a purpose, a reason. And Genesis didn't. This is why he was able to overcome easily with his own protomateria. Omega fell under his control simply; however, it took more from him to do so.

Now, with the true protomateria inside him, he must overcome the desire of the eon old with his own, and it has to be stronger and greater. He thought and felt with all of his heart and beings, of those he loved. The light within him grew brighter and brighter until it encompassed himself, exploding into brilliant supernova-like light, shining brightly across the City and halfway around the world.

Throwing his head back and his limbs akimbo, the light encompassed Omega and he overrode the connection between Genesis and Omega, redirecting the connection to him. He gasped and growled as he felt a single life-force and forced Omega to withdraw it, severing its action of draining the single soul's life.

However, it did not let go, rather he found it was from the single soul that it was draining that held on tightly to Omega now. He dove in deeper, curious to why the single soul held onto Omega instead the Weapon holding onto it. He soon made contact with the soul and was jerked back, surprised as he recognized the soul. He was soon forced out of the Weapon's mind and hover in the air, watching as Omega was immobile, it's single cable still attached to the ground. His job was done, he had control over Omega, however, this one powerful being is attached for a different purpose and he had to back off and wait. He turned his head to see Sephiroth battling Genesis with fury and fervor.

Deep in the underground hidden chamber, Aeris and the other women gasped as they saw Cloud glow brilliantly white and the angelic wings burst from her back as she screamed her final push. The room glowed brilliantly white and Aeris had very little time to grab the baby that came out of Cloud and the afterbirth soon followed. Aeris gasped as Cloud disappeared from where she laid and held the squalling baby to her chest, wet from birth.

Shiva snapped out of her stupor and rushed to help Aeris with the newborn baby and Yuffie ran out of the room with Tifa in tow. Odin came around and handed the blanket for Aeris to wrap the child up.

"Where did Mommy go?" Odin asked, his voice quavering as he glanced to see the newborn baby. He wrinkled his face, thinking that the baby didn't look like a baby; it was wrinkly, bright pink and ugly with all the fuzz on her.

Aeris looked up to meet Odin's concerned but disgusted face. She smiled and replied, "I believe, to help Sephiroth."

"But isn't she not supposed to?"

Shiva shook her head, "She cannot help Sephiroth unless the baby is born. The baby feels normal, no extraordinary powers, how strange. I have expected more. Let's get out of here and see from the balcony." She suggested as she handed Aeris the blanket.

Aeris nodded and held the baby to herself, it had stopped crying and settled in her arms after being cleaned hastily and wrapped up, looking about with it's dark blue eyes curiously, almost as if it had intelligent of its own. They all hurriedly left the hidden chamber and made their way to the top third floor where they would have a better view of the city and the battle itself.

As they reached the balcony where Tifa and Yuffie stood gaping, watching the battle. They had seen Sephiroth battling ferociously against Genesis on one side and Vincent transforming into Chaos and exploding in bright light before Omega. Then, all the sudden, Omega's cable that was connected to the ground snapped, disappearing in thin air as the Weapon started to sway slightly.

They gasped softly as they watched on and out of the thin air in the midst of both battles; an angelic form appeared in the air. They watched as the female spread her golden wings wide and her golden hair turned from gold to silver and her feature changed slightly, taking on hint of Sephiroth's appearance and her wings changed from golden to grayish silver and a scepter appeared in her hand, long with two orbs on the top. They watched as she twirled the scepter around in a crescent arch and pausing as the orbs glowed brilliant lights before making a full circle. The immense power exploded and Omega staggered from where he stood. Little they knew, the baby in Aeris' arm was also staring out, as if she were watching as well, however, her eyes were glazed over, almost pale white irises.

The bright light from the mysterious angel's scepter shot out toward Sephiroth, hitting him in the back, however, it didn't impact him but rather, absorbed right into him. He then shone brightly like a star and he transformed, going from his traditional black color into pure white, his hair turned from silver to pure white like snow and long, waving like a banner behind him, even his Masamune, naturally dark became like a shining silver, almost crystal like merged in with Ultimate Weapon, creating a single sword, massive, long and crystallized.

Sephiroth felt his own power increased and he drove in as his swords merged, becoming one, plunging right into Genesis, who were stunned with shock of the unexpected transformation, sending him to plummet down to the ground with him landing on the top of him, pinning him to the ground.

Genesis gasped, staring wide up at the man before him, powerful and strong. He had expected to see emerald eyes but saw instead silver eyes and recognized the soul within the silver eyes, framed by snowy white hair. "Madoshi!"

"This time, you stay dead." Madoshi's voice filled the air with deadly tenor. His hands tightened its grip on the sword, sending burst of energy, killing Ouroboro, destroying his soul, not allowing it to pass on.

Genesis's eyes widened for a moment and he uttered a guttural sound before fading away. His crimson orbs faded into brown eyes of a mortal. "Thank you… Even my desire were hindered back on the planet of Calamity of the Sky by my own selfish want that allowed Ouroboro to have a second chance. Now it is finished." Then his eyes closed and his body faded away into dusts.

Sephiroth stood back, his white wings folded behind him and he looked up to see Gaia and Ouranos appearing before him. "What did he mean?" He asked.

Gaia bowed her head. "Mikal. In the last moment when he doomed his planet to destruction, a small selfish desire to survive lived in him, thus not completely destroying the planet and Ouroboro survived. In his death, he regretted and asked the fates to be reincarnated to complete what he had begun. Mikal was reborn as Gackt, in hope to stop his own people, his own parents and brother from interfering this world, however, he was born two thousands years too late and he could not do anything but being the chosen one to house Ouroboro's soul."

"So, it was his punishment." Sephiroth said simply as he faded away from the angelic appearance to his normal one, his hair returning to silver color and his clothes bled black. He looked to the source of the brilliant light above him and saw another angel and realized his burst of power had come from the angel itself. He watched as the woman descends to land on the ground.

He gaped as he recognized and didn't recognize all the same time who the woman was. He frowned as he saw hint of Cloud and himself in the woman and moved to meet her. "Who are you?"

The woman bowed her head, her silver hair spilling over her shoulder as she smiled. Her bright blue eyes shone the same intensity that Sephiroth recognized as Cloud's own eyes. She spoke, her voice soft and deep at the same time with hint of joy in it. "I am who I will be. Tell mother, I am waiting for her."

She closed her eyes and the bright aura faded from her, revealing Cloud who swayed on her feet. Sephiroth yelped slightly and stepped forward to grab Cloud before she fell. He saw that she was wearing the same gown from earlier however, blood and wetness stained the bottom half of her gown and he suddenly noticed the bump of her belly was gone. "Cloud!"

She laughed weakly as she held onto Sephiroth and winced, "Ow, that birthing wasn't fun." She murmured as she leaned against him. "Our daughter had to help; she took my body and went out to help you."

Sephiroth smiled, knowing what Cloud had meant. "Come on, she is waiting for you at home." He lifted her up and unfurled his black wings, taking to the sky to fly to the palace.

Gaia and Ouranos smiled as they watched Sephiroth take off with Cloud. "At least everything is over with Ouroboro; he is forever put to rest." Gaia murmured.

Ouranos nodded as he buried his face into his beloved wife's hair. "Yes. Let's go home. They have a long life ahead of them, full of adventure and none of them will ever compare to the adventure that brought them together."

"True. That child is something special."

"She is, after all, a fated child." Ouranos said and they both shimmered out of plane, disappearing from sight.

Sephiroth landed on the balcony, seeing most of his friends gathered there. He placed Cloud on her feet, yet still holding her up, knowing she was weak from birthing. He was surprised and shocked, at first he had thought he lost her but was glad she was still alive without hint of inches to death. He watched as Aeris step forward to hand her their child. He watched with joy in his heart as Cloud took the baby in her arms and unwrap the blanket away from the baby's face to reveal a familiar face.

He peered into his newborn daughter's eyes and saw the shine in the dark blue eyes he knew would come to be brilliant blue like her mother's eyes. He reached out and touched her silver wisp hair and laughed as the baby tried to grasp his finger. "She's beautiful." He whispered softly, afraid to break the spell. He stood behind Cloud, looking down at his daughter; he felt pride swell inside him. He finally has a daughter now and it was enough to bring a tear to his eyes.

Cloud nodded as she leaned back on Sephiroth, holding her daughter. It felt right, to simply hold her baby in her arms and she felt her heart soar with joy as she cried, studying her daughter's face. "Our baby…" She gasped softly as she looked up to see three orbs of light floating about them and she felt giddiness from the three lights and she laughed. "Her brothers welcome her too." She looked to Sephiroth, "What are we going to name her?"

Sephiroth looked from Cloud to the people surrounding him. They all were watching with anticipation on their faces, waiting for his reply. After all, a child isn't complete without her name. He had not even thought of naming his child, being overwhelmed of being a new king and facing threats of Genesis and Omega. However, upon looking at his daughter's face and he just knew her name, as if it came from the depth of his soul. "Serendipity Destiny Strife-Valentine, the new Princess of Gaea the Seventh." He announced.

Everyone cheered and started to chatter, coming around them, congratulating the new parents. Sephiroth looked to Cloud and picked her up bridal-style and silently made his way through his friends and family, leaving to their chamber for private time. As he headed to their room, Cloud had already begun feeding their daughter, who happily suckled, drinking her fill of her mother's milk. He soon settled her on the bed and quickly shed his clothes down to his pants and settled in the bed, watching the mother and daughter with love and pride in his eyes.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Sephiroth smiled at Cloud, both of them standing in the throne room together, looking over some papers that they've received for the day agenda. Things had been pretty much routine since the day Genesis and Omega had put to rest. The planet and its people had settled down into newer lives, futures and prospered happily under their rule since then. Problems rose and fell, never accelerating to life-threatening to the planet itself, it was a new age, things had changed and it was expected and no one had any issues of changing.

He held the papers in his hand and glanced over to Cloud, who were discussing some of the plans with Reeve and he smiled, her hair had remained long for very long time, making her appear very feminine, a change since the first time he had met her. Her curves were all in the right place and her face had not changed, not a single wrinkle or anything, she had not aged a day ever since. She looked young despite her age and he shook his head, he knew he was the same. His hair had grown long once again, reaching slightly past his waist and he no longer wore black, but adapted to wearing different colors, dressed like a regal king where Cloud dressed like a queen, however her taste was rather different, she didn't fully wear gowns but suits where she was more comfortable for flexibility and the tomboyishness still reside in her heart.

Turning his head to glance around the throne room, it was alive with people of the court, many of them standing or sitting around, talking and working over things as they had done every day. He recalled when it once was barren and empty when he first came here and now, it was full of light and life. He could see on the people's face, they shone with abundant life, happiness and it was as if they had never seen a day that their lives were threatened once. But in his memory, his heart and their hearts, they had and they weren't innocent but hardened from the memories of the threats by the Calamity of the Skies. He knew, beneath the joyful atmosphere, the people were all prepared, experienced and they are survivors.

"Okay, I will check it out." He turned to see a brown haired man, handsome in his own right, with blue eyes. He wasn't of the world, but of Gaea the Eight, a planet nearby. He was the only refugee from the planet, seeking to escape his failing home world. Cloud and Sephiroth had found him and welcomed him in their home and the man fast became their friend, one of the groups. His name was Leon, and he had forever sorrowful look in his eyes from losing his home world to the darkness.

Cloud nodded to the man and smiled. Sephiroth knew Cloud had a special place in her heart for that man, finding a bond with him but it didn't worry him, Cloud was loyal to him and would never go for any other man but him. Leon was more of a close friend, a confidant, much like Zack is to her. "All right, see you later." She said as she watched Leon walk away, silently and alone.

The sound of feet clattering through the room caught everyone's attention for a moment to see a seven years old girl run by. Sephiroth turned his head to see her rushing past, laugher upon her face. He smiled and called after her, "Dippy! You're expected back by dinner time!"

She paused and turned to him, smiling brightly. Her silver hair had settled down on her back after being flown like a banner from her running. Her bright blue eyes shining, "I know, Papa!" She called back and giggled as she met up with a boy with black hair and green eyes and a girl with dark skin, red hair and pale blue eyes. The three of them turned to the throne room from the entrance and the girl called out again, "Come on, Odin, you know we can't go out without you!"

Sephiroth watched as teenage Odin grumbled as he dragged himself across the throne room. "Make sure you all are back in time for dinner." Sephiroth said as the boy passed him.

Odin paused and turned to the King and bowed his head, "Yes sir." Sephiroth shook his head in amusement, knowing that despite Odin's complaining, he would follow his daughter anywhere. He knew Odin loved Serendipity unconditionally and felt the sadness wave in him as he watched Odin pick up his pace and ran after the three kids who had disappeared from the entrance.

Cloud looked up to him from his side; she reached out and touched his arm. "Sephiroth? Don't feel so sad, we still have years ahead of us before Serendipity become a woman."

He shook his head and turned to Cloud, "It felt as if it was only yesterday that she was born and I fear, when I wake up tomorrow, she will be a grown woman and telling me that she wants to marry."

Cloud laughed weakly, "You're not the only one who feel that way. She is growing up pretty fast." They heard Serendipity and her friends' laugher outside and smiled as she rested her head on Sephiroth's shoulder. She reached up and took the long strand of his hair and ran her fingers through them, she preferred his hair longer than short as it was once.

Sephiroth looked down to his wife and saw the top of her head and he bent his head to rest his cheek on her head. "Yes." He murmured softly and drew her to follow him out of the throne room in the other direction.

Outside in the garden of the palace, Serendipity was climbing the vine that hung on the wall that separated the palace from the city. "Come on guys, I found a cave yesterday and I want to explore it."

Odin rolled his eyes and waited as the others followed the silver-haired girl and followed soon after. Despite Serendipity's retreats from the confines of the palace, her parents knew and had asked him to keep eye on her every time she leaves the premises. He reached the top and rolled over to fall on the other side and landed gracefully on his feet and ran after the retreating kids that headed south to the main entrance of the city.

It didn't take long for them to reach the outskirt of the city and into the forest, leading up to the hills where there were plenty of places to explore. They treaded through the glowing trees to the cavern that Serendipity had found the day before. She slipped right into the entrance without hesitant and the others followed suit, going deeper into what seemed a straight tunnel and found themselves in a large circular chamber.

"Isn't this cool?" Serendipity gushed as she twirled around the center of the chamber. All around them, on the rocks glowed shimmering lights from the Materia that was embedded in the stones.

"Materia cave." Odin said as he recognized the lights on the rocks. "They're Materia."

"Yeah, it's so pretty!" Dahara, the red-head said as she reached out to touch the lights. "Ooh, I can feel that one, so cold!"

"That must be Ice one." Jules, the black haired boy said as he reached out to touch another one, "Yeowch, that one shocked me!" He laughed as he realized he had touched the Bolt Materia.

"What is that?" Serendipity asked as she reached the end of the cave and found a chair like rock sitting against the wall. There was a rock stand next to it and oddly enough, an old book was sitting on the rock-like stand. She reached out and picked it up, blowing the dust on the cover and read the title, "'The Genesis and the Omega'. How odd."

Odin came up to her, peering over her shoulder. He was tall enough to see clearly over her head easily. "The beginning and the end. It's from a long time ago." He said, remembering the terrible man named Genesis and a Weapon, which now laid dormant deep in the heart of Gaea, sleeping, to never be used ever again. "It's not real important." He took the book and flipped the pages to find the pages blank.

Serendipity looked up to Odin. She knew him all of her lives and knew her feelings were different for him, he wasn't like a brother to her but more, yet she knew one day she would find out what it was but wasn't in a hurry to do so. She smiled and nodded her head, trusting him and bounced off to explore the cave.

Odin smiled as he placed the book down where it would once again be forgotten. He turned and followed after Serendipity, hearing Jules and Dahara laughing behind him, chatting about the Materia. He found Serendipity into another chamber that connected the first one, it was smaller and he had to duck his head under the low ceiling. He found her kneeling before something at the end of the chamber, "Sere?" He asked.

"It's a door." Serendipity said, looking up to see him kneeling beside her. "It's weird to have a door here." She looked back to the wooden door that was on the wall. It had no doorknob and there was something carved in the center of the door in a shape of a curvy heart. She reached up and touched it, it glowed slightly bluish under her fingers and she snapped her hand back as if it burned. "What is it?" There was some kind of writing underneath the symbol, she squinted her eyes to read it and murmured, "Strong Heart is the key to open the Door to other worlds."

Odin frowned as he touched the symbol and it held no reaction, it remained black under his finger. "That's weird." He moved to inspect the door under the dim light of the Materia rocks around him. He fingered the edge and the surface and found there was no way of opening it. He sat back and concluded, "It's just a wooden door, stuck to the wall. I don't think there's a hole or anything past this wood." He said and to empathize his point, he knocked and no hollow sound came like any door should had when knocked upon. He had found the writing strange too.

Serendipity shrugged and stood up. Her head came to the ceiling of the chamber and she giggled as she watched Odin stand up as well and bumped his head. "Come on, we better get back before Daddy get mad at me for staying out too long. I don't want you to get in trouble again." She grabbed his hand and dragged him out of the chamber.

From behind them, the wood creaked and opened a slight, revealing crack of blackness. Spindly shadows came from the crack and formed into a spindly four fingered hand gripping the edge of the door, opening it wider. The heart symbol glowed dark orange red before it faded again and the shadows started to creep out. The cavern echoed with the laughers of the four kids.

A dark voice whispered, "Ahh, more hearts for master…"

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	62. Sere:P: Sealed Memories

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Prologue: Sealed Memories

Sora sighed as he looked out of the window of the gummi-ship. At least this time, his ship had been improved from a mass of colorful strange structure into a sleek silver and black rocket ship that had the ability to outmaneuver and outshoot the enemies in space, if ever upon encounter. He ran his gloved fingers through his wild brown hair that stuck about everywhere on his head as he turned away from the window to glance to the other occupant on the ship. He watched with his blue eyes at the man who dozed in the chair next to him, his long legs stretched out from him, crossed and his head resting upon his chest, he had same brown hair and blue eyes like he had. If anyone were to look upon them, they would think they were brothers.

He glanced back to the window and saw that they were finally approaching the designated world he was actually traveling to; Gaea the Seventh. He peered to see the beautiful blue and green planet they were approaching, the white clouds swirled over the land and ocean. The planet itself looked very much like every other habitable world, peaceful and full of life. His purpose of visiting the world was to make sure the door of shadow, the door that interconnect to many other worlds in the galaxy, allowing the evil and darkness overtake the world, if ever the door was opened.

He scoffed as he recalled his adventure; it was one strange one that he took since he was fourteen. As he understood, each world has a door, which upon opening, would release the shadows, which steals the hearts of the people. Not literally, but the soul of the people, to feed upon the energy, to give to the crazed man name Ansem to open up a portal that would give him access to rule the entire galaxy. But, he has the ability to close and seal the door to the world, removing the shadows and evils, restoring the planet to its former self. It was a long and hard adventure he had gone on and finally, he was approaching a far off system in the galaxy where it held several habitable worlds, ruled by the goddess Gaia. It was his duty to make sure the doors on the four worlds there was closed and sealed.

According to the man next to him, Leon, it was, the door was closed by a sorceress of Gaea the Seventh some time ago but it wasn't sealed because she held none of the power to seal them but he does. He swished his hand and the sword appeared in his grip, it was shaped like a large key, and it held packed power that only he and very few others could wield. Leon had warned him that the planet has a princess, whoever she was very unlike any others he had met in his adventure.

Princesses, through his adventure, he learned was the key to opening the doors, with their pure heart and strong willpower and love open the door upon a mere touch. Their hearts, larger than any others were the primary target of the evils, combined, they were almost enough to open a door on a world, which gave way to another galaxy where everything was pretty much upside down. Kairi, his girlfriend from his own world was one of the seven princesses, even not a princess in her own right, her heart was equal to the others and he had sought to rescue her and in the end, he had done so and that was ages ago, or it had felt like it.

The ship made its descend upon the planet, touching down on the solid ground in the clearing near a forest and mountain on the far northern face of the planet, close to the cold polar cap. He was surprised that he had missed the sight of landing on the planet by deep musing of the past. He turned to see Leon groan and stretch, waking up from his nap and grabbing up his own sword, the deadly gunblade. He stood up and brushed the leather pants he wore and rotated his head, causing his neck to give out slight pop. He turned to Sora and gave a serious nod, "We're here, let's go and meet with their leaders." He said simply and headed to the exit. Sora got up and followed quietly, wondering how Leon knew of the planet and everything else that matters.

The question was itching in him and as they finally exited the ship to head into the forest, Leon leading, he asked, "How did you know much about this planet? No one else in the other worlds knows anything of this galaxy."

Leon stopped and turned to Sora, "Very few people came from this world, when the shadows first started to show up, survived and made their way to Taverse Town, Hollow Bastion and others. You've met them. My home world is the next planet from here, Gaea the Eight and I know some people from this planet because when my home world was overtaken once by the shadows, I came here and stayed here until the shadows took this world as well."

Sora nodded; finally understanding a little bit of Leon's mysterious past. "So, will they remember you?" He asked as they continued on into the forest. He found it strange that the forest they were walking through very quiet and almost no signs of animals sound was heard.

Leon shook his head, "No one remembers, as if it had never happened here on this world."

Sora gaped at Leon, "How can nobody remembers? Surely they would remember that their world becoming shadowed."

Leon paused and held his hand up in the air, immediately silencing Sora, sending him on full alert. "The sorceress is very powerful and she was the one who sealed everyone's memories here. Your memories, as well were sealed."

Sora frowned and his hand flickered, the Keyblade materialized in the air and he gripped it. "Mine?"  
Leon nodded and fell into stance, holding his gunblade out, ready for an attack. As Sora almost expected it, out of the glowing ethereal white trees and the darkness, a shadow appeared like lightening in front of them from above and formed into a woman standing before them, ominous and dangerous. Energies crackled about her as her silver hair whipped behind her and her black and purple gowns whipped around her lithe form with violent wind that swirled only around her. She shot her hand out and long silver and blue specter, close to a rod appeared in her hand, cracking with energies as well.

Sora gaped as he stared at the woman before him. She appeared to be young, not very much older than he was, maybe by few years. He gripped hard on his Keyblade, expecting attacks from the woman. He felt his blood go cold as he heard her voice as she seemed to settle slightly, "You are not of this world, who are you?" Her voice was sharp and crisp, promising powers and demanding respect. He guessed then she was the sorceress that Leon had warned him about.

He stood up slightly from his stance, staring at the woman, "It's not much of your business, and we're here to meet the leader. Just get out of my way, witch and sizzle in a lake!" He gulped as he realized he made a mistake as he saw her blue eyes paled slightly, giving off ominous appearance and her face scowled darkly.

Leon rolled his eyes and stood back, drawing away his gunblade and sighed. "Congratulation, you just pissed off the powerful sorceress of this planet, and on your first day arriving here." Leon drawled as he stood back, leaning on his gun blade, watching.

Sora whipped his head to Leon, "What!? I've gone up against worse, what could she do to me?"

Leon shook his head and watched as the sorceress whip her scepter in complex and quick move, shooting a lightening bolt toward the young man. Sora yelped as he was hit and thrown back, skidding across the forest floor and hitting into the tree behind him. He groaned as he looked up blearily to the woman walking over to him and holding her scepter to him in threatening way.

"You would be wise to rethink your words and state your reasons for being here. We don't take kindly to otherworldly strangers. And by the way, it's not witch, its sorceress, or if you rather, Princess." She said as she glared hard at him.

Sora shook his head as his eyes widened, realizing that he was facing the princess of the planet, and she was a sorceress to boost. That was something new and then he narrowed his eyes at the scepter, it looked familiar. A flashback came to his mind and he was puzzled to why he would have the memory of a young girl, no older than fourteen at the coliseum, with the very same scepter. He looked up to the sorceress and realized, the young girl in his memory had the same blue eyes and silver hair like the sorceress and he gasped as a name came to his mind, "Serendipity?"

She frowned as she stepped back, "How did you know my name?"

Leon stepped up and helped Sora to his feet. "We were heading to the City to meet with the King and the Queen, my Princess. Much more will be explained when we reach there. It would do us honor if you guide us to the city." He said as he bowed his head to the sorceress. "I am known as Squall Leonheart, or rather Leon. This is Sora, the Keyblade Master."

She glanced to Leon and eyed him. "Very well." She swished her wrist and the scepter disappeared much like the Keyblade would disappear for Sora when not in use. Sora warily followed the imposing princess slash sorceress through the forest and soon, they faced the large beautiful city in alabaster and pearly colors down in the valley below them surrounded by silvery trees. It looked like Eden to him and it was unique much like every other worlds. He smirked, realizing that the city was already on his favorite places to go to on his list. He followed her down the path that led right into the city. Leon looked sullen as usual, serious and quiet and Sora scoffed at the older man, ignoring him and taking in the beauty of the city itself. He saw that the people were also friendly and greeted the Princess when they passed them by and understood that the Princess was loved by the people and wondered if the rulers, her parents, that is, are also kind and gentle people.

He had seen on different world, of different rulership and not all were to his liking. This world was already to his liking despite his wrong footing with Serendipity. He could admit that the woman was extremely beautiful and himself, as a young man, should had been attracted to her beauty but he had strange feeling and couldn't understand why he wasn't even attracted to her at all, there was something about the woman that was so familiar to him. He shrugged, figured that things will unfold as it usually do in good time. He glanced over to Leon and suspected Leon had intended to visit this world, after all, why would the man accompany him in the first place.

They finally entered the grand palace, to his surprise was carved out of the giant tree in the center of the city. It was tastefully done and beautiful, an accomplishment in its own. They were directly led to the throne room and Sora spotted the throne chairs but saw it was empty. Serendipity stopped in the center and turned her head to the right, where there was some people clustered in the corner near the other door, chatting and passing around papers. He saw a man and he felt his blood go cold, recognizing the man from his adventure.

Sephiroth, the man Sora had faced in the final challenge at the Coliseum battle and nearly died long time ago at the blade of the deadly sword. It was him, standing there looking slightly different, using robes of navy blue with silver and gold trimming. To his surprise, upon his head was the crown signifying him as the king. He swallowed as he saw the massive familiar sword at his hip, the Masamune. He remembers the pain of being slashed by the very sword. As he turned to face the newcomer, Sora just about stopped breathing, seeing the familiar emerald eyes, knowing them to be cold, however, it was not the shock of the eyes, but the warmth in them that shocked him to the core and he had never expected so.

"Serendipity." Sephiroth's deep voice carried across the room with slight echo. He strode to meet them and the Princess gave a smirk, bowing her head. "Who did you bring now?"

"Father, they're foreigners." She said as she gestured to each, "Leon and Sora."

King Sephiroth frowned slightly, "Foreigners? There are no foreigners on this world, you know that."

"I know. They came from another world, saying they need to meet you and mother." She turned her head to see another person approaching and she smiled widely at the woman, "Mother."

"Serendipity." The Queen said, to Sora's surprise, she was equally beautiful to Serendipity but in her own way, her long golden hair cascaded down her back and her blue eyes shone like sapphire. She wore was not exactly a gown but half gown with slack underneath and her top was simple, everything about her radiated strong beauty and he suspected the woman was also a warrior and at the same time, hauntingly familiar too.

Leon stepped forward, and bowed to the waist, "King Sephiroth, Queen Sorano." Sora blinked, catching that the Queen has a feminine form of his own name and wondered what the hell was going on, and he began to suspect that there was some kind of connections somewhere. "Forgive us for our intruding; we have come on couple of matters." He stood up again and gestured to befuddled Sora beside him, "He is the Keyblade master and had come to inspect several planets in this system, to seal the doors of shadow."

Sephiroth frowned once again, "Door of Shadow?"

Serendipity's face grew stoic, "So, you have finally come."

The King turned to his daughter, "Explain." His voice left no room for argument.

She nodded slightly, "Yes, Father. No one would remember for their memories are sealed by me a long time ago. I accidently opened the Door of Shadow and came from it was darkness and it took over the planet, taking the souls of the people and only few of us survived and left." She sighed as she turned slightly away to look at some point in the room, recalling the memories that she obviously was the only one who still remembered.

Queen Sorano stepped up to her daughter and gave a comforting touch, "Serendipity, is that why you suddenly one day had all the powers, trained and under control?"

"Yes, it may had only been one day for everyone, but it was a long time for me then, I came back and saved the planet, sealed everyone's memories of the shadows as if it never happened." She turned to face Sora, "You are the only one who can seal the doors because you hold the Keyblade. I only could barricade it so long, I waited for the day that you would come, brother."

Sora gasped as if was being hit with gunshot. "What?"

Serendipity smiled as she addressed Leon, "Apparently, you also remember."

"Yes, I do. The seal you left on me wasn't strong enough, it broke over the time and I remember, regretfully because it was what I had once and never will happen." He said softly as he glanced to the Queen, there was some hint of love evidence in his eyes.

Sephiroth stiffened as he noticed too, stepping closer to his wife, his hand resting upon the hilt of the sword at his hip, glaring at Leon. The other man bowed his head and stepped back. Serendipity spoke up, breaking the tension. "I am going to unseal the memories in all of you and you will remember." She said and with her cool fingers, she touched each forehead and in their mind, they felt something break and the rush of memories came.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	63. Sere:1: The Shadows

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Chapter 1- The Shadows

Sephiroth looked up from his work on his desk to see his daughter rush into his office with a big smile upon her face. He couldn't help but smile back to her, curious to why she would barge in this time around. Often when she would come running to him, interrupting him from his work, she would have something interesting to say or to show him and he couldn't deny her.

It was always something new after the last and he placed his pen down and bit back a chuckle as she started to bounce on her heels impatiently. She was young yet, seven years old but she had to learn her place and waited for her to settle down, glaring at her with indifference. He watched with amused silence as her hair, long and silver much like his hair bounce wildly behind her, so alive and free like her personality. He noted her hands were clasped together, holding something from his view. Her bright blue eyes, brilliant and deep much like her mother's eyes shone with excitement. He knew she almost couldn't contain herself and teased her by remaining silent.

Like everyone else in the palace, one must wait for the King to acknowledge them to speak and Serendipity wasn't the exception. She has to wait until her father speak or give the single for her to speak. The moment ticked on and she stopped bouncing, nearly growling as she realized her father was teasing her by the tiny twitch in the corner of his mouth and rolled her eyes. She stood still and lowered her hands down and glared at him.

He gave a chuckle and asked, "What is it, Dippy?" She rolled her eyes again at the nickname. He was the only one who was allowed to call her the name and it was a special bond between the two.

"Father!" She trusted her hands out to him, her excitement back in full force. "Look what I found!" She gushed as she opened her hands to expose a delicate glass sphere of white with dark swirls all over it, like a marble, almost as big as her palm.

He recognized the Materia, it was long dead like all the others, however this one was lost since he had last seen it. He had believed Yuffie had kept it in her collection but Serendipity had proven him wrong, as it was before him now. "Ah, where did you find it?" He asked as he took the Materia, inspecting it.

"It's so pretty! I found it in the north forest outside the city, near the Mirror Temple." She said as she continued to bounce on her feet, her arms on the table leveraging her.

Looking up from the Materia to his daughter, "This is indeed a special one. It was your mother's summon Materia, the Seraphim Materia." He saw her eyes go wide in recognition, knowing she had heard the tales of the two Angels countless times. "It's useless like others, but you can keep it." He said as he handed the sphere back to her.

"Ooh! Do you think I will find the Seraph Materia too?" She asked as she carefully pocketed the Materia in her dress pocket and looked up to her father.

"Actually, I have it; it was the Seraphim Materia that was lost to us all a long time ago." He said and stood up and went around the desk to hold his hand out.

She took his hand and they left the office and he led her down the hall to the stairway and they spiraled down to the floor below the ground where they went to the massive vault. Sephiroth nodded his head to the guards that stood in the hallway to the vault. Serendipity was hopping along with limitless excitement. When they reached, Sephiroth held his hand over the monitor beside the large grand doors that sealed the vault shut. The monitor scanned his hand and he moved his thumb to another part and allow it to prick and take sample of his blood to analyze his DNA, after learning that clones does not carry similar DNA to the original, it was a precaution security measure. It beeped approval, recognizing him. They listened as the locks within the thick deep door unlatch with loud boom, echoing in the hallway.

Finally, by the seventh boom, the door was unlocked and Sephiroth let Serendipity's hand go to pull back the large door. It took about ten strong men to open the massive and heavy door open but Sephiroth was stronger and with little effort, the door opened enough for them both to slip in through. Serendipity saw her father's nod and ran through the crack and waited on the other side of the door for her father to enter. He entered and took her hand once again, facing the massive room filled to the brim with all kinds of treasures. He lead her over to one area in the room where a metal box, modernized and plain compared to thousands of treasure chests from all over the world and other planets in the system in the room and knelt, taking the latch off and lifting the lid to reveal many orbs within the box.

Serendipity frowned, "Why do you keep the Materia here if they are useless?" She asked.

Sephiroth rifled through the box, searching for an orb. There were many colors of orbs in the box and Serendipity noticed most of them were red. "This box holds the most powerful of them all before they were rendered useless. All of the summonses Materia are also held here. We don't know if they are useless forever, they could one day return to its fullest and we do not want them to fall into wrong hands anymore after your brothers before you were born."

She nodded in understanding, knowing of what happened to her three older brothers. She bended over to watch as her father searched. "How did Seraphim Materia became missing?" She asked.

He paused in his search to answer, "When it was used once, it disappeared and we thought that was it. Both Seraph and Seraphim was used once and that was it. The only difference between those two is, Seraph is a red one and Seraphim came from the inside of Seraph Materia and the only one that was two in one."

"Wow." Serendipity said as she stood back up as her father stood up. He turned and handed her a small red orb, it was slightly smaller and brighter than any other Materia she had seen. The Seraphim Materia was about twice bigger. She frowned as she took out Seraphim and compared the two. "You said Seraphim was in the Seraph? It doesn't make sense." She said as she held up the two orbs to her father.

He laughed and took them. "The size does not matter, in this world with magic, it's possible. Truth to be told, your mother hold more power than I do while I hold more strength, that's why her Materia was bigger."

"Oh." She said, accepting the answer as she took them back and pocketed it. "You really sure it's okay that I have them?"

He nodded as he ruffled her silver hair, causing her to giggle. "Yes, you are my daughter and I trust you. The only one who can summon the Angels has to have the blood of the Valkyrie and Cetra, and Zack was the only one who was able to summon us before."

"Cool! Wait a minute!" She said as they stepped out of the vault and she turned to her father as he closed the door. Once it closed, the locking happened, echoing seven booming noises. "I am a Valkyrie; I can't summon it when I don't have Cetra blood in me!"

He laughed at her, "I wouldn't worry about that. You have the blood of the Seraph and Seraphim in you and there will be no need to summon them, because you are them as well, after all, you are the daughter of the Angels." He said as he led her back to the floor above.

She sighed and laughed as she pocketed the Materias and ran off down the hallway to find her friends to play, calling back, "Thanks Daddy!"

He shook his head and turned to find his wife approaching him. "Cloud." He said with love in his voice as he swept her close to his body and kissed her temple, enjoying the feel of her flushed against him. He was amazed even after several years; he never ceased to enjoy the feeling and having his wife, his true love and soulmate of his life by his side. He had missed her this morning, being buried in paperwork.

"Sephiroth." She answered and looked up to him. "What did Sere wants this time?"

"Nothing much again. She found Seraphim Materia and I gave her the Seraph, so she would have both of them, after all, Seraph is nothing without Seraphim or the other way around." He replied. She smiled at him and kissed him in return.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Serendipity ran outside and into the garden, searching for someone in mind and spotted the brown hair and stifled a giggle as she found him. She sneaked quietly as she could behind the young teenager sitting at the bench, reading a book. As she reached just a foot behind him, he spoke, "Don't even think about it. You were too loud." He said and placed the book down, turning to face the girl.

She pouted at him, "Aw Odin! You always spoil my surprises!" She said. He grinned at her and she jumped to latch herself at the teenager boy who yelped and caught her but only to tumble backward off the bench, taking both of them down on the grass. She giggled as she buried her head into his neck.

He shook his head in amusement and sat up, holding Serendipity to him as he stood up and he then swung her around in circle, making her laugh more. He stopped and settled her down, looking into her blue sparkling eyes and let her go. She started to dance about in the garden, singing some song while he watched.

Odin, being five years older than Serendipity was considered to the rest of the world as the Regent Prince, the adoptive son of the King and Queen, however, in his heart, he felt different. He had known since he was young, when Serendipity was born, he could never see her as his sister but more and knew his destiny then, to protect her for all of her life. When he approached his seventh summer, he feared that his feeling would grow deeper and hid his feeling, pretending he was nothing more than a brother to Serendipity.

But not too long ago, he was caught one time, looking at her, not in a brotherly way but in a way a man would look at a woman with love. Sephiroth had simply stared at him with impassive face, towering tall and imposing before him. He was deathly afraid then, aftaid he had done immoral thing but boldly stood before the father of the girl he fell in love with and waited for the outcome, banishment or death.

But when Sephiroth spoke, his voice was soft, not the expected deep condemning voice, shocking him to the core. "Wait until she is old enough to love you in return." Then, he walked off, leaving Odin to ponder the words and to settle the shock that he had received the blessing.

He stepped back as Serendipity whipped her head, her silver hair flying in arch as she saw her two other friends. A black haired and green eyed boy came through the small patch of woods in the garden, smiling as he waved to Serendipity. The silver haired girl ran to him and latched onto his neck as well, "Jules!" Then they both returned to the bench where Odin had sat down.

Jules was a quiet boy, always following wherever Serendipity goes. He was also same age as Serendipity, and they grew up together along with one another, Dahara, a pretty girl with dark skin, brilliant red hair and ice blue eyes. The three of them were best of friends, always causing mischief in the palace and he, Odin, were always a step behind them, being five years older and appointed guardians over them whenever they got together and played.

"Where's Dahara?" Serendipity asked as she sat down on the bench next to Odin, unaware that she was about to snuggle up to him. She had always felt comfortable around the older boy, feeling secured and safe in his presence. He was always there for her no matter what.

Jules shrugged as he sat down on the grass before them, picking at the grass. "Don't know. I just finished training with father." Jules was the son of Aeris and Zack, taking after his mother's quietness and kindness with his father's handsome look and strength. Of the three, he was the smart and rational one, questioning Serendipity's boldness or ideas for adventure.

As he finished talking, Dahara, the other girl appeared from another part of the garden, scowling as she wrung her red hair, dripping water. Serendipity laughed as her other friend finally sat down and asked, "I guess Aunite Shiva got to you?"

"It's hard training with mom! Daddy is much easier on me than she is." Dahara muttered as she flicked her hands dry, spraying cold water at her friends. Shiva was a former Summon Ice goddess while Ifrit was the Summon Fire god and they both trained their daughter in the skill of using magic fire and ice, seeing that she inherited both of their ability. Dahara wasn't very good at the magic and both parents were concerned that Dahara wasn't using her ability to the fullest.

Dahara was more hot tempered of the three, easy to explode and more aggressive and brash. Unlike her father's quiet wisdom, she had inherited her mother's short temperedness and wildness. She was the opposite of Jules, the one who was ready to fight while Jules was the peacemaker of the group.

Odin knew of the situation with Dahara, being the oldest, he had more connection and information from the adults around them. "Your mother wants you to be able to control your powers before you get older, she's only looking out for you." He explained gently, ignoring Dahara's scowl.

"Yeah, yeah. Like encasing in ice and being left like that for five minutes as a punishment if I didn't do whatever right." She glowered as she looked away from her friends. "Why can't you two get the training?" She gestured to her friends, knowing Jules has the possibility to inherit his mother's healing and Serendipity to inherit her parent's strengths and powers.

Jules shook his head, "I don't have anything in me. I'm training with swords like father, but am nowhere any good like Serendipity."

The silver-haired girl bopped Jules on the arm, "You know I'm not training anymore. Mother says the power comes when it's ready. So, I'm stuck with math and reading." She made a face and stuck her finger on her tongue, causing her friends to laugh. She shook her head and bounced in her seat, pulling out two Materias from her pocket. "Look, I found the Searaphim Materia earlier in the north forest, and daddy gave me his, the Searaph Materia!"

Odin peered over Serendipity's shoulder to see the two orbs in her hands. Jules gaped with awe as he leaned closer to take a closer look. Dahara gave a glance and set her face in indifference. Odin remembered seeing the two Materias a long time ago before Serendipity was born; he was surprised, knowing that Seraphim one had disappeared without trace. "Did you father tell you that they hold no powers?"

Serendipity nodded, "He said that I am the one who holds both Seraph and Seraphim's powers. But I am going to keep them both, they are special to me." She beamed at him. "They are part of my parents and now I can have them both with me always." She giggled and pocketed them away in her pockets once again. "I think, maybe I'll get Zack or Uncle Cid to make me something with them."

Jules grinned, "That'd be cool. What do you think you will have them made into?"

Serendipity pursed her lips and tapped her chin, "I don't know. What do you think?"

"A sword! With slots in them so you'd put them in." Jules offered.

Dahara rolled her eyes at the boy and swatted his shoulder, "Sword, is that all you think about? It's a guy thing. I think you should have them make a bangle for you and you can put them in it, and wear it with you always."

Odin laughed at the kids. "Dahara, you forget, Queen Sorano wields swords, hers is bigger and powerful than King Sephiroth's Masamune and also holds several swords in one."

Jules nodded, "That's right. Serendipity should have a sword like her parents."

Dahara scoffed, eyeing her best friend next to Odin, "Serendipity may be the daughter of the two best sword-people but she doesn't hold skill to wield a sword. She should wield something else."  
Serendipity nodded, agreeing with Dahara. She once was trained to use sword but didn't find any skills in them and her parents decided to let it go, suspecting Serendipity has another skill hidden inside her waiting to emerge forth. "Maybe I should go and look at the library soon and see what I can find."

Odin glanced to Serendipity, "I think, how about a scepter?"

She looked up to him and her eyes went wide, "You think so?"  
"I don't know, but it seems fitting." He smirked and laughed as she latched onto him once again, but this time, he regained balance and held her as she giggled into his chest.

"Come on," Jules said as he stood up, "Let's go to the library and find what we should do next." He was eager for a new adventure and often, when they were in mood for adventure, they would make a stop at the library to find out what they should do or search for, researching before they set out on an adventure. The last one was recently, where Serendipity had discovered a hidden cave south of the city, near the road entrance.

"Yeah!" Dahara cheered and got up, running after Jules, leaving Serendipity and Odin behind in the garden.

Odin stood up, setting Serendipity down on her feet, he bowed to her formally, "Shall we, Princess?" He smirked as she blushed and swatted him, running after her friends, leaving him in the dust.

"Last one is the Chocobo's egg!" She called back to him and laughed all the way into the palace.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Reeve had called both Sephiroth and Cloud into a short quick meeting in the library, giving report and concerns over his recent discovery. The three of them were seated at the conference table in a room adjacent to the library with few other people as well. He was standing before the table, "Reports came in from all over the world few days ago and I found it suspicious, people are starting to collapse, becoming comatose, even awake in the middle of whatever they were doing." He started and handed out some papers to the people in the room.

Cloud frowned as she took the documents, "What is going on? Is it some kind of plague? Another outbreak of Geosigma?" she asked and rubbed her arm where she once had the illness and remembered the pain.

"No. It's very unusual." Reeve answered, "Reports says it was like as if they just lost their soul, their being and became a shell in an instant." He rubbed his forehead, he didn't like situation where he had no answer for. "There were some witnesses that they saw fleeting shadow, quick as they touched the person and left, leaving them in such state. Those people are being put in confinements in the hospitals all over the world. Few are being brought to Neo-Midgar for closer inspection. They want to catch the outbreak before it's worldwide. The numbers are increasing day by day and it's almost uncontrollable."

"What are the common factors in those people?" Sephiroth asked.

"There are no real common factors. They are all good and hard working people, it varies from one person to another. It seemed that their main targets are their souls."

Vincent read the report in his hands and looked up, "Is it Omega?"

"You tell me." Reeve replied as he sat down, resting his cheek in his hand. "Some doctors suspects but cannot decide because you are the only one who has the connection to the weapon itself."

The red clad sniper closed his eyes for a moment, "Omega is in deep hibernation, where he is, below Wutai and no, it is not him. Hm. What is the other that would absorb the souls?"

Sephiroth stood up, "Find out more, inform me every time there is something new and keep track of numbers of the victims. Our main concern should be to contain the victims and prevent the outbreak."

Reeve nodded, "Yes, my liege." He said as he stood up, bowing to Sephiroth. He had recognized an order and responded in kind.

Cloud watched as Sephiroth leave the room, she could feel the frustration radiating off her husband and turned to the others. "If you all must, keep us informed every minutes or hours, this is not good. I think I shall counsel with Gaia soon." She stood up and with a sweep; she left the room with grace.

Odin looked up from his corner of the library with Serendipity and her friends to see Sephiroth walking by. He noticed the King was almost storming away in frustration and soon Cloud followed with calming grace, going after him. He watched and wondered if he would had the kind of relationship with Serendipity someday much like her parents. He looks up to Sephiroth like a father and admired him. They took him in when he was five years old, after choosing mortality from being a summon thunder god and they took him in and called him their own without a second thought.

He then saw Jules' parents and Vincent follow soon after with Reeve and few other council members. He realized that they just had a meeting and watched as they left the library. As Reeve was the last one to leave, he didn't realize he had dropped a file and it fluttered to the floor near Odin. The teenager reached out and picked up the file and turned it over, reading it. He knew he wasn't supposed to read confidential files but the words was blazing out to him on the paper and he had to look. He saw the words, 'shadows', 'souls', 'outbreaks' and read it to the details, finding out that there was an outbreak in the world, people falling victim to some kind of soul-stealing shadows.

Standing up, he was reminded of a book somewhere in the library for some reasons. He glanced to Serendipity and saw she was engrossed in weapons book, looking up for a kind of weapon to fit her need. He saw that she was reading on the chapter for scepter and smiled. He left them there and went to the other side of the massive library and made his way though a small twisted maze to reach a shadowed and forgotten corner. He skimmed the shelves and found the book he was looking for and took it off the shelf, it was titled, 'The Light and the Darkness of the Hearts'.

He had read the book out of curiously one time and thought it to be some kind of silly research of somebody but now with the outbreak going on, according to Reeve's report, the shadows were stealing the people's souls and they don't know what it is. He gripped the book, thin and small to his chest, it was the answer. He ran out of the hallway and to Sephiroth's office down from the library. As he reached the office, he looked around and frowned, there was no one there. He turned and sighed in frustration, he needed to see Sephiroth.

The footsteps, heavy they were, caused him to look up to see the man in question approaching him. "Sephiroth!" Odin said as he ran up to the King. "I, uh, you need this." He said as he handed the small book to Sephiroth who took it quizzically.

"What is it?" He asked, finding the book unfamiliar.

"The outbreak, the soul-stealing shadows…" Odin began, unsure what to say, "Reeve dropped the report from your meeting earlier, I read it and remembered this book from the library. It could explain what is going on now; it's all in the book." He said finally.

Sephiroth's brows furrowed as he gave Odin a nod and entered his office as he studied the book. "Thank you. I appreciate your help. Do not repeat the report to anyone else; we want to contain it before it gets worse."

Odin watched silently as Sephiroth closed the door behind him, shutting the teenage boy out. "But, it's not going to be contained… it will take one with strong heart to defeat them all." He murmured in reply and wondered, who would be the one, the strong hearted person, without the doubt of shadow in his heart to seal the shadow away once for all.

Feeling another presence nearby, he turned to find the newcomer from Gaea the Eight, the other world nearby and the only survivor. "Leon."

"Boy." The tall man said, his brown hair hanging around his face, casting his sad blue eyes in shadows. "There's nothing they can do."  
"Is this what happened to your world?"

Leon tilted his head as if in thought and he answered, "Yes. The shadows are going to consume this world as well, it's unstoppable."

"What is it, what can be done?" Odin asked as he watched the older man walk away. He couldn't help but feel pity for the other man, losing his home world and everything he knew and love there. It struck fear in his heart that it was going to happen to his world as well and wondered if he would ever hold such shadow in his eyes like Leon's.

"No one knows. The only way to stop it is the one who can wield the Keyblade." Leon said, stopping as he turned to look back at the teenage.

"Keyblade? That's a myth." Odin replied as he moved to catch up with the other man.

"No, it is not. The one to wield is a myth, for he has not existed yet."

"You mean there is no Keyblade Master out there?"  
"Oh, there are several." Leon explained. "But only one with pure and strong heart can stop the shadows and there are none like this one."

Odin paused as he watched Leon walk away, disappearing wherever he tend to hide in the palace. He shook his head and turned to return to the library.

From where he hid in the hallway's shadow, he watched the teenager boy turn away and return to the library. Leon reached in his pocket and pulled out a small folded paper and held it. He wasn't of this world but another and was, like Cloud, a hero to his world, saving it from an evil sorceress. He had been living in peace with his girlfriend, finishing Academy at Baalam Garden, the capital of Gaea the Eight, having good time with his friends as well until the fateful day when the shadows swooped in and took over his world.

It was fast and unavoidable. That day it happened, he was training, flying a small spaceship and over the radio, he was told to leave, to find help. Distraught and torn, he abandoned his world and flew in space, lost and unsure what to do. The last data burst was sent to his computer by the scientist before the world turned black before his eyes told him of what had happened.

He was enraged when he learned that the scientists had been researching of an outbreak going on, slowly consuming the people everywhere, their souls missing. They kept the information from everyone and the governments, believing that they could find the cure until it was too late. The scientists had left a small clue, information on that the only answer lies in the Keyblade Master and the Princess Sorceress.

Lost and alone in space, he found his way to the next planet, Gaea the Ninth and found the planet doomed like his own. He moved onto Gaea the Tenth, the farthest and smallest planet and was surprised to find it untouched. There he learned that the planet was immune to the shadows because it was out of space and time itself, for the planet had carried several timelines in different area. There, a sorceress told him that his destiny lies in the Seventh, where the Keyblade Master and the Princess Sorceress will come forth from.

Traveling back the other way, he reached Gaea the Seventh and found it untouchable and the people very welcoming and kind. He then met with the King and the Queen and was soon welcomed in their home. Not once he dared to tell them of what happened and why he was there. Only they knew that he lost his world and everyone else on Gaea the Eight. He had set forth, using his time to stay on the Seventh, searching for the two but never found them, and believing they didn't exist yet.

Placing the paper back in his pocket, he looked up to find Sephiroth approaching him. "Leon." He bowed in respect to the imposing man who he had come to trust and respect with every inch of his life.

"Mi'lord Sephiroth." Leon replied in respect.

"Come with me, we need to talk."

"Yes, sir." Leon said, knowing it was time to come clean with the King.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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_Check Yashodoa's Bio for information and author's notes._


	64. Sere:2: Uncle Leon

**. R O A ****D .**** T ****O .**** D A M A S C U ****S .**** C H R O N I C L E ****S .**

**. S E R E**** N D I P I T ****Y .**

Chapter 2- Uncle Leon

Sephiroth sat down behind his desk and slowly take his crown off his head and placed it down beside his elbow and steeped his fingers before his face. His emerald eyes were hard and weary, from what Leon could see as he stood waiting. "Sit." The command was simple but it made Leon buckle and he sat down before the man.

Sighing deeply, the King studied the man. It had been several years since Leon had came to their world and lived with them. He remembered how they had met.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

_Flashback_

"Oi! Look over here!" Cid said as he gestured to the radar on his Sierra airship as it beeped, giving off sign of foreign object somewhere ahead in their path. He had been flying around; giving the entire planet the monthly check over, making sure everything was going smoothly and he was heading back to the City from Wutai. It had only been two years since Sephiroth and Cloud's coronation and the world was nearly done rebuilding their lives.

Vincent, the Lord of Wutai glanced over from where he stood on the deck, his impassive face barely making any show of expression. "We should go and inspect." He simply said. He had hitched the ride to go to the City to visit his granddaughter. His wife bounced on her heel beside her with youthful excitement.

"Ooh, about time we get something to do! It had been so, so" She sighed dramatically, "Boring!"

Vincent rolled his crimson eyes at Yuffie and poked her taut belly, "Are you sure you don't want a child yet? It will make things lively." From behind them, Cid rolled his eyes and made gagging noise.

Yuffie's steel-earth eyes shot wide open as she swatted her husband's finger. "No! I don't want a mini-Sephiroth pattering about!" She turned away, "I'm not ready. After I saw what happened to Aeris, Shiva and Cloud, I think I want to wait."

"Yeah, yeah and I got forever." Vincent muttered under his breath. In secret, he has wanted a child of his own, to raise and take care of but he wanted to respect Yuffie's wish at the same time. She wasn't ready, so he had to wait. But he was just going to enjoy his granddaughter's youth while it lasted.

Cid announced, "We're here. Oh, it looks like a ship crashed here." He switched his airship onto autopilot to circle the area off the shore of Goblin Isle. He went to the deck and peered over the ledge, inspecting with his own eyes. "A small ship, enough for a person." He murmured and looked to his side to see Vincent and Yuffie joining him.

"Look!" Yuffie pointed. "There's a survivor!" Sure enough, the crashed ship was submerged in the shallow clear water near the beach and the latch came off, revealing a man.

"We should retrieve him." Vincent said as he noticed the man seemed to be wounded and not moving in his cockpit.

Not too long, the man was hauled onto the airship and flying toward the City. The man had remained unconscious the whole time and delivered to the palace where the physicians came to inspect him and announced that he was simply shell-shocked from the crash and was fine.

Cloud frowned as she watched the brown haired man trash slightly about on his bed. Sephiroth stood beside her and asked one of the physicians, "Is there anything about him we should be cautious about?"

The physician shook her head, "No, mi'lord. His blood test showed he is human. No sign of Geosigma or anything of sort. There are no foreign objects or being in his body. All he is, a human man."

"No Geosigma?" Cloud asked as she stepped forward and placed her hand on the man's chest. To her surprise, the man settled down back in sleep. "Everyone on this planet has streak of Geosigma in their body, how can he not."

"The only answer is he is not of this world." The physician said and another man walked in the room with a paper in his hand.

Sephiroth turned to the scientist, "What is your diagnosis on the ship?"

"The ship he was found in is not of our world's origin."

"So, he came from somewhere else." Sephiroth deducted and turned to see Cloud peering over the waking man.

"You're all right, safe here." Cloud assured the man's weary and confused look. "What is your name?"

"My name… is no longer of a use to me." He simply said and covered his blue eyes with his arm. "Call me Leon."

Cloud stood up straighter and removed her hand from the man's chest. She realized she was covering a necklace and glanced at it. It was a lion head symbol with a cross underneath the lion. "All right, Leon. Can you tell us where you came from and why you are here?"

The man removed his arm from his face and sat up, causing Cloud to step back into Sephiroth's chest and her husband took hold of her shoulder. He looked around the room and found he was in a very nice room and there were several people in there with him. Most wore white jacket and he knew them to be either doctors or scientist. They were packing and leaving, leaving him alone with five people.

The three was near the door, one was a tall man with crimson and ebony clothes, and he looked imposing but not so much with a lively pretty young woman by his side and a rough scraggy middle aged man which he guessed to be a pilot by his outfit. He turned his head and had to bite back a gasp by simply glancing upon the two couple. He couldn't help but feel revered to be in their presence. The tall man had long silver hair and brilliant emerald eyes that seem to bore into his soul and in front of him, was the woman he never thought would be more beautiful than his own girlfriend. She had long blond hair going down her waist and brilliant blue eyes that shone with concern and perhaps worry. They both wore of deep blue royal garment, designed from what he could tell, in a way to fit warriors.

"Where, uh, where am I?" Leon finally asked, running his finger through his scraggy brown hair and finding them to be clean than he expected. He guessed they had him cleaned up while he was out.

Sephiroth let go of Cloud and stepped up to Leon. "You are on Gaea the Seventh, and you are in the palace of the royals. I am King Sephiroth and this is Queen Sorano. These three people here," He turned and gestured to the three who came forward. "High Baron Highwind."

Cid shrugged his shoulder as he leaned on his javelin staff. "I'm a pilot most of the time, call me Cid." Leon nodded to him.

Sephiroth turned to Vincent and Yuffie. "And accompanying him on the Airship Seirra when they found you, Lord Vincent and Lady Yuffie of Wutai. We would like to know your purpose here." Leon caught the King's slight gesture to the door and glanced over to the door and saw two guards standing outside, they both had guns in their hands, ready to shoot if he had any bad intentions.

Swallowing, he realized he had arrived to a world where one step could be his undoing. It was nothing like his home world or Gaea the tenth. He wasn't sure how far advanced the world was or how primitive it is. But from the looks of the people in the room and the structure of the room itself, he could say it was pretty much advanced with taste of old time. Yet, it unnerved him so to feel so much power crackling from the royal couple. He had never encountered anyone that has so much power like the couple; they made Sorceress Edea on his home world look like an apprentice and the sorceress Luna on Gaea Tenth weak. He wondered if they are also sorcerer and sorceress as well.

"My home world, Gaea the Eight is gone and I am the only survivor to escape." He told them, becoming slightly pale as the memories replayed in his mind.

"Oh!" Cloud said. "That's the next planet over, you were planning to visit sometime soon in the future, Sephiroth." She turned to her husband.

Sephiroth nodded, slight crease formed in his forehead. "Gone?"

Leon nodded, "Gone. You can't go there anymore, it's covered with shadows, and there was no one alive. I don't know what happened. All I was training to fly that day and I got a call in my ship, telling me to get out." He sighed as he looked away from the people. "I flew aimlessly in the space until I found Gaea the Ninth. The world's gone too."

Cloud gasped. "What? What's happening?"

"I don't know. Something out there is taking over the world. I kept on to Gaea the Tenth in the far system. There I found some people; the world was untouched because it was out of time. The sorceress there told me to come here because I would be safe."

"Damn." Cid muttered under his breath. He looked to Sephiroth, "Will it happen here?"

Sephiroth's face grew dark slightly, "Leon, are you positive you've not brought the plague to my world?"

"I am positive. I was in the space when it happened. It had happened so fast." Leon said, looking straight to the King, trying hard to not flinch under the hard gaze.

"Very well, you may remain here." Sephiroth said as he snapped his finger and a servant came to his side, bowing. "Find a suite for this man here and give him some clothes and food." He watched the servants help the newcomer from his bed and lead them to his suite.

"One snap?" Cloud asked, turning to Sephiroth, knowing that there are codes to Sephiroth's commands to the servants. If he wanted servants to come to his beck and call, he would have clapped but when he snapped his finger, it meant a call for the security servant guards. "You're having servant guards on him all the time."

"It's precaution for us. We don't know who he is. Until I deem he is safe for us, I will remove the security."

Few days later, Cloud had invited Leon to walk in the city, showing him around. She noticed he was very quiet and sullen and felt need to talk to him. After a long walk around the city, they ended up in the square where a large beautiful fountain spewed sparkling water and gardens in full bloom grew around. There were few people milling about. She sat down on the ledge of the fountain pool and looked up at him. "How are you doing?"

Leon was taken aback by the question. "I'm all right."

Cloud shook her head and patted the spot beside her. "No you are not. I can tell that you're hurting inside. You must have lost someone so close to you."

Leon sighed and sat down beside her. "Yes, I have." He looked up to see her brilliant blue eyes staring at him. He couldn't help but feel enchanted. "Riona. My girlfriend." He looked away and chuckled. "She was annoying at first. But through an adventure we had together saving my world from an evil sorceress, we got close and we ended up being together. But we had some schooling to finish before we could marry. But the shadow came and took my world, there was nothing I could do, but leave and abandon the world. I don't know what happened to her."

She reached out and touched his shoulder, "I cannot tell you it would be all right. Sephiroth and I have also gone through a lot before we could be together. We were apart for a very long time. Maybe, there will be hope."

Leon smiled at her, recalling what Sorceress Luna had told her. "I am sure there are hopes." He replied. "Your city is beautiful. Not unlike Baalam Garden. It's very peaceful here." He said as he looked up and about. People were very friendly to him and not even once in past few days of his stay, he witnessed any violence.

"It wasn't peaceful as it is now before." Sephiroth said as he approached the two, holding a two years old girl in his arm.

"Mama!" The girl squealed and waved her arms out to her mother. Leon watched in surprise, never knowing that the couple had a child. He couldn't help but gaze in amazement as the royal couple cooed and quietly talked over their daughter for a bit, as if they were in their own world.

He noticed the girl slipping out of her mother's arms and toddled over to him. When she reached him, she placed her hands on his knees and gazed up at him with her blue eyes, so much like her mother's. "Who you?" She asked.

Grinning, he picked her up and set her on his lap. "I'm Leon." He felt as if his heart was healing and hope lit in him. He decided, he would stay, and search for the Keyblade Master and the Princess Sorceress. They had to be somewhere on the planet itself. But first, he had to earn the King and Queen's trust to have a free will on the planet. "I'm Leon."

The girl giggled as she tugged onto his hair. "Uncle Leon!" He shook his head and pried her hand away gently from his hair and looked up to see Cloud smiling at him and Sephiroth watching over with impassive face, he saw hint of approval in the green eyes. It was a start.

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Ever since then, Leon worked hard to earn Sephiroth's trust and became very close to Cloud like Zack was to her. Sephiroth viewed Leon like a brother, trusted friend and trusted his daughter's life with him, knowing Leon was an excellent fighter and a loyal hearted man. Yet, Leon remained to have the sadness in his eyes from the past, from the loss of his home world.

Sephiroth sighed deeply and spoke. "This is the same shadows that took over the Eighth and Ninth?"

Leon dropped his head, his eyes overshadowed. "Yes."

"What do you know about it?" Sephiroth's voice was hard and left no room for anything but truth.

"Not much. Odin gave you a book that has the answer in it."

Sephiroth looked to the book next to his crown. He had just read it, it was a simple book, small and it didn't contain a lot of information. "Yes. I've read it. They're called Heartless Shadows, they hunger for the heart of the people, rendering them soulless, turning them into heartless as well." Leon looked up to Sephiroth, he sensed a question coming his way and it came. "I would like to know who is immune to this shadows, would the immortals be the exceptions?"Leon knew of Cloud and Sephiroth's immortality, they were considered a near god and goddess to their people, and perhaps in the Gaea system. He shook his head, knowing of few immortal peoples from other worlds. "No, others like you had fallen to them. There are no hopes."

"You're lying." It struck him hard and deep. He sighed.

"You're right. I'm lying. I came here for a reason." He stared at the other man. "When I was on Gaea Tenth, I stayed with a couple, Luna and Wakka, the woman herself is a sorceress and she had a premonition one day and told me that I had to leave, to find two people. One, a Keyblade Master, to defeat the heartless shadows. He is the only one, one with pure heart. And another, a Sorceress Princess, to restore the Gaea system and of their people."

"And you believe they would be here, on Gaea Seventh?"

"Yes. Luna told me they would origin from this world."

Sephiroth frowned. "Never have I heard of the Keyblade Master, it is not in the book." He picked up the small book and waved it slightly before flipping it open. "Nor the Sorceress Princess. We never had a sorceress here on this world. Only we are descended from the children of the gods."

Leon frowned, knowing Sephiroth was right. "Then, I have nothing more to say."

"I know." Sephiroth said as he stood up and picked up his crown, twirling it around his finger as he paced slowly behind his desk. "What you told me was a little bit more than anyone know about the shadows. I am to ask you, please when the time comes, and take Cloud and Serendipity off this planet and away from here, to safety. I am planning to leave soon, to seek for more answer." He glanced to the book on the desk. "The book left me no clues but it wasn't written here on Gaea Seventh, but rather at Bastion Garden."

"Bastion Garden?" Leon asked as he reached for the book and inspected it. On the first page was a small fine print, showing where it had been written and printed. "Bastion Garden."

"Yes. It's another world with this place. I believe it is where I shall begin to search for the answer. It is a planet in the next galaxy and I will travel there and search for someone who has the answer."

"You would leave your own world?" Leon asked.

"I must, for the sake of my people." The King turned to Leon, placing his crown back on his head. "Do what I ask."

"What about Zack?" Sephiroth fell silent as his eyes grew dark. Leon swallowed and his eyes wide and he shook his head slightly, "No."

"He was struck by the shadow not too long ago." He said and left the room, leaving Leon alone.

Leon cursed under his breath and threw the book down on the desk. "Why?" He asked, looking up to the sky beyond the glass above the office. The sky darkened and thunder clasped, streaking across the sky and then soon, the rain fell. Leon fell to his knees and buried his head in his hands, feeling torn and saddened and all the same time, angry. "Why, o'Gaea, why are we cursed?"

He was given silence.

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As Sephiroth left his office, he heard the angry yell of Leon and knew the other man's feeling of frustration and despair. He went to the throne room and looked about; Cloud was counseling with group of people and went over to her. "Cloud." He said softly, touching her shoulder.

She turned to him; her eyes wet and brimmed with tears. "Shiva and Ifrit fell too. I sent the children to Serendipity's room and told Odin to watch over them. It's happening so fast."

"Not even a contact?" Sephiroth asked.

Reeve shook his head and handed the paper to Sephiroth. "No. whatever it is, it's spreading, it's not airborne or through contact. But rather, its soul related. I don't know how much longer we have before the entire planet is consumed. There are reports of alien being, too fast to be seen."

Sephiroth frowned and turn to Cid, "Prepare a ship, I must visit another planet and get the answer. I will return shortly, I want everyone to remain inside, bolt the palace. Cloud, take the children and go to the lockdown chamber and stay there until I return." Cloud nodded and went off to find the children.

He turned to the councils huddled before him. He could see fears upon their face and grief as well. Each one of them had lost someone they knew. When he had heard Zack was the first of the one close to him to fall, he was overcome with grief and sadness as well anger. He wanted to blame someone but knew he has to keep his place as the King, to represent the strength of his people and masked the feelings, only putting on the indifference face.

He thought of blaming Leon, for bringing the plague to his world but after Odin had given him the book, the origin came from elsewhere, created long time ago and it had consumed countless of worlds before his own and the plague was on its own will.

Studying the face of the people he knew and come to trust and love. He saw the fear upon Yuffie's eyes as she clutched onto Vincent for support. Looking to his father, who had the same indifference face but the crimson gaze held fear all the same. Cid looked worried and concerned with the same fear in his eyes. Nanaki's ears were folded back on his head and his tail curled around him while he sat, waiting for him to speak.

Then all the sudden, the world before his eyes as he knew faded and he stood there, distraught at the view all around him. The palace was left in shamble, as if it appeared abandoned and old, not a single soul was alive or about. Shadows had encompassed the world and the sky looked black like storm. The wind whistled a lonesome song about him and he turned around. In the distance he saw two swords standing, stuck in the ground, the Ultimate Weapon and Masamune. They were far apart and marred, battered. He looked up to the sky once again and saw two holes opening of the clouds, revealing two stars, dim and far apart.

It was the future of his world. He fell to his knees, screaming anguish to the sky.

Then, like a flash, he was back where he was before the vision. The people looking at him with concern, he realized he had a promotion of what would happen in the future. It bothered him with the sign of the swords upon the ground and the stars, so fain and far away from each other, it had struck a deep fear within him. He swallowed a bit before announcing, "I am going to another world, to get an answer and be back shortly. We will not succumb to this infestation." He said with finality and turned on his heel, walking off to search for Cloud.

When he found her, in Serendipity's room, trying to calm her daughter down while her friends look on, Dahara looked teary but silent while Jules held her. Odin sat on the chair beside the bed, looking pale and lost. "Cloud." He said.

Cloud looked up to Sephiroth and nodded. She picked her daughter up and placed her in Odin's arm and whispered. "I'll be back soon." She got up and walked with Sephiroth until they got to their room down the hall.

"I had another promotion." He said simply. Cloud looked up at him and knew she didn't have to ask. It wasn't good what he saw.

She whispered under her breath, "Gods." She didn't like the look on his face and ran a hand down her face. "I tried to contact Gaia, nothing. Not even Ouranos."

"The gods abandoned us." He murmured softly, looking to the window. It was bright and sunny outside yet he knew what would come soon. "It's something we cannot do."

Cloud looked up at him again, "What do you mean?"

"Leon spoke of the Keyblade Master and the Princess Sorceress. They are the only ones who can stop the shadows. He had been secretly searching for them here since he came. He said they came from this planet."

"Never heard of them."

"I know. I am leaving soon to find out. I will return shortly."

"Be careful, love." She reached up and kissed him gently while he held onto her like she was his lifeline, afraid to let go.

Odin stared from the opening of the door, having witnessed everything and he bowed his head. He turned and left the hall and ran out of the palace toward the end of the city. He could see the people walking about and few had fallen. He paused at the edge, looking back, watching as the people, unsuspectingly going about with their life and then suddenly, like a wisp of shadow wrapping itself around the person and left quickly, leaving for the person to fall comatose on the ground, heartless. He clenched his hands in anger, it wasn't safe anymore to walk about.

Running toward the cave where he and the other had discovered some time ago and entered. He went to the farthest chamber and knelt low, for the ceiling was low. He stared at the door before him; it was wide open, gaping blackness before him. He shouted, "Who are you and why are you doing this!?"

Howling wind was his answer and he slumped in defeat, bowing his head. After a long while sitting there, the raspy voice came. "We are the Heartless, we want the hearts!"

Looking up in surprise, "Why?"

"So we can live…" It rasped. "It's master's command."

"Who is your master?"

"Nobody… nobody." It's voice echoed, fainting away.

"Tell me!" He cried out desperately, "How did the door opened?"

The voice came back, crackling, causing chill down Odin's spine as it answered. "A pure heart, strong pure heart!"

Then, the voice was gone, leaving him alone. He frowned as he tried to figure who would had opened the door. Then a memory came to him, he remembered Serendipity touching the door and it had unlocked then but they had not thought of anything then. He gasped, "Serendipity."

"Yesss…" The voice replied, shocking him out of his reverie. "A princess… we want her!"

Odin's eyes widened and he turned and shot out of the cave. They wanted Serendipity and he couldn't let them have her.

**w ****w****w**** . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	65. Sere:3: King Mickey

**. R O A ****D .**** T ****O .**** D A M A S C U ****S .**** C H R O N I C L E ****S .**

**. S E R E**** N D I P I T ****Y .**

Chapter 3- King Mickey

Sephiroth left his world and manage to reach the world where Garden Bastion was at in few short days using one of Cid's new and fastest spaceships, small enough for few people. He hated to leave his family and people behind but it was necessary for him to find the answer and the only thing he knew that he has to find the answer was to find out who the two people that are destined to put to the end of the shadows.

He also hated to not know any information and he has almost no knowledge of what was going on and what he could do or not do. It irks him so much.

He looked out of the window of the small spaceship as it made easy descend on the soil of the world where Garden Bastion was. When the ship landed and he stepped out of the ship, looking up to the town not far in the distance, he knew he was in the right place. Securing the sword to his hip, he made his hike to the town.

Upon reaching the town, he found it was a friendly place, people going on about as if nothing happened. He felt he was out of place, wearing his usual black garb and silver armors. He knew he was very distinctive man but compared to the commoners of the town, who wore bright colored clothes and the town itself was bright in colors, so festive.

"Hello stranger! Welcome to Bastion Town, what bring you here?" A woman in white dress and bright pink and teal bandanna and apron came up to him. She was carrying a basket of breads, and he guessed her to be a bakery woman.

He nodded his head once and said, "Where can I find Garden Bastion?"

The woman smiled and gestured to the side of the town where the sea set out. He glanced and saw a large castle floating above the water, beautiful in its own right. He was impressed but it was nothing compared to his palace back on Gaea Seventh. It was tall with towers spiraling toward the bright sky and the walls were bright white with ivory and peach, the teal colored rooftops with trims of red and blue. It was a rather very colorful place and he could see the large window in front shaped like a heart with multicolored glass within the shape.

"Just follow this path and you shall reach Garden Bastion." The woman answered and smiled, "It was just recently rebuilt, fresh coat of paint and all that, in time for the Harvest Festival coming up soon."

"I see. And can you tell me who rule the world here?" Sephiroth asked.

"Rule?" The woman asked and sighed, "We once had a ruler but he disappeared some years ago. Now, Garden Bastion is open to anyone, for those who need to stay there, rest or hold meetings. Often, other world's leaders would come here sometime in past few years."

Sephiroth frowned. "Then, I suppose I would not be able to get any information I needed."

"Oh no, the place has a vast library that you could go and visit. Perhaps, you would find your answer there."

He gave her a formal bow, "Thank you." And he left, following the trail the woman had pointed him to.

"Hey, who was that?" A man from the ice-cream shop called out to her.

She turned to the other man and shrugged her shoulder, "Some stranger looking for answers. Handsome, isn't he?" She looked back to watch Sephiroth grow smaller as he kept on down the path, she couldn't help but be fascinated by his long silver hair. "Reminds me our former King."

"Yeah, that King Ansem." The Ice-cream shop man. "Hope he's not strange like this Ansem."

"Me too." The woman walked past the Ice-Cream shop and paused by the window where the man was leaning out. "I can't help but feel that man has a world of burden on his shoulder and very little time."

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Sephiroth reached Garden Bastion palace and entered, finding many servants going on about doing whatever they are doing, cleaning, cooking and chatting up storms. It was a very lively place with no King. He stopped a servant, "Can I see the Library?" He asked.

The servant, a pretty woman with brown hair and brown eyes gasped and bowed her head to him. She was wearing a typical black and white maid dress, a little bit short on the skirt for his taste. She had a beauty mark over her lip and she batted her eyelashes at him. "Oh, it's down the hall, you can't miss the doors to the library, it's rather very large."

He thanked her and walked the hallway, looking about. It was strange that he was given access to the place without any trouble and the people didn't even bat an eye. He turned back and saw the maid giggling and flirting with a tall lean man with long nose. He could hear her high voice, "Oh Lumiere! You shouldn't tease me so!"

"Oh darling!" The man poked his finger on the woman's button nose and walked away, smirking, leaving the maid to swoon. Sephiroth bit back a groan and resisted to roll his eyes at the blatant display. He ignored the giggling maid and continued his way down the hallway, sidestepping the servants and other people which he could recognize as some of the commoners by their clothes.

He found the library door very easily as the woman had told him and reached out to touch it. The door clicked under his touch and opened to reveal a vast room filled with shelves everywhere with books of many kinds unimaginable. He fought the urge to drop his jaw at the sight of the room. No wonder many would come here and read the books, there must have been thousands upon thousands of them here and possibly from many worlds known in the galaxy.

He entered the room and glanced around, unsure where to start. All he knew, he had to find some information on the shadows and possibly the information on which the Keyblade Master and the Sorceress Princess could be. He heard slight shuffling noise somewhere in the midst of the shelves and moved through them and he realized the shelves were set like a maze. Not letting that to deter him, he set searching through the library slowly, scanning the shelf for the titles, he had found when it appeared chaotic and unorganized but in truth was truly categorized by the subjects to the extents.

He was standing by a shelf some while later, reading the words off the spine by some subjects that interested him until someone bumped into him. "Oh, I apologize!" He looked over to his side but found he had to look down to find a shorter portly man with a book in his hands. The man stammered for a good while before looking up to meet Sephiroth's unamused gaze. "Oh my! You're new here. I'm Cogsworth." The man said, introducing himself.

Sephiroth couldn't help but imagine a shelf clock that Cosgworth looks like, with thin pencil moustache and brown themed outfit. "Do you know the library well?"

"Oh, oh, yes. I do. It's a spectacular one; I had to beg my master to come often so I'd find good books to read. He and missus enjoy a good book by the fireside."Sephiroth simply stared at the man and then spoke to interrupt the rambling. "I am searching on subject of the shadows, more precisely on the Keyblade Master and the Sorceress Princess."

Cogsworth stopped and stared up at Sephiroth wide-eyed. Slowly he began to look up and down, taking in Sephiroth's appearance, realizing who he had bumped into. Finally his eyes landed upon Masamune and his finger was dipped in his collar to loosen the tightness that seemed to develop in the last few seconds. "Oh." He murmured and met with Sephiroth's boring emerald eyes and he shivered under the gaze. "Funny you should ask." He squeaked and then cleared his throat, "This is the castle of Ansem, who used to rule this world before he disappeared." He saw Sephiroth's eyes narrowed. "Oh wait," he waved his hands, "Ansem was researching on the subject of the shadows, the heartless before he disappeared. There wouldn't be much about it here in the library." Then he leaned over to whisper, his eyes darting about to make sure no one was listening in. "Rumor was that, King Mickey was the apprentice to Ansem before he disappeared."Sephiroth reached in his jacket and pulled out the book he was given by Odin. "This book, found in my library, was written here in Garden Bastion."

Cogsworth took the book and inspected it for a good while before handing it back. "True. It is written by Ansem himself. But there are none in the library on the subject."

"So, I would need to search this King Mickey to obtain the answer I need?"

"I suppose so.""Where would I find him?"

"Uh," Cogsworth became nervous again, not liking to be under Sephiroth's hard gaze. "Truth to be told, I'm not quite sure. Here," he pulled out a pen and a paper from his vest pocket and wrote some notes down. "This is how you can reach him by radio, if you manage. He's a quiet busy ruler; always disappearing often to make sure everything is all right in this system."

"He rules this system, correct?" Sephiroth asked as he took the paper and saw bunches of numbers on it. He supposed he would have to recruit Cid into this next part of his search.

"Yes, yes, the head ruler, it's a rather large system here we have, with many worlds."

"I see. Thank you, the information had been helpful." Sephiroth said and bowed formally and left.

Cogsworth spluttered slightly and quieted, staring at the tall man making his way through the maze of the library gracefully. "I wonder who that is."

"Look like a mighty ruler himself, I might say." The round woman quipped next to Cogsworth, scaring the man out of his skin.

"Oh! Mrs.Pott!"

"Tea?" Mrs.Pott asked as she offered a tray of tea.

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Sephiroth didn't stay on that world very long, he was eager to return home to his family and his people. With the crisis going on his world, nothing else mattered. His journey back home was fairly quick and he was home in no time at all.

He was greeted by the councils when he entered his palace; however, he noticed the numbers of the people had diminished greatly. "Reeve, how many?" Was the first thing he asked since he had returned.

Reeve paled slightly and his voice shook. "It reached half of the world population yesterday; today we lost another four thousands."

"So, that leaves us with mere million."

"Yes sir, the remaining population is being rounded up to Neo Midgar except for those who are here in the City. We are sending every last one of us to Neo Midgar tonight. Only we will remain here in the Palace."

"I see. Where is Cid?" Sephiroth asked as he looked around.

"Rounding up the people." Reeve answered.

"Get him here immediately, I need his help."

"Yes my liege." Reeve said as he bowed and scattered off to the other side of the room.

Leon gave a small smirk, "He would do anything for you no matter what. I see him as a loyal puppy, following you. I believe he would piss on someone if you command him."

Sephiroth closed his eyes in exasperation. "Sometime I wonder if you're learning too much from Zack."

"Oh no, that was Zell, a friend of mine from the Eighth." Leon said as he pushed himself away from the wall where he was standing and went over to Sephiroth. "Cloud and the kids are in the lockdown, and bored to death."

"I am going to see them. I would like to be called immediately when Cid arrives."

"No problem." Sephiroth looked at Leon, staring at him. After a little staring contest, Leon made a questioning face, "What? You expect me to scatter off like Reeve had done? You'll get what you want, go and see Cloud!" He moved and shoved Sephiroth into the direction where he would find Cloud.

Sephiroth gave a smirk, "Consider yourself lucky to be privileged to treat me such."

"Oh shut up." Leon muttered and stalked off the other way.

Sephiroth reached the lockdown room and passed his hand over the monitor to be given access. The door beeped and opened for him and he entered. He found Cloud sitting on the couch, reading from a book to the three younger kids. She paused and looked up to him and her face broke out into a smile. She threw down the book and ran to him, grabbing hold of him while he held onto her, burying his face into her golden hair.

"Oh, never I want to be apart from you again!" She cried and they felt an impact on their legs and looked down to see Serendipity holding onto both of them. "We worried for you."

"I am fine. I didn't get as much answer I needed but only a clue." Sephiroth said and looked about the room. "Where is Odin?"

"He locked himself up in his room." She said, gesturing to the bedroom door to the side. "He had been rather upset that he didn't get a chance to talk to you before you left. He said he needed to tell you something."

"I see." Sephiroth said and knelt down, giving his attention to his daughter. "How are you feeling?"

Serendipity latched herself onto him, throwing her arms around his neck. "I miss you, Daddy. It's scary to stay here while everyone else is getting hurt."

"I know, love. I am doing everything I can to stop this." She nodded and he felt his heart break, knowing it wouldn't be in his hands to save his world. But he couldn't let his daughter down. He kissed her nose and stood up, "I suppose I'll see to Odin." He turned and saw Jules and Dahara looking at him from the couch together. He went over to them and knelt, "You two holding up all right?"

They both nodded and he saw sadness in their eyes. He reached out and took them in his arms and held them, whispering in their hair, "I want to tell you that it will be all right. Only I know in the end, one way or another, we will see this through."

"We know." Dahara said as she cupped her small hand on his face. "We trust you."

"Yeah." Jules agreed quietly.

Sephiroth gave a deep sigh and stood up; he went over to the door and knocked, "Odin, I've returned. I was told you needed to see me."

The door opened and Odin peered out. Sephiroth noticed the boy looked as if he had not slept in few days, his hair mussed up and dark circles under his eyes was prominent. The door opened wider and Sephiroth stepped in and watched as Odin sit on the bed, looking lost. The boy was no more than twelve years old, going on to thirteen and Odin was already considered a man the day he turned twelve and he had proven he was to Sephiroth in many ways, most of all, being protective and watchful over the three younger children and many more.

"Something's bothering you." Sephiroth concluded and sat down in a chair near the bed, he had not yet changed out of his clothes into the palace robes but it mattered to him very little at the time like now.

Odin nodded and looked up to meet his adoptive father's hard face but saw the green eyes were soft with concern and compassion. He knew he had Sephiroth's acceptance for him in many ways and vowed to always honor the man. He sighed, "I know how the shadows came to our world." He waited for Sephiroth's reply and got none and continued. "I don't want you to blame anyone for this, no one knew any better." He saw the older man lean forward, his hands interlocked under his chin and knew he had the King's full attention and willingness to listen. "Serendipity found a cave outside the city and brought all of us to explore. It was a very nice cave but I believe it was once a hiding place of Genesis because he left a book behind there."

Sephiroth's eyebrow rose, "I know of that cave, a small one. It has a very interesting door in the back attached to the wall."

"Yes." Odin winced and his voice started to break. "It's the door. It is open and that's where the shadows came from. There is no wall behind that door, but a vast darkness. The inscription upon it said 'Strong Heart is the key to open the Door to other worlds.' When Sere and I was looking at the door, she was first to touch it, the symbol and the lettering glowed slightly, then when I touched it, nothing. We left and it wasn't until few days later that the shadows was starting to take people's souls. I went back just before you left the planet, the door was wide open and there was gaping nothingness there…" Odin's eyes were full of tears, and he was shaking out of fear.

Sephiroth frowned slightly and moved forward to touch Odin's shoulder, "It's all right, tell me."

Odin nodded shakily. "I asked who they are and what they want. It answered, I don't know who or what but it wanted hearts and it wanted one the most, Serendipity's heart the most of all because she is a princess and has a pure heart." He gasped as he finished and breathed heavily; looking pale and worried as he watched Sephiroth's face grew dark.

"Then, we must get her to leave the planet sooner." He rose and gave Odin a nod. "Thank you for telling me this, it is admirable for you to come forth with this information and not hide it."

"Thank you sir."

"I must ask you to do something."

"Anything." Odin said as he knelt on his knee and bowed his head. "Anything, even my own life."

Sephiroth gave a grim smile, he knew he could depend on Odin and touched the boy's brown hair with his large hand. "Then, I must ask you for your life." Odin's eyes went wide as he snapped his head up to see Sephiroth's face. "Protect Serendipity with your life, if you must. I entrust to you to keep my daughter safe at all cost."

"I am honored, sir. I will keep watch over her and guard her, and never allow harm come to her." Odin clasped his hand to his chest and bowed his head.

"Then, rise, for your duty begin now." Sephiroth said and let go of Odin and left the room.

Cloud looked up to him as he appeared. "Sephiroth." She stood and went to his side. "What now?"

"I am sending you and few others to Garden Bastion, you and Serendipity must leave the world and wait until I am able to find the two that can save us all."

"Who?"

"The Keyblade Master and the Princess Sorceress. I must get hold of this King Mickey because he will have more information of the two. Love, we are all leaving within three days, use this time to prepare. Cid will have a ship ready for you and you must go."

"What about you?" Cloud gasped softly, gripping onto the lapel of Sephiroth's jacket. "Surely, you are coming with us."

"I will join you shortly to Garden Bastion, but I believe I am going to meet this King Mickey after I get a hold of him."

"Yes, love." Cloud leaned forward and rested her head on his shoulder while he gripped her tightly to her.

Odin watched the two and held Serendipity's shoulders as she leaned back on him. He had a bad feeling about everything. It seems that they are indeed going to lose their world and everything they had come to know would end. Anger rose inside him, the two he held highly for couldn't do anything with this new enemy even after they both had saved the entire world three times in a row years ago. It baffled him, that even the most powerful people on the planet were powerless against the shadows.

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Couple of days later, several ships were readied and prepared to leave the world and by then, there was only handful of survivors, the numbers had reduced greatly to small amount of less than a hundred of people from all over the world. Many of Sephiroth and Cloud's closest friends and relatives fell and only of the former Avalanchers were left of the group; Tifa, Aeris, Yuffie, Vincent and Cid were left along with Cloud and Sephiroth. The shadows had overtook the entire world completely and the City was the only untouchable place left, in the irony, it was where it had begun in the beginning few days before.

Cid had managed to made a powerful radio in short time and just had dialed the number Sephiroth was given to by the portly man in the library at Garden Bastion. "Damn it!" Cid cursed as he fiddled with the knob, listening to the sound coming from the speaker. He had a hard time making the radio all by himself due Reeve was among one who fell. He cursed some more and bopped on the radio and it crackled and shot electrifying shocks before the sound settled to a soft hum.

"Please, do not destroy it." Sephiroth muttered tersely and glared at Cid.

Cid growled and clicked a button, "Anybody there? This is Gaea the Seventh, calling for King Mickey."

The sound crackled and suddenly a high pitched voice replied. "Chip," then another followed, with same high voice, "and Dale too! You want King Mickey?"

The first chirped, "Then we get him now!" Silence followed for a while and Cid thought the radio had broken.

"Damn… the address pinpoint somewhere far in the galaxy. I don't know if it could hold."

Sephiroth sighed, ready to give up hope then the radio crackled once again and a voice, high but not as high as the first two came on, "Hello? King Mickey to Gaea Seventh."

Sephiroth's eyes widened and he went to the radio. "This is King Sephiroth of Gaea Seventh, I've called for help. Shadows had taken over my world and I was told you have answers."

"Oh no." King Mickey's voice came through. "Then, you must leave your world while you can! Get all the survivors out!"

"I must meet with you. I am searching for the Keyblade Master and Princess Sorceress…." The radio crackled and sputtered.

"Come to this coordination…" The speaker died out and fizzled. Sephiroth cursed and slammed his fist on the table.

Cid jotted something down and looked up to the silver-haired man. "I got the coordination before the radio died. It was sent through the computer." He held the paper up. Sephiroth turned and took the paper, sighing in relief.

"Then, set the coordination for my ship. Send everyone else to Garden Bastion."

"Yes sir." Cid stood and went over to another control board and started to type in coordination for all the ships ready to launch. "All set, we're ready."

"Good."

Vincent stood in the doorway of the radio tower outside the City, looking at his son. "I am going to remain behind."

Sephiroth whipped his head to his father. "No! You must go with us."

"I cannot leave. I am the key to the world's destruction." Vincent said and held his hand to his chest. "The shadows can't touch me, for my heart is dark as there and they believe I am one of them."

Sephiroth closed his eyes in defeat, knowing his father was right. "What about Yuffie?"

"She understands and accepts. She is with the others on the ship, ready to go."

"Go and give her another good bye." Sephiroth said, his voice hard and Vincent recognized it as a command and left, heading for one of the few ships near the building.

Sephiroth rubbed his face and sighed, staring out of the window of the radio tower. He could see four large ships, holding passengers, ready to go. Each ship, designed by Cid and Scarlet in the past few years for space journey and visitation to other worlds could hold up to two thousands of passengers, however, he had to abandon two of them and use the two other and a smaller ship that holds twenty five passengers. He had split the two groups in the two large spaceships, for comfort and long journey to Garden Bastion. He was going to board the smaller ship and head to the coordinate where he would meet King Mickey.

The journey he took in a small passenger ship took him several days to reach Garden Bastion, and it had the ability to cut through space, using warp drive. However the large passenger ships didn't have warp drive and it wasn't installed because it was the final project both Cid and Scarlet was working on until she felled by the shadows and Cid had to abandon the project to put haste in preparation for the departure.

"Sir, we better get to the ship. It's powering up now." Cid said softly, giving Sephiroth a gentle nudge. Sephiroth simply nodded and left the tower with Cid in tow. When they reached the smaller ship, Cid waited as Sephiroth went to one of the larger ship where Cloud and Serendipity was waiting outside. He watched with broken heart as Sephiroth talked softly to his family and embraced them for the longest moment.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw something streak toward the family and shouted, "Sephiroth!"

Sephiroth heard Cid yell from across the yard and turned, pushing Cloud behind him and he whipped out his sword. A dark mass of shadow streaked and paused before him. He slashed his sword and felt he hit something. The shadow shrieked and fell. "So, they have a body." He watched a figure, small and strange, with long fingers and faceless. It had a strange symbol of red and blue, a heart with vines crossed over it on the chest. It faded away and from where it faded, a heart escaped and floated in the air and dissipated.

Serendipity peered from her father's side, "What is that?"

"A heartless being. We must go. The City has been overrun." He turned to Cloud and kissed her quickly. "I will see you at Garden Bastion." Then he knelt before his daughter, "Dippy, love, always stay with Odin, he will protect you. I will see you shortly." He said and gave her a brief hug, kissing her forehead. "Be safe." He got up and jogged to his ship and turned, giving them the final wave.

Hopping into the ship with Cid, he strapped himself in and watched through the window as the two larger ships fired up and took off to space and soon, he followed. He glanced back and saw his world, once beautiful sphere of blue and green with swirls of clouds across the surface now completely encased with darkness. "My world…"

"Have faith." Cid said.

"What?" "We are all putting our trust, hope and faith in what you believe; the Keyblade Master and Princess Sorceress."

Sephiroth frowned, his chest hurt and his throat dry. "Leon told me that they were to origin from our world. How can I find them?"

Cid gave him an assuring smile, "They might be just right under our noses and we didn't know yet. Tell me, do you believe there will be future for all of us?"

Sephiroth looked away to the vast space outside his window; he could see the two large ships following. "If what I have seen in my promotions in the past, then, there will be future for all of us, of those who are left." He frowned and turned back to Cid. "Say, are we heading in same direction with the other two ships?" He gestured to his window where the two ships were visible on his side.

Cid peered over his side and nodded. "The courses are similar, heading to the same part of the galaxy, however, Garden Bastion and this world where this King Mickey are not far from each other, rather, they're neighboring planets."

"So close." Sephiroth murmured.

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Cid whistled as he had landed on a bright cheerful planet and near the castle where King Mickey had given the coordinate to. "Well, this is it."

Sephiroth looked about and saw strange creature, like animals walking about. "Where the hell are we?"

A dog like creature approached them and with a funny voice, "Gwarsh!" He stumbled before he saluted, "Would you be King Sephiroth?"

Sephiroth stared at the creature and nodded. "Yes."

"Gwarsh! Come on then! King Mickey expecting you! I'm Goofy, his trusted guard."

Cid leaned over to Sephiroth and whispered his eyes wide and candy cigarette hanging off his lip, "Is it me, or is that a dog?"

The silver-haired king leaned back, whispering, "Guard? I can see a resemblance with guard-dog, suppose he's a talking one?" They followed Goofy toward a bright colorful castle and were lead to the throne room.

"Wait here, he will be here soon." Goofy said and went off somewhere, leaving the two in the large room and they could hear him crash somewhere and a loud quack and angry squawking followed by the apology by Goofy. Sephiroth stared at the throne and walked up to it and walked around in circle, it only came up to his chest. "Rather small." He said and looked to Cid who looked about as confused as he was.

The high voice carried in the room. "Oh, you guys are here!" They turned and stared in surprise to a small two footed creature that looked like a talking black mouse with tan face and white gloves. He also wore a nice red outfit and cape topped off with a crown between his large black round ears. "I'm King Mickey, welcome to my world."

Sephiroth bowed in respect, he had suspected the mouse to be wiser than he appeared, despite his childish voice. "I am honored. I am King Sephiroth, or was, of Gaea the Seventh."

"Yes, yes." King Mickey hopped onto his throne and sat there and gestured for the two to sit. Cid and Sephiroth turned and found that King Mickey's servants had quickly brought in two chairs for them both and served them tea and biscuits. "Of the Gaea System. Not usually we would be in contact with your worlds there because Gaia herself decided to keep the worlds apart until when the time was ready. I won't think your people would be ready for my part of the universe." He laughed and bit into his biscuits.

Cid stumbled with the tiny tea cup in his hand and bit back a curse, feeling it would be so wrong to curse in place like this. He threw back the tea and drank it whole in one go and set the cup down, not wanting to deal with it anymore. Sephiroth felt at loss, staring at King Mickey. "You're right; my people wouldn't be ready for your kinds."

"Ah, don't worry about it." King Mickey smiled and cleared his throat, "Well, you've come asking about the shadows. I am sorry that the heartless took your world. Only the Keyblade Master can defeat them and lock the doors that open their world to ours and let them loose." He stood up from his throne and shot his right hand out. A sword created like a key with the chain holding a charm shaped like his own head appeared. Sephiroth was taken aback. "This is the Keyblade. I am one of the Keyblade Masters but however, I am not the one to seal the shadows or rather, the heartless away. Only the true Keyblade Master with pure heart can do this."

"Then, where is he?" Sephiroth asked, leaning forward, studying the Keyblade sword.

"I regret to say this, I do not know. You see, Ansem the Wise was the one who researched on the shadows in the heart and somehow unlocked the secret. No one knows of this but I feel I should disclose this to you." King Mickey explained and with a swish of his hand, the Keyblade disappeared and he began to pace before his throne. "He unlocked the secret of the heartless and realized things would had gone wrong and stopped his research. But when that happened, he disappeared. Slowly since then, the heartless began taking over the worlds slowly. My system had been safe so far, but other worlds outside my systems were of those overtaken, including yours. Gaea the First to the Ninth was all taken over, as I know of now."

"Gaea the First and the rest? I thought there was only four in my system, the Seventh, Eighth, Ninth and Tenth." Cid asked.

King Mickey shook his head. "No. Years ago, there was total of thirteen planets in your system alone. The first six was far away and was one of the first of the worlds to be taken over. The Twelfth and Thirteenth are far from your four planets and not very accessible, rather, the Thirteenth would be considered alternate universe to the Seventh in a way, but very different. The heartless cannot touch those two worlds because they are rather in the other realm."

Sephiroth rested his head on his fist and asked, "So, you don't know where the Keyblade Master to do all of this. What about the Princess Sorceress?"

King Mickey shook his head. "Sorry, I don't have any information on her. Rather I've never heard of her until you told me through the radio. I sent my best and top researchers out there to find out and all they came back was this; the Princess Sorceress is the one to restore the Gaea System and their people. And it was only recently told in premonition by a sorceress on Gaea Tenth."

"The one Leon told me about." Sephiroth said, turning to Cid. The Pilot nodded. "Then, she would come from my world, is that correct?"

"Yes, because she would be the daughter of Gaia, seeing that your world is the unique one, the only planet to inhabit children of Gaia, children of the gods." King Mickey explained as he sat back down on his throne.

"Then, that mean, Cloud is the one? But she is not a princess, but a Queen and she doesn't hold powers of the sorceress."

"I wouldn't think so and I don't know then." King Mickey replied.

Sephiroth stood up and Cid followed. "Thank you for your time. I must see to my people and my family. I had them sent to Garden Bastion."

The mouse king hopped from his throne chair and walked with the two humans, "I shall visit shortly. You are welcome to stay there until the Keyblade Master shows up and stop the shadows. There is very little we can do for now."

The silver-haired king nodded and bowed to the mouse king. "Thank you for your help. I appreciate it. I look forward to meeting you again and getting to know you."

"Likewise. You appear to be a very interesting character I've ever met."

Sephiroth laughed. "You too, you too."

**w ****w****w**** . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	66. Sere:4: The Gaea King

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Chapter 4- The Gaea King

Serendipity looked up to the pretty castle, it wasn't large or grand like her home but it was nice enough to stay in for a while. She glanced at her mother who had been talking to her people and the people of Bastion Town. She released her hand from Aeris and went over to her mother's side, watching and listening.

"Thank you for allowing our people to come and stay." Cloud said bowing and shook the Bastion woman's hand.

The woman shook her head and gave Cloud a hug, "You are welcome, many of us came from different worlds, and everyone is welcome here."

"Really, thank you and I will make sure our people find their place here and work out with you all."

"Don't you worry about that right now. Now you all need to rest and recover from the shock. Let us take care of you and when the time comes, I will contact you and work things out." The woman said and stepped back, shooing Cloud away with her hands, "Go, go to Garden Bastion and rest."

Cloud bowed once again and turned, taking Serendipity's hand, leading her back to Aeris and the others. Aeris' eyes widened as she looked to Cloud, silently asking. Cloud answered, "They will take our people in and give them place. We are to stay at the castle." She said, gesturing to the place.

Tifa nodded, holding Yuffie who were crying, missing her husband. "Let's go. Won't we be hearing from Sephiroth soon?"

Cloud shook her head as she leaned down and picked up Serendipity and held her to herself, more for herself than Serendipity. She didn't mind but rested her head on her mother's shoulder while she listened to their conversation as they made their way to the castle. She was already tired and had not said a word since they left their home world. She remembers how horrible it had looked, to look back and see her world covered with darkness.

"I don't know when I will hear from him. I am afraid without him already." Cloud admitted quietly and sighed.

Aeris placed her hand upon Cloud's shoulder, "We will know. Time and again, we are proven that we will see this through." She glanced down at Jules by her side, holding her hand as he walked along. Tears welled up in her eyes as she remembered Zack. Swallowing hard and wiping her eyes, she looked ahead; putting on a face of a strong woman but inside, she was torn apart, to lose her husband to the shadows.

Tifa held Dahara's hand as she followed. She took up to watch after Dahara, after losing her teenage children, Denzel and Marlene so fast. Barret fell while trying to protect them. Wiping her face of the tears, she said, "Who would have thought we'd come to this."

Odin was silent the whole time while he followed the women. They were the last of the royal court of Gaea Seventh and he felt guilty and torn inside, knowing he and Serendipity had caused this, by just unlocking the door. Sephiroth had told him before they had left that it wasn't his fault, how could he have known. Yet it didn't assure him. He looked over to Serendipity, dozing on her mother's shoulder and reached to brush the silver hair from her face. He wondered if Sephiroth would ever find the two people to put the end to the evil that consumed many worlds.

As they reached the castle, two women were waiting at the door, welcoming them. "Come on in, we got rooms for you all." The lithe woman with dark skin, black hair and almond shaped eyes opened her arms, gesturing for them to come. "I am Princess Jasmine, this is Princess Aurora." She gestured to the other woman, with golden blond hair and blue eyes.

Cloud bowed her head, still holding Serendipity. She glanced at the two women, they were dressed finely in simple clothes, yet they both had crowns upon their head, signifying their royalty. Princess Jasmine had green and blue halter top and blooming pants. She found her shoes very interesting, in blue with curled toe. Princess Aurora was dressed with a peasant dress that fell to her knees and stopped past her elbow in pink.

"I am Queen Sorano of Gaea Seventh, but you can call me Cloud. These people are of my court, my closest friends." She turned and gestured with her head to the other, introducing them. "Thank you." She said simply and followed the two women in. They lead them to a wing with several rooms and soon, 

they settled down. Cloud laid Serendipity upon her bed and knelt beside the bed, watching as her daughter slept, stroking her silver hair.

Serendipity's eyes opened. "Mama, will we be all right?"

Cloud gave a sad smile. "I hope so, love. I hope so." She looked up to the long window above the bed and watched as the star twinkled in the darkening sky. She couldn't recognize the pattern of the stars and reality hit her, she was in a strange world and her home was gone. "I hope so." She whispered to assure herself more than for her daughter.

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"She would be in the library with the kids." Jasmine smiled at Sephiroth, her arm stretched out in the direction of the library down the hall.

Sephiroth looked toward the doors at the end of the hall and asked, "How have they been since they arrived?"

"All right considering what you guys had been through." The desert princess said softly, her arm falling down to her side. "Your people had settled in the town and they are striving to move on. I don't understand you people, going on about like nothing happen yet your eyes hold the sorrow and pain."

Sephiroth turned his head to the woman, meeting her amber eyes, "We've been through lot years ago on my planet, my wife and I have saved the world several times over from the brink of destruction. We are survivors many times over and we continue to survive, that's our strength. We've learned, we live, and we make of it."

"Very wise saying, though it's not very good psychologically but your people are different from the rest of the world. From what I understand as King Mickey had told us before, your planet was the only one in the entire universe to be the children of gods, which is considering unique. I'm impressed, even standing before you; I can feel that you are a powerful being." She smirked, she was true to her word, Sephiroth had appeared very intimidating before her and she couldn't help but feel twang of fear just to look upon him and couldn't believe this man was the father of the sweet girl she had come to like and the husband of the woman she befriended in short time.

"And you're a bold one." Sephiroth smirked at Jasmine, receiving a laugh from the woman.

"Go on, they've missed you." She said, turning to watch Sephiroth head to the library.

Another woman joined Jasmine's side; she had brown hair and brown eyes, wearing blue and white simple dress. "That's King Sephiroth of Gaea Seventh?"

"Yes."

"Wow, he's hot." Jasmine laughed.

"Shut up Belle. How is Tifa?"

Belle shook her head, "I think she's taking it rather hard, she's really angry. She's venting out in the gym a lot lately."

"Cloud is holding it in; I think she is trying to focus on the children."

"We'll just keep helping them until they get back on their feet. No hopes are lost."

"True." Jasmine flicked her long hair over her shoulder and went in the direction of the Library. When she entered the library, she saw Sephiroth and Cloud holding each other in tight embrace while the daughter clutched on their legs. She smiled softly, leaning against the first book shelf, watching from distance. Then, Sephiroth broke away from Cloud, as she could tell by his body, he was hesitant to let go of her but then he knelt before the other children, talking softly to them and hugging them. It amazed her that a man that expel so much toughness and godly like appearance could be so gentle and soft.

She spied someone else watching them in hiding and recognized Leon. Watching the man for a little while, she noticed the look he had on his face and recognized it. The man was hopelessly in love and she sighed. She pushed herself away from the bookcase and went over to the lion-hearted man. "It's a dangerous ground you are walking on, pining after someone you can never have."

Leon started and turned to her, "What?"

"I know you are in love with Cloud, you can't hide it." Jasmine explained as she took hold of his shoulder gently. "Forget it, she belongs to him, Sephiroth, and will never leave him."

"I know." Leon said softly as he returned to watch the family reunion. "I felt like an outsider, only she makes me feel like I belong. She is so different, I can't help it but want her, love her. She's the first woman that made me feel like I belong since I lost my love."  
Jasmine shook her head, "No, Leon. It's called temptation, because she is a forbidden fruit to 

you. Everyone has one; she is the forbidden fruit for you. You should stop before you overstep the boundary and destroy the trust they have in you." She glanced to Sephiroth and then back to Leon, "And he looked like the one to kill before ask questions."

"I know." He looked away and then nodded to her, patting his hand on her hand and then walked away.

"Jasmine!" Cloud called to her and she looked over to the blond-haired queen. She smiled as she saw the happiness sparkle in Cloud's eyes. "Won't you join us for dinner tonight, you and the others?"

"We'd love to." Jasmine said as she went to meet her. "Is everything all right?"

Sephiroth answered, "For now. There is not much I can do. This might be the best place for me to start as anywhere. This is Ansem's place, correct?"

Jasmine nodded. "Yes, this was his home until he disappeared. It was abandoned for a while until the people decided to open the place up for others. King Mickey agreed to it."

"Then, he must have researched somewhere here. Does he have an office or a lab?"

The desert princess tilted her head as she thought her hand to her chin. "Hm. I believe so. However, it's hidden and only few of us know the access to his office." She turned and walked away then paused, looking over her shoulder, "come on, I'll show you, the entrance is through here."

Sephiroth looked surprised and glanced to Cloud who shrugged. "It's easier than I thought."

"Too easy." Cloud agreed quietly and they followed Jasmine. They went up to the second level then through a den. They watched as Jasmine touch some pictures and pull a book down from a shelf, and then suddenly the entrance appeared from the bookcase as it slides away. "Through here. Tell no one else how to enter, his researches, files and many others are in there and it's best to not expose them, not knowing what they would do."

"Understood." Sephiroth replied as he followed Jasmine into the hidden entrance.

Cloud stopped him with a touch on the arm, "Sephiroth, this Ansem seem like Hojo, wont this be wise?"

"I know what you mean, but I need to find out what he found out. It's the only way to save our world, and maybe others."

"All right." They followed Jasmine into the hidden office and to their surprise, it was a chaotic mess.

Jasmine turned to them and spread her arms out, "Well, this is it. It's a mess but we wouldn't dare to bother to touch anything here."

"Thank you; it is where I will start." Sephiroth glanced around. "But not now." He turned to Cloud and smile. "Dinner sound good about just now."

Cloud and Jasmine laughed.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Serendipity felt happy for the first time she had come to Bastion Garden now that her father was safely with them. She watched her mother interact with her father, with the smile on her face and felt relieved, because she didn't like her mother being sad. Looking over to Odin and she giggled as he made face after taking a bite into something strange on his plate. Everyone had gathered together for dinner and reintroduced themselves to Sephiroth and Cid and the dinner affair became lively, except Leon remained quiet and sat at the far end of the table.

She waved to Leon who had looked her way and he gave a nod, acknowledging her. She doesn't understand why Leon had been quiet and sullen lately since they left their world. At first she thought he was sad too but figured it was something else and kept noticing he was looking at her mother often, maybe he was sad for her.

Dinner ended after couple hours and everyone scattered to their parts of the castle. Serendipity snuck off to a part of the castle that she had discovered from earlier exploring before dinner. She found her way to a small study room on the second floor and sat in one of the large chair, facing the window. A while ago, she discovered she could do strange things with her hands and begun exploring her ability. She waved her hands about slightly and focused and suddenly, tendrils of blue and white came from her fingers and formed into a ball. She watched as the sphere floated above the palm of her hand and the surface shimmered, swirling with colors. She sighed, her mind trailing to her world, of how the shadows had encompassed the entire planet so quickly within less than two weeks. It had scared her.

She gasped as she saw the sphere turn into dark color and then cleared up to reveal her home palace. It was no longer white and beautiful in its glory but shadowed and dark, abandoned. Tears rolled down her face as she watched the sphere show her different part of her world and then she watched as a figure sit in the darkness of the forest that she recognized as the crystal forest outside the Mirror Lake Temple. However, the trees didn't give off the pure white and blue glow but dark purple and green glows. She shivered as she felt the evil radiating from them. The figure moved and her sphere zoomed in, she gasped as she recognized the person, Vincent.

"Grandpa." She said softly and watched as he looked about, as if he heard her. She smiled, "Grandpa, can you hear me?"

Vincent looked up to the sky, the dark cloud covering up and the only light he had been from the trees. He stood up and asked, "Serendipity?"

The voice came again, "Yes! You can hear me!"

Vincent gasped; worried that Serendipity might have been left behind. "Where are you, why are you here?"

"No, I am at Garden Bastion. I don't know how but I can talk to you! I am so happy you are all right."

Vincent shook his head as he smiled. He realized that her powers must have begun to come in and he spoke, "I am all right. They can't touch me."

"Good. I was afraid I lost you too." Serendipity replied. "How is the planet?"

Vincent looked about her and sighed, he could feel his connection to the planet; after all, he was connected to the Omega Weapon and knew the mass monstrosity was in deep dormant under Wutai. The shadows couldn't get to Omega and to him, because he didn't have a pure heart, only darkness in his heart seemed dominant, which was why the shadows left him alone, not bothering him. "The planet is fine, only the people and the animals are gone."

"Oh." She replied and then told him, "Father came back, and he's here with us and Uncle Cid too. We will get to meet this King Mickey soon. Father said he is a short mouse King, very funny too. I can't wait to meet him. He sounds very funny." Then there was a flicker and Vincent frowned. "Oh, I got to go. I'll try to talk to you later."  
Vincent kept quiet and all the sudden, he felt alone again. Sighing, he walked away and reached the lake, looking down on its still black surface, seeing his reflection. He had watched the ships take off and disappears beyond the clouds away from the world. He witnessed the shadows swallowing the entire city and all the people that lay about disappeared, there was not one living soul left, except for him. He wondered where their bodies had gone. From every place he looked, he could see the figures of the heartless beings dart about, hiding from him. He supposed, they were what were left of the people. Few was bold to attack him and he defended himself, only to witness their body slashed apart and fade away, leaving the heart to float away above and disappear.

All he knew, the planet was the only thing untouchable, just only the shadows masked it. He felt hope, that the entire planet will be redeemed. He had discovered this by accident that he was leaning against the tree, thinking of his family, of Yuffie and his love for the hyperactive woman. The tree had changed, glowing bright white like it once was and it had surprised him. He had then leapt away and stared at the tree, watching it return slowly to the green and purple glows. He knew then, it would take a very, very strong pure hearted person to defeat all of the heartless and prayed that whoever this person is would come soon.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Serendipity looked up from her sphere to find Odin looking down at her in shock. She gasped and the ball disappeared from her hand. "Odin!"

"What was that?" He glanced around and back to her, "I was looking for you and heard voices from the hallway and came to find you here." He sat down in the next chair and studied her, finding nothing changed about her, only that she seemed to glow.

"I, uh, I found out I could do something." She began to show him some of the magic tricks with her hands and a ball appeared. "I just found out that if I think of some place or someone, I could talk to them too! I just talked to Grandpa!"

Odin's eyes went wide, "Vincent? You mean he's still alive?" Serendipity nodded vigorously, "Whoa! Do you know what that means?" He saw her shake her head and he stood up and paced about 

the study. "You're powerful! No one was able to communicate with anyone else by himself and to another world! You need practice your power."  
"Practice?" She asked, tilting her head as her eyes followed him around the room.

"Yes, practice, so you can become stronger and you will be able to control your magic easily. Mom and Dad," even though he always thought of them as his parents as well, "always believed you have magic powers but they thought you won't get them until you're much older."  
"No wonder mom didn't push me like Auntie Shiva did with Dahara." She said and shifted herself on the chair to sit cross-legged.

Odin laughed. "Dahara had been showing signs of magic since she was born, with fire and ice. Dahara can control and use them but she's too stubborn." She giggled at him and hopped off the chair and bounced up and down before him.

"When do I start? Who's going to teach me?"

"I don't know." Odin laughed as he grabbed hold of her to stop her wild bouncing. "Maybe we will ask Jasmine."

"Yay!"

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The next day, Odin and Serendipity asked Princess Jasmine about training for magic power, Jasmine was more than happy to bring in her friend, Genie to begin training Serendipity. Sephiroth was amused by the blue skinned magic being and was more often annoyed by the comic-relief, saying he was worse than Zack in humor. Serendipity picked up the basics rather very fast and Dahara was inspired to join in the lesson, in honor of her mother's wish for her to improve and train with her power. Jules soon joined afterward, to learn the basics and was surprised he had inherited his mother's healing ability, even though not by much.

A month passed as Sephiroth continued to research Ansem's files and documents. He learned a lot of things and was disturbed by his discoveries. He didn't disclose anything to anybody, only telling them that it was not what they want to know. Cloud understood and respected his wish and became fast friend with Jasmine, both often go out together to train and make their rounds with the people in the town.

Aeris became friend with Belle and both were found together day after day, in the library, reading and finding books for the children to read and study from. They took up to teaching lessons to the children in the town together, running a small school to pass the time. Tifa and Cid hung out together, building radios and computers to keep track of the shadows and search for survivors from many other worlds. Yuffie was often with them, keeping up with her positive energy, trying to not think too much of Vincent, yet she still missed him terribly. She had returned to her former self, gone to wearing simple clothes similar to what she used to wear before she became Lady of Wutai and cropped her long brown hair short and she was relieved to know that Vincent was all right.

One day in the office of Ansem, Sephiroth finally came across a document that he was searching on and his eyes went wide, learning more about the Keyblade Masters. He learned that there are many of them out there in the universe and each one of them had a destiny. He learned that every single person has the ability to wield a Keyblade, for their hearts are the key to the light and the dark, depending on each individual. However, it was their choice to accept or not.

He was more surprised to learn that Cloud was a Keyblade Master in her own right, for her Ultimate Sword was her own Keyblade sword. It was her destiny to be the guardian of Valkyries, the heiress to Megamiki's legacy.

As he went farther in the research, he found no more documents on either the Keyblade Master or the Sorceress Princess, as if Ansem had not researched farther on the subject. Only very little on the Keyblade Master, who and what they are, nothing more. It irked him so much that there was nothing on the Sorceress Princess and he felt as if his hope had been dashed away.

He looked up to find Serendipity peering in the doorway and he gave a small smile, beckoning her to come in with his hand. He watched as she trotted her way around the messy office and to his side. Since they had came to Bastion Garden, Serendipity had discovered her power and had been training with the blue entity, Genie and few others, including himself and Cloud. She showed a lot of promises that she would become very powerful. He silently reached and drew her toward him in a hug and nuzzled his face on the top of her head. Despite her coloring, she was so much like her mother, even smelled like her.

"Daddy?" She asked softly as she looked up to his face from where she stood in his hug. She toyed with his silver strands while he moved to make her to sit on his lap then she asked, "Find anything?"

Sephiroth shook his head, he had only been telling little to Serendipity and Cloud on what he had been finding. "Not much, I am nearly done here and I have not found any more than what I know. This Ansem man shows in his report he slowly became crazy and dangerous."

"Like Hojo?" She asked, knowing of the insane scientist from her home world from hearing stories of her parents and others.

Sephiroth thought and shook his head, "No, Hojo always had been crazy." He laughed as Serendipity rolled her eyes. "Ansem once was a good ruler, a kind man on this world." He said, looking up to the portrait of the said man hanging on the wall. The portrait showed a regal looking man with dark skin and silver hair, his eyes were bright amber, showing intelligent shine.

It unnerved Cloud once when she had sat down with him, going through the papers. She had once told him, "He reminds me so much of you." Referring Ansem to Sephiroth, in how they were a like in personality at one time as a ruler. "How strange, remembering how you once nearly lost yourself in researching for your own past and to learn of your heritage."

He told her then, "That was a long time ago. I learned to not let anything get to me." He then held her, "I know where I come from; I know my heart more truly than ever, because you are my light, my heart."

He smiled at the memory and looked to Serendipity, who was looking at a paper, a part of the Ansem's journal. Both Cloud and Serendipity are his lights, his true reason to strive and fight to live and breathe every single day, every single moment with them are precious to him. He stroked her hair and spoke, "Come Koibito, let's go and see to your mother."

Serendipity grinned and hopped off, smiling at her father, "She's sparring with Jasmine in the next room. Jasmine got angry with Aladdin and needed to, uh, oh, vent."

He laughed and followed the girl out of the office and paused, looking back. He frowned as he glanced around, feeling as if he had missed something and looked to the portrait. He couldn't help but feel shiver down his spine, Ansem seemed to glare at him. He shook his head and went after his daughter.

That night, Sephiroth shot up from his bed, frowning as he glanced around and sighed, turning to sit at the edge of the bed. His face buried in his hands. He had disturbing dreams of the papers he had been reading in Ansem's office, dreams of his world falling to the shadows and people he knew falling. It was nightmares that he had been getting nearly every night. But this night alone, it had disturbed him personally and caused him to wake up from his sleep.

Cloud blinked and rubbed her eyes, she looked over to Sephiroth to see him sitting by the edge of the bed, "Sephiroth?" Sitting up, she reached over and touched his shoulder. She could feel his skin clammy and slick with sweat. It only means one thing, he had a horrible nightmare and she sighed, knowing she had some herself. She didn't need to ask what they were. She crawled to his side and rested her body on his large back, hugging him. She felt him relax under her embrace, "Like you say, we will see this through." She said softly into his ear.

He shifted and she slid to sit in front of him as he held her, nuzzling his face into her golden hair, memorizing her smell and her touch. "I can't stop thinking of Ansem's report, I feel as if I am missing something."

"Didn't you read everything in there?" She asked, searching Sephiroth's troubled eyes.

"Yes, but nothing is really connecting." He said and looked to her, smiling as she gave him a familiar smirk, where she would be up to something. "What are you up to now, Cloud?"

She feigned innocent, "Oh, nothing." Then she dove in to attack him, tickling him where he would be most ticklish. It took her a long time to find his ticklish spot and discovered upon accident, and since then, she would attack him only when he needed to be cheering up. Often it would lead to strenuous activity for the two of them. He laughed and rolled her onto the bed, pinning her down, "Ah, ah." He said and kissed her.

Before dawn, Sephiroth got up and pulled a robe on. He looked to Cloud, sleeping blissfully in their bed and he smirked, knowing he had worn her out with their late night activity. He yawned and stretched, feeling slightly sluggish himself and shook his head. He left the room and went down to the library and to Ansem's office. He had a struck of idea and needed to do one thing.

He sat down and gathered the papers he had found scattered around the office and pulled them together. He flipped through them and rearranged the pages, it took him good half hour and he finally had a whole single report. He had been finding papers with single or two sentences on each of them scattered about. He couldn't place what they are but now, sitting before him, he read them.

_Much of my life has been dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge._ He scoffed at the line, knowing he had massive library in the system alone. _That knowledge has guarded this world well. Not a soul doubts that. I am blessed with my people's smiles and respect. But though I am called a Sage, there are things I do not understand. _This was where he truly understood Ansem, no one can understand everything, and not even he himself knew everything.

It was where the report on the darkness began and gave him chills. _I believe darkness sleeps in every heart, no matter how pure. Give the chance, the smallest drop can spread and swallow the heart. I have witnessed it many times. _It gave him memories how many people, including himself on his world turn to the darkness. He didn't like it that Ansem was right on the subject.

_Darkness… Darkness of the heart. How is it born? How does it come to affect us so? As a ruler of this world, I must find the answers. I must find them before the world is lost to those taken by the darkness. _It had confused him thoroughly, how can this world be succumbed to the darkness when it is bright and cheerful. It had baffled him. It was another thing he had to figure out later. _I must find them before the world is lost to those taken by the darkness. It is my duty to expose what this darkness really is. I shall conduct the following experiments: _

_Extract the darkness from a person's heart. Cultivate darkness in a pure heart. Both suppress and amplify the darkness within. The experiments caused the test subjects' hearts to collapse, including those of the most stalwart. How fragile our hearts are. My treatments produced no signs of recovery._

_I confined those who had completely lost their hearts beneath the castle. Sometime later, I went below and was greeted by the strangest sight. Creatures that seem born of darkness. What are they? Are they truly sentient beings? Could they be the shadows of those who lost their hearts in my experiments? The shadows that crawl beneath the castle… Are they people that lost their hearts, or incarnations of darkness?_

_Or something entirely beyond imagination? All my knowledge has proved no answer. One thing I am sure of is that they are entirely devoid of emotions. Perhaps further study will unlock the mysteries of the heart. Fortunately, there is no shortage of test sample. _

He paused there and swallowed hard. The man was insane; the samples were his own people, betrayed their trust and used them. It hurts his heart to know that a ruler used his people's trust and faith and turn around and do such experiments upon them. He understood now, the shadows were remains of the people who lost their own hearts, it was an endless cycle. It seemed almost there was no hope.

He continued to read. _They are multiplying underground even as I write this report. They still need a name. Those who lack hearts… I will call them the heartless. The heartless appear in grounds, and are multiplying rapidly. I've provided them both living and nonliving samples. They've responded only to the living. They seem to multiply after absorbing something from the living creatures. Their prey vanishes without a trace. _

_I believe the heartless are taking hearts. They are born from those who've lost their hearts, and thrive on hearts seized from others. The hearts taken by heartless become heartless themselves. Though I lack proof, I am confident in this hypothesis. I must also study their behavioral principles. _

_Though they lack emotions, they do seem to have some intelligence. How to communicate with them? It's just occurred to me: could they be the darkness in people's hearts? To study heartless behavior, I picked one out for observation. It wiggled its antennae and, as if sensing a target, headed deep into the castle. _

_In the deepest part of the castle, its antennae began vibrating, as if searching for something. Suddenly, a strange door appeared. I'd never known of its existence. It had a large keyhole, but didn't seem to be locked. So I opened the door. What I saw on the other side mystified me._

_What was that powerful mass of energy? That night, I observed a great meteor shower in the sky. Could it be related to the door that I have opened? A massive core of energy lay beyond the door sought by the heartless. It may well be the ultimate goal of all heartless. But what is that energy? I have devised a hypothesis, based upon my observations of the heartless. _

_The heartless feed on others' hearts, and yearn for that energy core. That thing beyond the door must be a heart, too. The heart of this world. There is no proof, but, having felt that immense energy, I am certain. That was the heart of the world. _

_The heartless are trying to take the hearts not only from all living creatures but from the world itself. But what do they mean to do with the heart of the world? I am studying material from the meteors that rained down that fateful night. What a find! The material is foreign to our world. It is elastic to the touch, and when two pieces are combined they bond easily. None of the records I've scoured even mention such substance. Was it introduced to this world when I opened that door?_

_I wonder how many other such materials drift through the atmosphere of this tiny world… I wish I could soar off and find out! _

_Could there be uncharted worlds up there? My curiosity never ceases to grow. But I should stop speaking of such unrealistic dreams. For now, there is no way to venture outside this world. My people and I are prisoners of this tiny place._

_There is no doubt that the heartless are deeply connected to people's hearts. Further study may unravel both their motivations and mysteries shrouding the heart. As a start, I have built a device that artificially creates heartless. _

_By recreating the conditions that spawn the heartless naturally, I should be able to produce them artificially. This device is the culmination of all my research thus far. The machine's test run successfully created a heartless. This may be a step toward creating a heart from nothing. _

_The artificially and naturally created heartless showed nearly identical traits. But the two types should remain distinct for the purposes of these experiments. So, I will mark the one that are created artificially. _

_Simply astonishing! Today I had a guest from another world. He is a king, and his vessel is built of the material that composed the meteors. He called the pieces 'Gummi Blocks'. It seems that my opening that door has opened a path to interworld travel. _

_We talked for countless hours, but one story in particular caught my interest: that of a key called the 'Keyblade'. The Keyblade is said to hold phenomenal power. One legend says its wielder saved the world, while another says he wrought chaos and ruin upon it._

Sephiroth paused there and realized and looked to his hand, summoning his own sword, Masamune. With another hand he summoned Cloud's sword, the Ultimate. He swallowed hard, this two swords are the destruction and savior of his world. He and Cloud both are the Keyblade Masters of Gaea Seventh. Together, they brought balance in their union. He sighed and with flick of his wrists, the swords disappeared.

_I must know what this Keyblade is. A key opens doors. It must be connected to the door that I have opened. Just as people have hearts, so do worlds. The same can be said of the stars in the night sky. And deep within each world lays a door to its heart. The heartless desire those hearts. Born out of the darkness in people's hearts, they seek to return to a greater heart. _

_Yes, that's it. The heartless come from people's hearts, as does the darkness. Is the core of the world's heart the world of the heartless? I will pursue the answer there, and become all-knowing. My path is set; I shall seek out the wielder of the Keyblade, and the Princesses. My body is too frail for such a journey, but I must do this. I will cast it off and plunge into the depths of darkness. _

Sephiroth closed his eyes at the end of the report, not liking the revelation of what happened to Ansem. He was the one who opened the world of Heartless to the real world, causing the overrun of chaos. He opened his eyes and glanced at the word that glared at him, it left him puzzled; the Princesses. He stood up and left the office and into the library. He wanted to know why he was after the Princesses. He trailed his fingers on the books until he found the section he was looking for and pulled a book out. It was thick and it was everything about princess.

He flipped through the pages and found a chapter and read. After a few minutes, he found what he was looking for and the reason why Ansem was after the Princesses. "_Traits of princesses are commonly found and listed, but the most top of all that makes a woman a Princess of her world; she would have a heart that possesses no darkness at all, being pure and whole, full of light_." He held the book in his hand, looking across the library to the window, his mind's wheels turning fast, "so, that's why you wanted the Princesses, they hold no darkness. But exactly what are you doing with them?" The wind blew in the room from the open window, caressing him with its cool morning breeze and he blinked, realizing he had zoned out and looked down to the book in his hand, preparing to snap it shut and replace it back on the shelf. But the pages had turned from the wind and his eyes widened as the bold letter stood out to him, "Sorceress Princess." He gasped softly, wide eyed as he flipped the pages only to find the chapter very short. He scanned the two paged chapter and a single line gripped his heart as he realized who was the sorceress princess. "No…" He snapped the book shut and placed it back on the shelf and he frowned and turned, leaving the library, his robe flapping behind him dramatically as if they were his jacket.

He went to his room and pulled out his chest, and opened it to pull out his clothes he once wore ages ago before he became a king and pulled them on him. As he finished strapping the last belt strap, he looked to find Cloud and Serendipity standing in the doorway. He didn't realize he had been in Ansem's office most of the morning and it was nearly lunch. Cloud had a quizzical look on her face while Serendipity looked curiously to her father. He stood up and adjusted his shoulder guards. "I am going to check something out within the castle, I discovered something and I need to check it out." He went over to Serendipity and picked her up without missing a beat in his stride to Cloud. He took her into his other arm and held onto them both. "Cloud, Serendipity, I have to go. I have to find the one who can save our world soon." He stared long at Serendipity and touched her forehead with his forehead and whispered to her, "Oh Serendipity… so much in your hands."

Cloud gasped, "Sephiroth! What happened this morning? I found you gone and knew you went to Ansem office. But never would I dream you like this."

Sephiroth placed his daughter down and turned fully to Cloud, cupping her face with his hands. "This Ansem, he was the one who opened the door to another realm, releasing the Heartless to our realm. He had become one of them, and he is after some things, and some people. Cloud, Our only hope is in the Keyblade Master, and solely, for our galaxy, the Sorceress Princess."

Cloud stared at Sephiroth and she felt her heart sink. She pushed herself into his embrace and held on so tightly, not wanting to let go. Looking up into his face, she captured his lips and kissed. Serendipity watched on as her parents kissed fervently and frowned, feeling that something was wrong. Finally when her parents broke away, even she could tell reluctantly. Her father turned to her and knelt beside her, meeting her at eye level.

"Dippy." He began and sighed. It was only that he was planning to go below the Castle, yet he felt as if he was truly leaving his family forever. There was no way of knowing. "I will be back. I love you and you stay with either your mother or Odin." He reached in his pocket and pulled out a ring. He glanced over to Cloud and smiled as her eyes lit in sight of the ring. She had long removed the engagement ring to wear her wedding ring, giving to him to hold on for her. He turned back to his daughter and held it to her, "Here, hold onto this for me. It was your mother's engagement ring and it had brought her a lot of luck wearing it."

Serendipity smiled as she held her hand out and her father slipped the ring onto her middle finger, where it fit snugly. "Thank you, it's so pretty."

"A piece of our world, a chipped down Materia." Sephiroth laughed softly as he remembered where he had gotten the Materia from. It was his first Materia issued to him by the ShinRa, he had mastered it and wore it to the point it broke. It was a fitting gift for Cloud when he wanted to marry her and had it chipped down and fitted onto the ring. It had seen through years of journey, many battles and the salvation of the planet several times over. Such a tiny thing, it survived on the best of the people. Now, being passed onto their daughter, he believed, it would see more and survive with her. He held her tightly to him and kissed top of her head before letting her go.

Serendipity watched her parents kiss once again, this time, softly and briefly. Then, Sephiroth turned and left the room, leaving the two women he loves the most alone to each other. Cloud stepped over to Serendipity and gave her a brave smile, holding her close. "He will be back." She said softly, more to herself than for Serendipity.

Sephiroth found the secret passage from Ansem's office according to the papers and entered the hallways that led him below the castle. He was surprised to find the castle was also built below the water, leading to the deeper level and he came upon a large room. He couldn't help but gasp at the massive sight of the door standing at the other end of the room. Sure enough, it had a large keyhole in the middle and it was decorated ornately and beautiful. He stepped up to the door and touched it, he could feel the door vibrate under his touch and his heart tugged.

He stepped back in surprise and clenched his hand over his heart.

"Ah, a strong heart. I could use you." The silky voice not too different from his own voice floated in the room. Sephiroth whirled around, his hand snapping to summon his Masamune. It appeared in his hand and he glanced down to see slight change to his sword, the blade was slightly wider and had carving upon the surface. On the hilt hung a sort of charm on a chain, shaped like a Materia. It was black with greenish glow swirling around it and he realized it was Meteor Materia, representing him, the reincarnation of the god himself, Madoshi.

"How unique… a demi-god. Strong heart too… I sense the darkness in you, oh, strong and striving to get out."

Sephiroth stared about the room from the door, frowning. "Who are you and make yourself known!"

The voice chuckled deeply and the center of the room burst with dark wisp and black fire, swirling about and a form appeared from the ground, rising above. Sephiroth recognized the man who had golden eyes, silver hair and dark skin. "Ansem!"

"Yes." Ansem's voice hissed as he smirked at Sephiroth. "I see you are like me. Come to join my legion?"

"Never!"

Ansem crackled as he rose his hands and watched as the shadows appeared out from the floor and he laughed as Sephiroth fought vainly for his life but the heartless was too much for him and soon, the heartless beings had dog-piled over Sephiroth and covered him entirely, pulling him down into the ground and disappeared.

"How delicious, a strong heart…" Ansem frowned and pursed his lips, "And only a half." He then shrugged, "Ah, in time, I will have the other half." He smirked and looked up to the ceiling. "Soon." He rose from where he stood and flew toward the door and disappeared as his body went through the surface, leaving behind swirling black smoke to dissipate in his wake.

Cloud stared out of the window, it had been several hours since Sephiroth had gone and her heart ached. She clutched her chest, trying to ease the horrible feeling and the emptiness. A tear fell from her eyes, "Where are you, Sephiroth?" She whispered to the wind.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please with a cherry on the top?_

_Check Yashodoa's Bio for information and author's notes._


	67. Sere:5: Child of the Sky

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Chapter 5- Child of the Sky

Sephiroth stood before Ansem, his back sported a single wing, much similar to his One Winged Angel form from before the end of Jenova and he had two more wings sported from his hips, hiding under his jacket. He looked very menacing, standing there like a god of the darkness and he happened to be Ansem's best heartless yet.

"How interesting, you didn't change form into like those heartless." Ansem said as he walked around stoic Sephiroth.

Sephiroth didn't flinch or said anything, rather he was very passive, his face held emotionless mask. His heart had been taken away, leaving him in this form, a dark form of himself. Ansem laughed as he came back around to face him.

"You're rather very powerful and I am pleased to have you part of my legion." He looked about the vast space of another realm of the heartless. Before them was the towering castle, "There, we shall stay, I am working on forming an organization…" Ansem muttered as he walked away from Sephiroth.

"What do you want me to do?" Sephiroth asked monotony.

Ansem turned back around; gazing at Sephiroth, studying the other man's jaded eyes. "Whatever. Get me more hearts." He crackled and twirled around, his white and grey jacket billowed behind him as he took off.

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It had been several weeks since Sephiroth disappeared. No one ever found any clue or the papers that Sephiroth had been looking over before he disappeared. Ansem had taken the papers and scattered it over several worlds and hidden the secret entrance to the below of the castle once again, leaving no trace. Cloud became more and more distraught to Sephiroth's disappearance.

She first blamed herself, then the others, before finally succumbing to desperation, crying herself to sleep every night. Serendipity was often with Odin, watching on as her mother fall in and out of depression. She had cried her worth for a week after her father's disappearance but decided to put on a strong face and work more on her power. She had kept in contact with her grandfather and told him of the news.

Her grandfather had told her that kept her hopes up. "Don't worry little one. Your mother and your father are one; one cannot live without the other. Give time, and your mother will find him. She did before and I believe she will again."

Serendipity kept the hope in her heart, watching as her mother slowly regains herself out of depression, though not fully, regaining her strength and strong mind. She also had her Uncle Leon to thank, often comforting Cloud when she gets into one of her moods.

One day after a month, Jasmine looked up to see Serendipity's attention elsewhere. They had been getting together to read the books of spells in the library every other evening. She followed the girl's gaze and found what she was looking at. Cloud was on the balcony outside the library and Leon was with her. She frowned, not liking one bit that Leon was often with Cloud since Sephiroth disappeared.

They watched as Leon and Cloud conversation quietly outside, Leon holding onto her, comforting her. Serendipity shrugged her shoulders and returned her attention to the book on her 

lap. Jasmine kept on watching, her frown became deeper. She got up and went over to where the two are, "Cloud, can I talk to you?"

Cloud nodded and turned away from Leon, following Jasmine through the library to a private reading room. Jasmine then turned to Cloud as the door closed. "It's a dangerous ground you're walking on with Leon."

"What are you talking about?" Cloud asked.

"You and Leon seem to be getting too close, you're a married woman, and you have a wonderful husband."

Cloud frowned, "I am not getting that close to Leon, he's my best friend, much like Zack was before…" She looked away, unable to bring herself to say what happened to Zack, for in her heart she hoped that she would see him again. "Sephiroth is my husband, yes, and I will always be true to him. I won't do anything stupid. Leon's trying to keep me company, to keep me busy."

"I understand that, but be careful." Jasmine said.

"Don't worry." Cloud said with hard voice and left the room. The Arabian princess shook her head and sighed. She felt that Cloud was losing part of herself; the light in the Gaea Seventh queen's eyes was diminishing day by day. There were times that Cloud would be found wandering aimlessly around, as if she was deluded.

She also didn't like it when Serendipity would try to comfort or hang around her mother and Cloud would break down and lose it, crying and holding onto her daughter. Jasmine knew Serendipity reminds Cloud so much of Sephiroth.

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"Cloud," Leon said softly as he brushed the golden hair away from her shoulder, bringing her to look at him. "Are you feeling all right tonight? How about a dinner?"

Cloud looked at him and her eyes were blank. She then blinked and smiled at him. "I am fine, I have eaten. Do not worry about me." She looked over to the ocean below the castle ground. "It's pretty out tonight. The stars are bright." She glanced up and giggled. "Oh, look, there's the Dog Star."

Leon frowned. There was no Dog Star constellation in this part of the universe. He supposed Cloud was just imagining it or creating a new one. "Indeed, it's bright tonight with the moon." He said softly, looking to the sky. "Not as pretty as you are." He murmured.

Cloud's eye widened as she snapped her head to Leon. "What did you say?"

Leon stammered and turned to her, "Uh, I was saying how pretty the stars are."

"No," She smiled, teasing him. "I heard something else; you know I have a very good hearing."

"Yes, yes. I know." Leon said softly and he couldn't bring himself to look away from Cloud's blue eyes, shining brightly under the bright moon. "You're beautiful and I can't stop thinking of you a lot."

Cloud smiled and caressed her hand up on his face, "You're so kind to me, I am glad for you." She rested her head on his shoulder and sighed as he held her. "So warm."

They both broke apart yet their hands still held on. He turned and walked, leading her away from the balcony to the door that led to the hallway, away from the library. They both walked for good long while through the castle and finally, reaching to Cloud's door.

"Good night." Leon said breaking away from her.

She grasped his hand, her face sad, "Stay with me. I don't want to be alone."

He sighed, looked to her hand holding his. He looked up to her face and nodded, silently telling himself that he was only to comfort her.

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Serendipity saw the whole thing in the hallway on the way to her room. She frowned as Leon walked in with Cloud into her parents' room. She looked up to find Odin behind her.

"Come on." Odin said softly as he led her away. "It's time for bed."

"Why did Leon go in with her?" She asked as she followed the taller boy.

Odin stopped and looked down to her. "I don't know."

"Is he helping Mommy to feel better?"

Odin frowned and the look of rage passed his face quickly but Serendipity didn't notice. "No. I wouldn't like to think so."

"Why not?" She asked as she leaned her head on his shoulder as they kept walking down the hallway to their rooms.

"That's something you don't need to know now. Not until you're older. Just remember, forgive your mother someday. People do stupid things in desperate time." He said as he stopped before her door. "Go on to bed. I'll see you in the morning." He lightly shoved her to her room and watched as she went in. He turned and went next door to where his room was. He glanced back and frowned, despite his age, he knew what was going on and he didn't like it one bit.

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The next morning, Cloud stretched and yawned, feeling sluggish and opened her eyes. Her arm hit someone beside her and she smiled, turning to greet the person, "Sep…" The name caught in her throat as she stared.

Leon yawned and rubbed his chest as he felt something nudge him. He opened his eyes and looked to his side and saw Cloud. He frowned slightly and saw the look of shock on her face. It registered to his mind and he swallowed, cursing at himself. "Uh, oh shit." He murmured.

Cloud nodded and looked away, clutching the blanket to her naked body. The reality of what had happened settled in her. "Get out and never speak of this again." She said lowly, her voice hard.

Leon nodded and scrambles to get his clothes and hopped into his pants before fleeing the room. Cloud sat there for a long while on her bed and then finally broke down crying silently. She had betrayed Sephiroth in every sense.

After a long crying session, she dragged herself out of the bed and went to take a long hot shower. By the time she was finished and dressed, she left her room and caught the first maid she came across; it was the same woman who Sephiroth had met the first time. Her name was Gabrielle, "Gabby, can you remove the sheet from my room, and burn it?"

Gabrielle gasped softly, "All right."

Cloud shook her head, "Actually, burn the whole thing, the blanket, pillow and everything."

"Anything else?" The French maid asked, her brown eyes concerned for the blond haired queen. She had come to like the woman since the first time they met. She had admired the queen's strength and loyalty to her people and her husband. She didn't like the sad look in the queen's eyes.

Cloud looked back to the maid as she turned to leave. "Yes, change the color. Whatever you think, anything but that color."

Gabrielle nodded her head and turned to do what she was ordered, thinking of the color she would choose. "Hm, maybe silver and green… that would be nice colors." She giggled.

Aeris found Cloud later on a private balcony near the very top most towers. She found it was odd for Cloud to hide, and then lately, it was something Cloud had been doing, hiding and moping. She was sure that Cloud was doing better in the past few days. She approached Cloud and touched the other woman's shoulder.

Cloud tilted her head to look at Aeris. The healer gasped softly, recognizing the look on Cloud's face, it struck familiar chord inside her, the mysterious sadness, the heavy burden kind of look and she had seen it before, before the Meteor Crisis. "Cloud, what happened?"

She looked away from Aeris, not wanting to say anything. Then Aeris sighed, "I am here, your friend, you can talk to me about anything. We are here together, we will see it through, and that's what Sephiroth says. We are survivors." She murmured the last part, looking away, wondering if Cloud would ever survive this kind of crisis, because it was so different from any other. It was almost if she had no hope left.

"I'm fine." Cloud finally said softly. "Let's not bring it up." She pushed away from the railing and turned to Aeris, her eyes hard. "Sephiroth will come back, if he doesn't, I will find him. He is still my heart, my soul, I feel him, no matter what."

Aeris gave a timid smile and watched Cloud walk away with stiffness in her posture and wondered. "Something had happened." She murmured to herself.

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A month passed at Garden Bastion, some princesses came and went, but Jasmine, Belle and Aurora remained most of the time, to help Cloud and her friends out, believing that they would come to settle on the world for the rest of their life. Sometime, the princesses would take Cloud and Serendipity to their worlds, to visit and spend time with their own people, to get to know their universe. They learned there were many worlds out there and the interspaces travel was only recent, and they were eager to travel and help the other people to fight off the shadows.

Cloud and Leon kept their distance, Jasmine was happy that they didn't hang out together anymore; knowing the two of them would spell disaster. Leon often spends his time with Cid and Tifa in the town, working and helping people out. Cid had started a shop selling Gummi parts for the ships and other things while Tifa helped along and ran a café next door. Aeris went back and forth between the castle and town, helping other people and children.

After two weeks since that fateful night, Cloud was given the shock of her life; she was pregnant again and kept it secret from the others. By the end of the month, she was beginning to show and couldn't find any more clothes to hide it. She decided to wait for the first one to come to her.

Aeris was the first one. One morning, Cloud was stepping out of her bathroom and Aeris came into the room, her arms full of clothes that the maid was about to bring in but she intervened, wanting to see Cloud.

Cloud paused as she towel-dried her hair, still naked as the day she was born. She stared at Aeris who stopped in the middle of the room, staring at her. It wasn't a big deal that they had seen each other naked, often they bathed together while at the palace back on their home world.

But it was the tell-able bump on Cloud's belly that caused Aeris to drop everything in her arms and stare openly. "Cloud." She finally said as Cloud began to move again and to get dressed.

Aeris gaped, watching as Cloud got dressed and finally found her voice. "You're pregnant!"

Cloud sighed and turned to the other woman and nodded her face somber. "Yes."

Frowning as the wheels turned in her head; Aeris whispered accusingly, "It's not Sephiroth's."

Cloud closed her eyes and sat down on the bed, covering her face with her hands. "You're right. It's not his. I didn't think it would happen. One night, that's all and it was a mistake. I didn't listen to Jasmine's warning."

Aeris looked away, wanting to scream at Cloud and accuse her but she didn't. After a minute she gave a heavy sigh and went over to sit by Cloud and hugged her. "I suppose that has to mean something."

Cloud looked up from her hands, "What do you mean?"

"You can't get pregnant by any other guys but Sephiroth, however, whoever the father is an exception. That child must mean something; he or she has a greater destiny, to be growing inside you." She reached out to cup Cloud's round belly and smiled softly, "I am sure even Sephiroth would agree."

Cloud placed her hand over her belly, covering Aeris' hand. "Destiny? I suppose so."

Aeris withdrew her hand, leaving Cloud to ponder on her own belly, "Yes. No child would be born without a meaning in his or her life. This one is special one, having you as a mother for it. Who's the father?"

Cloud looked up, her eyes wet with tears, brimming and ready to spill. Shaking her head, she choked and finally said, "Leon."

Aeris closed her eyes; it wasn't much of a surprise, seeing that Leon was the only other man alive that was close to Cloud. If it weren't for Leon, it could have been Zack if it were in any other situation; then again, Zack was too loyal to both women to do anything foolish. She nodded and stood up and turned to Cloud. "I see. I understand now. You both had been avoiding each other for the past month, is that why?"

"Yes."

"You both need to decide what to do, including that child's future."

"What about Sephiroth?" Cloud asked, wiping her face dry of her tears that spilled.

"What do you believe about Sephiroth?"

Cloud clenched her hands to her chest, staring up at her best friend. "I believe he's out there somewhere, alive. I love him too much, I miss him so much." She stood up and faced Aeris, clutching the other woman's shoulders. "I, I thought it was him that morning, but it wasn't. It was Leon instead. I was so upset, I told him to leave."

"Now, you need to talk to Leon, decide what you both will do. If you are going to keep with Sephiroth, at least, let Leon be part of the child's life. Come on, let's find him," Aeris stopped as she heard a growl and looked to Cloud's stomach, "Well, we'll stop at the kitchen on the way." She laughed and tugged Cloud's arm and they both left the room.

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Leon decided on that day, he would not live in the castle any longer. He had been aware of Cloud's pregnancy for a while. He had seen how she had been in the morning and how her clothes had changed. He was more attentive to Cloud than anyone else. It wouldn't be long before the others know of her pregnancy.

When he had first discovered, he was shocked and surprised to say the least. He knew of her psychology, of her inability to be impregnated by any man but Sephiroth. He questioned himself over and over and concluded, it had to be the magic of the new planet or the food that they had ate. He feared the most for the other people's reaction, knowing of their true loyalty was in with Sephiroth.

He kept himself scare from everyone else, always keeping to the field outside town or the castle, fighting against the heartless beings, training himself. He often thought of his lost love, Riona for he still kept her letter in his jacket pocket the whole time.

When Aeris and Cloud had found him one day in the castle while he was doing a sweep through for any heartless, they cornered him and told him that they needed to talk.

"Cloud has something to say to you." Aeris said and stepped back, leaving Cloud to stare at her with pale look on her face.

Leon looked to Cloud and waited, suspected already what she wanted to tell him. She spoke softly, "I'm pregnant, with your child, that is."

He said nothing but nodded once. "I understand."

Cloud frowned at him. "What? That's all, no objection or denial?"

He shook his head, "I kind of knew. I suspected a while ago and I already had my reaction then. I still don't know why or how it happens."

Aeris rolled her eyes and groaned loud to attach attention from the two. "Oh, do you want me to give you a picture, all it take a man and a woman, and he'd stick his…"

Cloud became slightly blue and sputtered, "Aeris! Shut up! We know!"

Aeris feigned innocently, "Well… You asked."

Leon shook his head in exasperation. "Not like that. I mean, her being only attuned to Sephiroth, no one else."

"Oh that. Well, it's fate." Aeris said with finality as if it was the answer to the whole universe. "And Forty-two."

"What?" Cloud asked again, utterly confused.

"Something I read out of a book, I believe, 'Hithchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.' Weird book though." She murmured, explaining quickly.

"Whatever. Can we get back to the subject?" Cloud asked and turned back to Leon.

"I will do whatever you wish me to do." He said, bowing his head.

Cloud smiled at him, "Then, help me raise the child. I don't know what we will do when Sephiroth comes back. You know I love him and belong to him, but this is also your child." She gestured to her belly.

Leon blinked and looked a bit pale. "I, uh, I will try."

"Thank you." Cloud smiled and gave a single nod, singling for Leon to leave. He left and she turned to Aeris, "What in the world, no, scratch that, the universe are you talking about?"

Aeris laughed.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Serendipity's power developed in immense and she was able to control most of her basics and some of the challenging ones. DaHara, after being inspired by her best friend managed to grasp the control of fire and ice, knowing wistfully that her parents would have been proud of her. Odin and Jules trained often together with weapons and learned to master the ability of controlling some elements. It was no surprise that Odin had more talents with thunders himself, seeing that he was once a thunder god in his past life.

Serendipity had just sat down from sparring with Jules, watching on as Odin egging DaHara on, trying to provoke her into using her powers to attack. She giggled as DaHara screamed and blasted her power, encasing Odin's sword in ice and stomping around, throwing fit because it wasn't powerful enough. She badly wants to be powerful like her parents.

"Good try, Hara." Odin chuckled as he threw the iced sword down and patted the red-head girl, brushing past her to plop down beside Serendipity and taking the water jug from her to drink. "You still got a long way to go, but you're getting better."

DaHara settled and sighed, "I know. I just feel useless not being able to be strong, after all the training my parents tried to give me. They're gone and I feel like I failed them."  
Jules patted DaHara's leg as she sat down next to him, "Don't worry, we'll see them again, right?" He turned to Serendipity.

"Yeah…" She said, looking distracted as she looked across the garden to see her mother walking toward Jasmine and Aurora, talking quietly with them. Her hands were on her belly. Lately in the past month, her mother's belly was growing bigger and bigger. She knew that her mother was expecting a baby, but she couldn't figure it out.

"What's going on with my mother?" She asked quietly.

Odin sighed as he looked where she was watching her mother. "That's something I can't explain." He said roughly then he glared as he saw Leon joining the women. "But I do not like it."

"I don't understand, why can't you tell me?" Serendipity asked as she turned to Odin.

He shook his head. "You're young to understand. It's not right about what had happened, but it happened."

Serendipity stood up and walked over to where her mother and tugged her aside. Cloud waved Leon away and told the other princesses that she will see them later. "What is it, honey?" She asked as her daughter led her away from the others and into deeper part of the garden.

Serendipity finally stopped and turned to her mother, "What happened?"

"What do you mean?" Cloud asked, unsure where her daughter was going. She brushed the silver hair, smiling softly.

"I mean, why are you pregnant and what happened? Why is some people angry every time they look at Leon, why haven't daddy come back yet? I thought you will never have another kid."

Cloud sighed as she dropped her hand from her daughter's hair and looked away, holding her belly. "In about a month time, you will have a baby brother or sister. It is by miracle that I am pregnant. As for your father, I do not know where he is but he is somewhere out there, looking for the Sorceress Princess and the Keyblade Master. A lot of things are happening out there, the shadows grow in number and it is not very good. This world is infected by the shadows but many here are warriors, survivors and we all are fighting them off." She turned back to meet her daughter's eyes, "As for some people being angry at Leon, they should also direct their anger at me too, for it was partly my fault that I am carrying this child."

"What do you mean? It's going to be my brother or sister, right?"

"Yes, but you both will not share the same father. Your father is Sephiroth and you know I love him very much and miss him very much, he is my half heart. But this baby in my belly has a different father and it is Leon."  
"Oh. I see. But I'll love him no matter what." Serendipity said softly as she placed both of her hands on her mother's belly and giggled softly as she felt the baby kicking inside. "He 

knows." Cloud nodded, smiling softly but it didn't reach her eyes, knowing, one day, Serendipity will understand clearly.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

The door opened and the nursemaid nodded to Serendipity, giving her permission to enter. She ran in, past the nursemaid and to her mother's bed. Belle, Aurora, and Jasmine smiled to Serendipity as Cloud held the newborn baby in her arms. "You have a brother now." She said wearily.

Serendipity peered as her mother revealed the baby from the blanket, showing a brown haired boy in her arms, the baby yawned and blinked his eyes open to reveal bright blue eyes. She smiled and brushed her brother's hair softly and giggled as the baby moved and grabbed her fingers.

Leon stepped into the room and made his way to the end of the bed and stopped there, watching as the mother and daughter coo over the new born boy. He watched on until Cloud looked up at him and he gave her a small smile. He asked, "What is his name?"

Cloud shook her head, "It's tradition for the father to name the child on my world."

"I… I don't know." Leon said softly as he thought and nodded as something came to mind, "Sora."

"I like that." Cloud said as she looked to her son. "Sora Squall Leonheart."

Leon bowed and quietly left the room. Aeris came in and sat down on the end of the bed while Aurora took the baby and settled him in the bassinette. "You seem to be doing well." Aeris said as she withdrew her hands from Cloud's body after healing her. "You are sad. I wouldn't want you to be depressed, the risk of postpartum depression."

Cloud waved her hand as she rested back on the pillow, watching as her daughter fuss over her brother in the bassinette and Belle explaining to her about babies. "I miss Sephiroth and I feel as if this baby is not my child at all, there was no connection between him and me like I had with Serendipity." She said softly.

Aeris glanced over to the bassinette. "I have heard that it happens with the second child with most mothers. Give it a few months and you'll connect with him."

"Like you said, that child has a greater destiny to be born from me. I do not know what's Serendipity's destiny going to be, or Sora's."

"True. You all are children of the gods and there are always something special for you all. The children are growing in their powers; Jules had been coming to me every night, telling me what he learned and showing off what he could do. Zack would have been so proud of him. He's starting to look like his father every day."

Cloud nodded, "Yes, Serendipity tells me too, but I feel she's not telling me everything. I regret being distracted lately. I am going to try my best to be involved in my children's life from now on."

"That's good. But now, you need to rest." Aeris said as she stood up and waved to Serendipity to come along. "We're going to let you sleep and rest. The babe will sleep now." They left Cloud alone quietly and allowed her to sleep.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Two years later, Serendipity finally figured out why people viewed the union between Leon and her mother was wrong and felt slight resentment toward Leon and her mother for 

betraying her father but forgave them. She grew into her power and was becoming powerful each day. She just had celebrated her tenth birthday and it was quiet and simple like it had been in the past two years.

Cloud never was able to connect with her son at all since the birth. She often would stand aside, watching on as the other helped in raising him and teaching him. Sora grew into a very cute little two years old boy, always smiling and being happy, his hair was wild and stuck out like Cloud's hair used to be and his eyes were blue, shining with innocent happiness. He would call Cloud 'Momo', and she would try her best to be there for him, tucking him in bed every night, reading him short stories, play with him every day, yet she never felt like he was her own son.

Serendipity watched as her mother pack several things in a bag in Sora's room. "Mother, what are you doing?"

"I've found a safe place for Sora to go to. He's not going to stay here anymore, it's too dangerous." Cloud replied as she pulled a stuffed duck into the bag and reached for a yellowish stuffed dog and held it as she looked to Serendipity. "The shadows are getting heavy in numbers and they're trying to get Bastion Garden."

"But, Mom! We can protect Sora! He got you and Leon and everyone else." She protested.

Cloud stood up from packing the bag and turned to her daughter, "No honey. Things are going to change soon. Just leave me be, let me finish packing."

Serendipity frowned at her mother and turned from the room, running down the hall, tears falling down her cheeks as she cried silently. Odin had stepped out of the library and saw her running past, he followed her.

"Where are you going to take Sora?" Aeris asked as she stepped into the bedroom after she had seen Serendipity run off.

Cloud sighed and threw a shirt onto the bed and plopped down on the bed. "Why is everyone annoying me about this?"

"We are concerned." Aeris said softly.

"I can't keep Sora here any longer; it's not safe for him." She then stood up and gestured wildly with her hands. "Of all the children here, Sora is the youngest and defenseless. Serendipity and her friends are all able to defend themselves against the shadows, the lesser ones." She allowed her arms to drop and she looked older beyond her years as she sat down again on the bed, "I, I… I can't look at Sora and be reminded of my mistakes. He's so innocent and even after two years, I still can't feel like he is my child." She looked to Aeris, "I found a world not too far away with King Mickey's help. It's not touched by the shadows and I found a couple in Twilight Town there where they could take in Sora. There are other children his age there, he can grow up there."

Aeris looked slightly horrified at Cloud and then calmed down, feeling defeated. "I truly thought you would connect with Sora. I am sorry that you feel that way. What about Leon?"

"He agrees. He also didn't feel right around Sora. It's like we're the most unfit parents for just one single child that fate had left to us."

The healer nodded, "I suppose if that's what you feel and I hope you are making the right decision."

"I hope I am. I feel I need to do something…" Cloud shook her head and returned to packing the clothes for Sora. Aeris stood up and left the room quietly, leaving Cloud to grieve in silence.

She finished packing and stepped onto the balcony from the bedroom, her face wet with tears as she watched the sun settle for the evening. She felt lost and confused, unsure why Sora was in her life. She missed Sephiroth badly and memories of him were starting to fade, as if the hole in her heart was growing and she felt the need to find him. "I'm coming love, I'll find you again." She whispered.

The next day, Cloud was dressed in her gray blue outfit, holding Sora in her arms with the bag over her shoulder. Serendipity frowned at her mother, angry at her for taking Sora away. She loves her little brother and loved to be with him, playing and taking care of him. The others were with her, standing at the front entrance of the castle, watching as Cloud went to Cid, who would take her to the other planet.

"Why are you taking him away?" Serendipity asked finally, stopping her mother at the doors.

Cloud turned back to her and shook her head sadly, "I have to. I told you that it's not safe for him here. He will be safe in Twilight Town. We can visit him."  
Serendipity glared at her mother, "That's not the reason. You don't love Sora; you can't stand him at all!" She shouted.

The others gasped and Odin grabbed her arms, holding her back. Cloud turned to Cid and handed him Sora and went to Serendipity and took hold of her daughter's arms, lowering her face to Serendipity's level and her voice slightly hard, "Serendipity Destiny Strife-Valentine, never say that for it is not true. I love Sora and things are going to change from now on. When I come back, I am setting out to find your father, and when I find your father, Sora will come back to us and we all live together again."

Serendipity frowned, tears cascading down her face, "I am so sorry, it's all my fault… I am so sorry…" She broke down and cried, breaking away from her mother and Odin's hold, running away from everyone.

Cloud sighed and stood up. Aeris stepped up and placed a hand onto her shoulder, "We will take care of Serendipity, things are hard for her since she is beginning to understand what's going on. Go on and take Sora to Twilight Town."

"Thank you." Cloud said simply and glanced around to everyone, "Thank you all for your support even when I don't deserve it. Good bye, I'll be back soon."

Everyone murmured goodbyes as they watched Cloud take Sora from Cid and followed the pilot out of the castle. Serendipity watched from the balcony from the room, watching as her mother take off in the ship, leaving the world. She felt another behind her and said softly, "Why am I being left out of everything?"

Odin sighed as he drew her into a hug from behind, "You were too young to understand, but now, you're getting older and things are hard to understand. There are no joys in many things since the shadows are in our lives. Your childhood is lost, and your mother does not want that for Sora. In a way, it is best for Sora to grow up without knowing the shadows until he is older."

"I suppose so." Serendipity said and turned to bury her head into Odin's chest while he held her.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud smiled sadly, watching the young couple take Sora from her arms and take him into their house. She waved good bye until the door closed. Cid stood behind her, leaning on the staff and he said, "They're good people."

"I know." She wiped the last tear from her eyes and turned around, getting into the taxi cab. "Let's get back to Bastion Garden."

Cid nodded and got in the cab with her and watched as Cloud glanced out of the window with blank look on her face. The detachment was familiar to him and he didn't like it, he had seen it before years ago when he first knew Cloud. "Hey, we all will see this through."

"Yeah." Cloud said softly and turned to Cid, "But this is different, our world's gone, there's only handful of us left and where are we going to go from here?"

"Let fate lead us wherever we go. We're alive for a reason."

"Funny how Sephiroth named our daughter for fate and yet, Serendipity is angry at me. It feels as if Fate is angry at me. Why did she say it's her fault? She didn't do anything."

"Who knows? What are you planning to do when we get back?"

She returned to look out of the window, watching as the scenery of the town pass by. It was a beautiful simple town by the shore, colorful and peaceful and untouched by the shadows. King Mickey had made contact with the world and made sure no one knew of the shadows yet and tried to find the door, to keep it shut but couldn't find it. Only the leaders of the world where Twilight Town is knew of the events going on outside their worlds and kept a mum about it.

Finally, she said, "I am leaving."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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_Check Yashodoa's Bio for information and author's notes._


	68. Sere:6: Return of Cloud Strife

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Chapter 6- Return of Cloud Strife

Serendipity peered out of the doorway from the library to see her mother walking down the hallway toward her. She had returned from the other world, and without Sora.

"Serendipity." Cloud called after her as she saw her daughter's head disappearing into the library and hurried there. She opened the door and glanced around, the library was dark and it was already after dark outside, everyone else was either sleeping or in the study room elsewhere for the night. She entered the library and walked along the maze of bookshelves. She had an idea where her daughter had disappeared to.

"Serendipity." She called out again. "We need to talk." She glanced around, heading toward the end of the library. "Come on, honey. I want to apologize and discuss this with you like an adult. I know you are not a child anymore."

No answer and she sighed, reaching the end of the maze in one corner of the library, she turned and followed the wall to a dead end and turned into a hidden secret bookcase hallway and reached the end. She traced her fingers along the books until she found a single book. It was titled 'Valkyries'. She smiled softly at the title; they both once had found this book by accident and wanted to read it to see if it were anything about their race only to find a secret room behind the bookcase. She pulled the book slightly and the bookshelf slid sideway to reveal a small tunnel. She ducked in and went in. The bookcase slid close behind her and she followed the tunnel, seeing faint light at the end.

She stood up as she exited the tunnel, she had entered a roundish room that was decorated with few more bookshelves and some comfortable chairs and a bed at the end of the room. It was a private room to Ansem's wife a long time ago. The fireplace was alive and burning. She glanced to the bed to find her daughter lying on the bed, facing away from her. She went over and sat down on the bed, rubbing her daughter's back.

"Sere honey, I know you're angry with me about Sora."

Serendipity sat up and turned to her mother, "It's just not that. I am angry about everything. Daddy's gone, you… betrayed him with Leon and now you have to take Sora away. What's next, mother?" She started to cry and Cloud, despite her size pulled Serendipity from her place on the bed onto her lap and cradled her as if she was a babe. Serendipity curled up in her mother's strong arms and cried softly into her mother's golden hair.

"Shh…" Cloud murmured onto Serendipity's hair. She couldn't help but feel the familiar warmth of Sephiroth filling her up. Serendipity had similar scent as Sephiroth but with feminine edge, she knew Sephiroth had told her that Serendipity had smelled like her to him, she supposed it was both way. She reached and lifted her daughter's chin up and their eyes met, same deep shade of blue looked at each other. "We are survivors. We came from line of Valkyries, it began with Megamiki, she loved Madoshi and gave up her life to be with him, and Jenova gave up her life to keep her daughter safe, then Lucrecia gave up her life to ensure Sephiroth, your father to restore our planet, our people. My mother and grandmother suffered the prejudice of Nibelheim and gave up their lives for their daughters to survive. Now, I am carrying on the legacy, to make sure you and Sora survive this."

"But it's not fair, everyone died for someone… you're going to die if you go."

Cloud shook her head. "Not this time around." She wiped Serendipity's tears away. "I feel in my heart, he's somewhere out there, waiting… I lost him before, and I found him. I will find him again and only I can find him."

"What about the Sorceress Princess and the Keyblade Master? Father went out to find them, but he got lost. You will get lost." Serendipity protested and slipped out of her mother's arms to stand face to face with her. "If you go, you'll get lost."

Cloud gave a sad smile. "I am losing myself every single day with your father gone. I must find him." She stood up and kissed her daughter's forehead. "It's our legacy as Valkyries." Cloud murmured and walked out of the room.

Serendipity's eyes filled with tears once again as she watched her mother leave the bedroom. It was that moment her mother had kissed her forehead, she saw the blank look in her mother's eyes and knew there was no hope in talking her mother out of anything. Tears fell from her eyes and she threw herself upon the bed, crying once more.

Every day for a week after their talk, Serendipity retreated to this private room, mediating over the words that both of her parents had given to her in past few years since the Shadows had first came to their world. Memories swam before her eyes and she found herself growing stronger and stronger, resisting the overwhelming emotions and each day passes, she cried less and less.

One day, as she recalled the memories of her younger and innocent days on Gaea Seventh, then suddenly, she saw vision of a young teenage boy standing before a large door; he was holding a weapon of some sort, shaped like a large key. He had two strangest companions with him, a tall funny looking man that looked like a dog and a short one that appeared to be a duck. The boy moved and held his weapon toward the door and bright light emitted from his key sword, hitting the door and then the vision went white. She blinked and frowned, unsure what was going on.

The vision kept coming, she would see the boy and his two companions in different places she had come to recognize different worlds, fighting the shadows or meeting some people she had come to know and recognize. The vision was only flashes that lasted few seconds, long enough for her to grasp what was going on and finally, after a few days, she decided to call upon her grandfather to find out.

"Grandpa?" She asked as the sphere floated before her. She waited and finally, the familiar face came and she smiled.

"Serendipity." Vincent replied. He sounded concerned, "What is it?"

"I want to ask you something… I have been seeing things." She started to explain about her visions and finally, when she finished, "What does it mean?"

Her grandfather smiled and chuckled, "I believe that's vision you are seeing… Vision of the future."

"You mean I can see what will happen in the future?" She asked her eyes wide with surprise.

"I think so. It's known in your lineage. Your father had that ability, but not so much. Jenova was also known to have the ability to some extent. You might inherited the ability. With time and practice, you can come to control the ability and foresee what you wish to see… but it comes with a heavy burden."  
"Why?"

Vincent rubbed his neck and sighed, "Jenova, as it was told in the tome that she foresaw everything and tried to prevent the outcome. She couldn't control the vision and in the end, she wished no one would have the ability… but it could not be helped. You will see things you do not want to see, you will see things you want to see and try to make it come true sooner."

Serendipity frowned and remained silent, thinking over what her grandfather had told her. She was young, but yet, she understood from such a young age, she was the children of the gods, a direct descendant of Gaia and Ourano, the god and goddess of the universe. "Oh…"

"Serendipity… with this vision ability, it brings attention that you are coming into your power of your namesake. Your father foresaw your birth, foresaw who you will become and named you Serendipity Destiny for a reason. You are the Valkyrie of Fate."

"Valkyrie of Fate?" Serendipity replied, curious.

Vincent smiled and shook his head, "That's something I will tell you someday… each women in your family are Valkyrie, but not without a reason. I believe our time is up. Tread carefully with your newfound ability. Take care, love." Then Vincent was gone from the sphere.

Serendipity waved her hand, the sphere disappeared like a popped bubble and she frowned. Hopping from the bed in the private room, she went out into the library and searched for a book about visions.

She had found several and read them, drinking every word. It was few days and few more vision that she realized she had been seeing the Keyblade Master. She wondered once again about controlling the vision and decided to ask her grandfather once again, calling him up.

"What is it?" Vincent asked, concerned as he was called by his granddaughter once again.

"Remember I have been having visions?" She saw her grandfather nod. "Well, it's about a young boy, maybe teenage with two friends, one a dog and a duck… talking ones." She smirked as she caught her grandfather's questioning look. "Never mind that. I think it's the Keyblade Master… if I could see him in my vision, why haven't my father tried that? He would have found him a whole lot sooner."

Vincent thought and tapped his chin, "That's a good question. Your father once told me once a long time ago when I asked him about his vision ability… he said he only could foresee any future of anybody he knows, nothing for strangers."

"What about Genesis? He saw things about Genesis before he met him."

"There was a very strong tie between Genesis and your father. Genesis was created by Doctor Hojou, the father of Doctor Hojo who in turn raised your father and your father was the successor of the project itself. In a sense, Genesis was the first and your father was the last."

"I see. So, I must have met this Keyblade Master and the two strange characters… I would have remembered the duck and the dog."

Vincent chuckled, "Perhaps, you met someone who has a strong connection to whoever you are seeing in your vision. If you said your father had not seen the Keyblade Master in his vision," He paused and shook his head, "He might have not met this person or he had not tried to."

Serendipity nodded. "I think, I might have met the Keyblade Master already but didn't know who he is. Yet, still, where is the Sorceress Princess?"

"Who knows… she might be right under your nose the whole time." Vincent smiled and bowed his head, "I must go. Take care, koibito."

"All right, good bye." Serendipity replied and watched as the bubble pop silently.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

"It's almost time for me to go and find Sephiroth." Cloud said at dinner. Jasmine gasped next to her and the rest of the table fell silent from their chattering, turning their attention to Cloud.

"It's dangerous." Aurora replied across from Cloud, her face etched with concern. "You're a queen, similar to being a princess and the heartless will be after you."

"That's right, that's why most of us remain here." Belle piped in. "The shadows want our hearts because we hold a pure heart of our world."

Cloud shook her head, "My heart is no where pure like any of you princesses." She glanced around the table, giving them a challenging look. "Look at me, I betrayed my own soulmate and had a child by another man." Down the table, Leon dropped his head and attempted to hide himself. He knew what everyone was thinking at the moment, it was no secret in the castle. She continued, "He went looking to find answers, to find the Sorceress Princess and the Keyblade Master, but it had been several years. How much longer must I wait?" Her voice was getting a little bit higher, "I lost him once a long time ago… Several years we were apart. I lost my memory of everything in my life and worked hard to regain them to figure out if Sephiroth's intention was to destroy or save our world. I died to be with him but only was given another chance by Gaia. Now, I…" Tears were falling freely from her eyes as she glanced to meet everyone's eyes around the table. "I don't remember what happened. I don't remember our wedding… I don't remember much of anything… my heart…" She clutched her fists to her chest as she rose from her chair. "My heart is slipping…" She closed her eyes and two tears fell, splashing on the table and she then spoke, her voice even, "As I go searching for Sephiroth, they will not find a queen wandering around." Then she was gone, walking out of the dining hall.

Jasmine was the first to speak. "What did she mean by that?"

Aeris, Cid, Tifa and Yuffie looked at each other and finally Tifa answered, "Once long time ago, she had masqueraded as a young soldier for years. That's how she met Sephiroth." She looked down at the table, studying the cloth pattern, her mind lost in time. "It's so long time ago as it seems…"

"Yeah." Yuffie murmured. "I thought she was some tough soldier… very hard to get to know or get along with for a while."

"She's tougher than you all think she is." Cid commented quietly.

Aeris frowned and stood up, "What are you all talking about?" She gestured wildly to the door where Cloud had walked out, "She's in no shape to even go out alone. You all heard her, she said her heart is slipping. She is in much more danger…"

"Aeris…" Tifa started and the other woman fell silent, "Shut up, there's no changing Cloud's mind."

"The real question is, was that Queen Sorano or Cloud Strife?" Cid murmured more to himself than anyone but it had left everyone thinking in silence for the rest of the dinner.

Leon slipped away from the table during the tirade and followed after Cloud. He found his way to her room and knocked on the door. He heard her denying him access but he ignored and entered the bedroom, finding Cloud tugging the chest out of the closet and setting it by the bed. "Cloud." He said softly as he approached her. She was kneeling by the trunk, as if she was unsure if she should open it or not.

He reached by her side and touched her shoulder. She snapped his hand away and said, "Go away, leave me be."

As if struck, he stepped back and shook his head. "As you wish." He said simply and left. He reached the hallway and saw few people filtering out of the dining hall. Jasmine approached him with concern and question on her face. He shook his head, "She's not herself now."

Jasmine stopped him, her hand on his arm. "How far gone is she?"

"There's no saying, one moment, she is herself, then the other moment, and she isn't. The disappearance of Sephiroth is really taking toll on her; even it's been two years."

"I know, you all have been here since and the weight is heavy… more and more worlds are being lost to the shadows."

"I know, all of the Gaea systems are gone. Our worlds, our homes… Once there were millions of people, but now, only a handful of us. Sometime, I wonder if the gods are mocking us. They are the children of the gods, for gods' sakes!"

"I find that strange too." Jasmine replied.

Serendipity had overheard their conversation from her hiding spot behind the potted plants around the corner. She hurried her way to her mother's room and entered. She found Cloud sitting on the floor, her arms outstretched over a large old trunk she recognized to be her parent's luggage from their home world. Cloud looked as if she was hugging the box, her head resting on the top, her face blank, lost in thought.

"Mother?"

Cloud blinked and looked up; she gave a watery smile and wiped her face. "Oh Serendipity." She opened her arms and Serendipity found herself in her mother's embrace and they sat there for a good while.

Finally, Cloud stood up and carried her daughter to her bedroom and laid her down in her bed. Pulling the cover over Serendipity, she smiled and said, "Good night, love. Sweet dream. I love you."

Serendipity nodded sleepily and turned over, falling asleep. Cloud stood there, her hands over her heart watching her daughter sleep. Then she turned and left, but in the spot where she stood was a bright light with two hue of blue and gold floating in mid air and then spiraled down to Serendipity and disappeared into her.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Cloud threw the papers away in violent fit and slumped in the chair. Frustrated and annoyed, she couldn't string together what her husband had discovered in Ansem's office. The papers was scattered all over the office and none of them seem to make a sense and she suspected that the original document, whatever Sephiroth had discovered had been removed prior to his disappearance.

Standing up, she look to the portrait of Ansem and frowned. The man had silver hair, dark skin and golden eyes, looking regal and professional at the same time. She glowered at the picture. She had assumed that she would get a head start in the office, searching for a clue where she could start to look for her husband, but was no where farther than she had begun.

However, there was a little hope with one single paper she had discovered. It spoke of the heart that wasn't able to be taken by the shadows. Ansem had mentioned in the paper that his experiment seem to fail when it comes to several people. They didn't succumb into the darkness, rather remained human with no mind. She glanced down at the paper that she had held in her hand, the only one that didn't get thrown away like the others. Rereading the words on the paper, she knew somehow it was the only clue she could find, the only hope she has.

Then suddenly, she felt the overwhelming familiar presence that filled her mind and her heart. She almost cried in hope. "Sephiroth?" She called out.

Almost thrown back as she was given a response, _'Cloud.'_ She fell to her knees, her eyes streaming with tears, not daring to speak in fear to dash away the last hope. _'Yes, it's me, kokoro.'_

Bravery appeared like a bloom of hope, "Sephiroth… I miss you so much. Where are you?"

_'I have locked myself away so Ansem would not take my heart. I wait to be unlocked once again.'_

"So, I must find you? Where can I find you?" She asked, but then, the familiar feeling was gone, leaving her cold and lonely again. She screamed and fell to the floor, clutching her heart and crying her eyes out, knowing she had lost him once again. After a long time lying in fetal position, she swallowed and rose to her feet shaking and looked in her hand, she had torn the paper to shred in her fit of anger and anguish. She believed, she has to find him and bring him back once again as she had once long ago. However, she did not know, the shadow was creeping into her heart for a long time and the light was diminishing.

With final resolve, she dropped the paper and reached for the sharp letter cutter, rising to her feet and moved to the mirror. Standing before the mirror in the office across from the portrait, she took hold of her golden hair and started to cut her hair. One by one, the strand of her hair fell to the floor in pile of golden pool.

With a hard glare, she glanced to the portrait in the reflection and murmured, "Ansem, you will wish you never thought of toying with human souls." And she turned, leaving the office, the kindly queen was no more but a hardened soldier had reemerged.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

It was early in the morning, dawn had broken and Serendipity stepped out of her bedroom and made her way down the hallway to the dining hall for breakfast. As she reached the dining hall, she stopped to see clutch of people standing at the doorway. She made a detour and made her way through the crowd to the front and stopped by Aeris. At the doorway, standing on the top step was a stranger.

The stranger was dressed in bizarre combination of old solider uniform, some armors and red cape. Strapped on his back was a massive sword and she gasped, recognizing the sword to be the old Buster Sword. The person turned his head sideway and she yelled, "Mother!" Recognizing the soldier she had mistaken for a man to be her mother, she ran to her and tugged onto her hand.

Cloud looked down, her face hardened. "Serendipity, I am going to find your father."

"But Mother!" She then saw her mother's eyes and fell silent, dropping her mother's hand as if it were fire. She took a step back, not recognizing the look in her mother's face and turned to Aeris, hiding her face into Aeris' arms.

Blinking, Cloud's eyes unfogged and she turned, kneeling. "Serendipity." Her daughter looked up and turned from Aeris. She held her arms open and Serendipity came to her and they hugged. "I love you. I promise I will come back with your father and we all can live our lives together again. All of us."

"Even Sora?"

"Even Sora." Cloud replied, kissing her daughter's forehead. She smiled and stood up once again. "I am proud of you, Serendipity Destiny."

"I love you too, Mom." Serendipity replied, stepping back and watched as her mother move down the steps, the wind whipping around them, causing her cape to fly. At the final step, Cloud stopped and looked back up the steps to the castle where everyone looked on. She blinked and frowned, wondering why she was here and felt she had to move on away from this place. Shaking her head, she turned and walked away, like a weathered soldier that only moves on with one purpose in life, to survive.

Odin watched the exchange between mother and daughter, and then watched as Cloud gave one final glance. He wondered if he was the only one who realized that Cloud seemed to not recognize anyone anymore. He looked over to Serendipity, she was growing older and her eyes had taken hue of an older soul. He remembered what Sephiroth had told him years ago and he swore as he gazed to Serendipity, he would love her to the end, protect her and make sure she would see this through. Unbeknown to him, his heart floated from his body, invisibly, it shot to her body and settled into her heart, adding strength and power to hers.

He later discovered he was untouched by the shadow. He had gone to do a sweep through a part of the castle to clear out the shadows and one had came to him, touching him and it was then that he realized, they couldn't take his heart because he had given it up voluntary. After he had vanquished the shadow, he stood there, in the lonesome hallway deep in the bowel of the castle, his hand over his heart as the thought swam in his mind. He knew then, Serendipity was in much more danger, if the shadow took her, he would be also lost. He looked up to the ceiling and it hit him then, Sephiroth was simply taken by the shadows but they didn't have his heart. Cloud had it the whole time and she was slowly succumbing to the darkness with passing of the time and with that final step off the castle's step, she was gone. Sephiroth was simply gone a long time ago. A tear fell from his eyes; there was no hope of ever seeing Cloud and Sephiroth again.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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_Check Yashodoa's Bio for information and author's notes._


	69. Sere:7: Leaving Hollow Bastion

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Chapter 7- Leaving Hollow Bastion

Odin stood on the balcony overlooking the vast land of the Bastion Garden. The town sat on one side and there were a great chasm that divided the castle from the rest of the world. Shadows had taken over the world in a sense, but not like his home world. To his understanding, for the shadows to take over the world and encompass it in the darkness is to take the pure heart of a princess of that world. It had not done so on the world of Bastion Garden… shadows were evidence everywhere except for the town and few other places. He often wondered how his planet and Leon's planet was encompassed with the darkness if there was no princess's heart being captured. King Mickey had explained a long time ago that their system, the Gaea System were different for the system were seeded by the Children of the Gods and in that case, it would be the Goddess herself that has to be captured by the shadows to encompass the worlds.

He wondered if it were the case, then Gaea herself had been lost some time ago and no one truly known. He knew by the fact that it was Serendipity that had opened the door a long time ago, allowing the shadows access to their home world unintentionally. He also thought who would have opened the doors on the other worlds in the Gaea System. The more he spent time alone, doing cleaning sweep through the halls of the Hollow Bastion, which the castle had been renamed, he would wonder more and more of the universe and question everything. There was so much out there that he wanted to know.

He looked up to the sky to see it turn pinkish hue, the sun was setting. Sighing as he turned and went back through the area he had cleared off of the shadows. Swinging the borrowed sword over his shoulder, he made his way back to the safe and main hallway of the castle where he and the few others remained. Things became more and more morose at Hollow Bastion. The castle had been overrun by the shadows, each hallway were shut and servants and maids disappearing each day. Then, finally, after few weeks, it was becoming too much that only a single hallway was left open and the safest place was the library and handful of people were left in the castle.

Serendipity and her friends ended up camping out in the private room only known by Princess Jasmine and Aeris most of the time. They were often found together, reading books or studying their magic. After Cloud's departure, the other princesses decided they needed to return to their worlds, to find their lost love and to save their hearts. With bravery and motivation spurred by Serendipity, they left one by one. Finally, Jasmine was the last one and with hesitancy, she left, leaving behind the children and Aeris.

Tifa, Cid, and Yuffie had moved to the town nearby to run their shop and work hard to search for clues and keep eyes on the shadows movement. Leon came and went, often fighting the shadows to keep the population at bay, though most of the time, everyone else knew, he was hiding to conceal his grieving heart.

Aeris had attempted to encourage the children to leave Hollow Bastion, to move to the town but Serendipity stood her ground, saying she must learn all she can in the library and Aeris agreed halfheartedly.

Odin entered the library and found Serendipity sitting at the table with the others, reading books. There was towers of tomes on the table, the library once was a tidy place but now a turned over mess. The maids had long gone and they only pulled out books to read and leave them lying around, not bothering to return it. They found no point in keeping tidy place, all they wanted was to find more answers to their growing list of questions. It was becoming very frustrating, for every answer they find, several more questions grew.

Aeris stepped in the library behind Odin and went up to his side, putting her hand on his shoulder. Odin had grown and was already several inches taller than the healer. "I am going into town, please keep them safe."

Odin gave a nod. "I will. For now, the nearby halls are cleared. It is safe to travel to and back from town. There's no knowing when they will return."

Aeris nodded and sighed looking over to the other three at the table. She made her way to kiss on Serendipity's head; she did the same with DaHara. Then she stopped at Jules' chair and knelt, giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. Odin watched as Aeris speak softly to her son before rising. Soon, she left and Odin sat down in an easy wing backed chair, picking up a book that was left lying on the arm.

Serendipity gasped and stood up, "Guys… I think I know what we need to do." DaHara and Jules looked up and Odin stood up and went over to the table. "There is not much information about the shadows, heartless or whatever except in Ansem's office but here," She pointed to the thick book she was reading, "This book is about princess, everything you can know but, here, listen to this:

_A princess is unique, more than an ordinary girl. They hold a heart purest than anyone and carry a burden of the world unknown to them. For each world out in the universe, always, there is one princess that holds the very soul of the planet they live on. When one marry and the burden is passed onto the next princess in line. _

_Their hearts, with purity hold the shining light full of kindness, goodness and love unlike any others. They are the one who carry the legacy of the world and passing them on. Not always princesses are born in royalty, but are often stand out compared to the rest of the girls with the traits of a princess."_

"Like Belle and Cinderella." Jules said. "They're not born into royalty but they are princess in their own rights. So… what does it have to do with the shadows?"

Serendipity shook her head, "The report of Ansem… scattered all over the office, and he said something about the princess… That's why all the other princesses were here, staying here in Bastion Garden. It's haven for them… until now." She sighed. "Ansem and the shadows want their hearts… the princess has large heart, the true heart of a world…" She looked up to Odin and asked, "Then, why, why is our world gone? It says so here in the book that a planet will be covered in darkness if there is no princess or a heart to carry on the legacy. I am the princess of my world but I am here."

Odin shook his head, "No Serendipity. You forget, King Mickey told us a long time ago when we got here, that our world, Leon's world; all the worlds in the Gaea systems are different from the rest of the universe. We are children of the gods and it is a goddess that has the heart, not a mortal. It's Gaia, only you will carry the heart of your world if Gaia passes on the legacy to Megamiki, but she never did. Now, the shadows must have taken Gaia…" He frowned and looked away… "Maybe that's why there are Titans… they're the heartless of the gods."

Serendipity's hands flew to her mouth to suppress a gasp. She knew of the titans that were roaming around causing havoc on several worlds under a strange god named Hades. She knew this Hades were not the same underworld lord as her own great-great grandfather, the father of Madoshi. "That's horrible." She whispered and sat down again. "The door is open on Gaea Seven; it has to be closed…"

"But how? The Keyblade Master has to be the one to close the doors." DaHara spoke, breaking the silence.

"Yes." Odin replied.

"But where is he?" Jules asked.

Serendipity gazed at the book she was reading, but not really looking at it. Finally after a moment of silence, she spoke, "I wonder why the Sorceress Princess is needed… for our worlds." She reached and flipped the book to the end to look at the index and gasped softly, "It's here…" She flipped once again, looking for a page and found it. "The Sorceress Princess…

_Not much is known about the Sorceress Princess but they do exist. They are unique as well but hold different quality than a princess. They hold the powers unimaginable to anyone, powers like the gods but the true princess of their worlds. Only a few handfuls of worlds left in the universe are peoples of the gods. And in each world, is one Sorceress Princess. _

_A Sorceress Princess is also known as the Valkyries, the daughter of Gaea, solely known to be on Gaea the Seventh..."_ Serendipity stopped and looked up to meet her friends' eyes, finding shock written all over their face. She knew her face mirrored theirs. "Valkyries… that means…"

"You are the Sorceress Princess." Odin said with finality. "Unbelievable… right under our nose the whole time."

"But I can't be…" Serendipity protested. "I am not that powerful."

DaHara gave a derisive laugh and pointed out, "Your parents… who are they?" Serendipity gave her a look and DaHara rolled her eyes, standing up with her hands on her hips. "Come on, Sere! You got King Sephiroth and Queen Sorano, the saviors of our world, three times over as your parents! You're the direct descendant of Gaia and Ouranos! You are the Sorceress Princess!"

Jules stood up, leaning on the table as he asked, "So, we got our Sorceress Princess, now what?"

Light began to glow on the table, shining and shimmering, making form, twirling and dancing until it settled, disappearing to leave behind an envelope. "How strange… Hey, this is King Mickey's symbol." She broke open the three black circular symbol seal of King Mickey and read the letter. "It says…" She went white and dropped the letter onto the table and sat down.

DaHara took the letter and read it out, "_Serendipity, the answer always had laid in the heart of a Sorceress Princess. To find your mother, find your brother. He will lead you to your father in the shadows. Begin with Seven and end with Ten, return to where it begins all over again and makes it never was. King Mickey."_

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Jules asked, confused.

Odin narrowed his eyes as he took the letter and read it. "How strange, a riddle. Begin with seven, end with ten and return to where it begins all over again. Make it never was."

Serendipity stood up and took the letter, still white faced. "King Mickey knew the whole time. He wants me to figure this out…" She glanced on the letter and frowned, "Odin. You said Gaea Seven, that's our home world… isn't it?"

"Yes." Odin replied, thinking Serendipity was onto something.

Indeed she was, "Then, that's where we should go."

"But!" DaHara stood up, surprised and horrorstruck at the same time. "Our world is gone!"

"Not really. It's still there, just that the Shadows took over. Vincent's still there." Serendipity replied and folded the letter and tucked it in her pocket. "Go and pack a bag, each one of you. We are leaving within the hour." She left the library, leaving the three others to gawk after her.

"Odin, you're older than us, you have to stop her." Jules said softly, looking to the taller boy.

Odin shook his head gently, "No. Where she goes, I go."

DaHara looked appalled, "What? What are you, her lapdog?"

He gave her a glare and replied, "King Sephiroth ordered me to protect her and that's what I will do. In that protection I provide and I obey her. If she thinks we need to go back to our home world, that's where we will go."

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Aeris approached the small quaint shop in the town near the castle. The shop was small but bought and owned by Tifa and Cid in the past few years since they had moved to this world. She tapped her boots at the steps to shake off the dirt and stepped in the shop. "Hello? Anybody home?" She called as she noticed it was empty.

Then there was some yelling and crashing and Yuffie came toppling out from another room with boxes in her arms bigger than she is. Aeris ran forward to help her and they settled the boxes down. "What's going on?" Aeris asked.

Tifa came in after Yuffie and placed down another box. "Cid found a world not far from here, we're moving there. It's safer there."

"Really?" Aeris asked, looking interested.

Cid came in with smaller boxes. "That's right. There's a town, Taverse Town. I got a shop there, selling gummi blocks. It's good place as any."

"Is it safe there?" Aeris asked.

"Yes. No shadows or heartless on that world. It's small, tiny, nothing interesting there, just a place for people to stop by between worlds. The girls," He gestured to Tifa and Yuffie, "Will go with me. The previous owner of this shop has a big radio system in his office and I could fix it up and help to keep track of the other worlds of the heartless and shadows. A passing visitor told me about the shop and said the owner disappeared and there was no one who knows how to run shop, or know about mechanics."

"I see… do you think we should go too, the children and me?" Aeris asked, thinking.

"I don't see why not." Tifa replied. "It would be much safer for them. Hollow Bastion is no home for them anymore. It's a rundown shack now."

Aeris looked out of the window of the shop and she could see the castle towering in the distance. "Yeah," she turned to the others, "Leon too?"

Tifa made a face but kept her mouth shut. She was known to dislike Leon since after the birth of Sora. Cid shrugged his shoulders as he hauled some more boxes from another room. "It's up to him. This is no place for us anymore."

"Then, I should go and gather the children and let him know." Aeris said as she got to the door and left with a wave.

"Poor Aeris," Yuffie murmured. "The children are growing up and she has to step in as their mother. I wonder if Cloud's all right."

Tifa sighed, "Cloud's tough… she will be back before we know it."

"I hope so." Cid ruffed as he crawled under the desk to gather up few electronic things and banged his head, cursing.

**LKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOALKYASHODOA**

Serendipity sat on the bed, gazing into the fireplace. The room had no window for it was the private room through the library. She and her friends had retreated to using this room and there were mattresses, dragged from other rooms in the castle, lying about the room. She wanted to rotate the bed, allowing the others to use the regular bed in the room but her friends were adamant, saying the regular bed was hers. Now sitting upon it, she had a tiny bag already packed with her clothes and her things.

All she had come to own were her clothes and the ring upon her finger. She scoffed the idea of being a princess who has everything. She once had everything in the world until she was forced to leave her world. She remembered the day, tear falling down her cheek. She remembered the horror and the sadness when she had looked back, watching her world get smaller and smaller as she left in the rocket ship.

She heard the door open and looked up to see Odin stepping in. He moved to his bed that was lying between her bed and the door. The other two mattresses were on the other side of the bed. She watched him pull up his own bag and stuck his own clothes in the bag. She noticed that he also didn't have much possession. When Odin was finished, he looked up to see Serendipity's face with tears tracks. He silently went to her bed and sat down next to her.

They moved together and fell into embrace, simply holding each others for a long while. Serendipity was shocked to finally notice how much older Odin had turned. He looked between a boy and a man. It felt good to be in his arms, she knew she would be safe always with him and she knew she would never view him as her brother despite they grew up together and her parents adopting him. She felt more for him but sadly, there was no time or place to explore such feeling. She was only ten years old, but she felt old. She sat back and looked at him, "How old are you now?"

Odin's lips cracked at the question and ruffled Serendipity's silver hair. "Strange question to ask now," he sighed and shook his head, "I turned sixteen not too long ago."

"We forgot your birthday?" She asked.

"In fact, no one had really celebrated anybody's birthday since we moved here except for Sora's first birthday."

"Oh, right." She replied, looking away.

"I know this may be a stupid question." Odin said softly, "How are we getting to Gaea Seventh?"

Serendipity looked back up and gave him a mysterious smile. "You all will see. I have ways." She stood up and grabbed her bag. "Let's get ready. I'd like to leave before Aeris stop us."

"Right," Odin said as he stood up to follow Serendipity. He grabbed his bag and stopped at the doorway, looking back around the room. He wondered if he and the others would ever come back to this castle, will the things be here or empty? He had seen the halls where the shadows had loomed, the place looked barren as if the furniture were gone or placed back where it belonged, clean but dusty and abandoned. It was a strange thing he had encountered but didn't bother to question it.

He turned to look ahead to see Serendipity calling her friends to come and get their things. Shaking his head, for a moment there, he saw a young girl with innocent, shining in the dim light of the library. But a moment had passed and she shifted, looking back to him. There it was the toils and troubles written all over her face. There was a heavy burden on her shoulder that she carried since they came to this world, the remorse of opening the door and laying her world to the shadows. He knew she had not intentionally done so but the guilt ate her away inside, that she had put death to thousands on her world. With such things heavy on her heart, she appeared wiser and older and he knew she lost sleep countless nights for the darkness circling under her eyes. He felt like he had failed Sephiroth in many ways for the shines of innocent and youth were gone from her eyes as well.

"Come on, Odin, let DaHara and Jules pack their bags. I got to write a letter." Serendipity called back to him and he nodded, walking down the tunnel-like hallway to the library and exited. DaHara and Jules, both holding hands, slipped by him to the private room.

DaHara grabbed her and Jules bag from a corner of the room and tossed the bag to Jules. "Not much to pack." She murmured as she pulled some of her clothes and stuck them in the bag.

Jules nodded, "Yeah. We all didn't anyway. Not even Serendipity."

"What are we going to do? How can we fight the shadows? We don't have weapons." She said as she flipped onto her bed.

Jules moved closer and lay down next to her, his feet to her head. "We'll figure it out soon. We got our magic."

"Yeah but our magic are not strong enough. We only been training for the last two years and no where better." She scowled. "This is not right… We shouldn't go back to Gaea Seventh."

"Why you think so?" Jules asked softly, looking to the ceiling. It was painted to look like night sky with stars smattering across. He imagined he could see star shooting and the stars swirling above him, it had always given him peace.

"The world's gone. There's nothing left there. You saw it, we all saw it. Covered, all black. You saw how some part of the castles just became gone, abandoned, nothing left."

"Yeah. But Vincent's there."

"So what?" DaHara replied harshly and sat up. "He has no heart to let the Shadow to take him."

"I wonder about that sometime." Jules said softly. "I saw Odin get attacked by the shadows before, when I went with him to do clean sweep. He didn't turn, but shook them off and killed them."

"What?" She asked, shocked.

"Same thing happened to Leon. Not affected. I wonder if you don't have a heart, then, you don't get taken by the shadows."

"How is that possible?" DaHara asked.

"I don't know. We will find out soon. We should go with them. Serendipity is the Sorceress Princess and King Mickey says she got answers. Maybe there's a way that Serendipity can stop the shadows."

"But that won't bring our parents back." DaHara said softly, a tear fell down her cheek. Jules watched, knowing DaHara missed her father and mother. He knew she was fighting with her mother the day the heartless took her mother. Ever since, DaHara held the remorse in her heart that she never got a proper good bye. He knew he didn't with his father. Frowning, he wondered why his father was taken while his mother remained alive.

He deeply missed his father and knew he was luckily to have his mother until now. He stood up and shook his head, a simple verse from a book he had came across stuck him true, it had said that a man will leave his family for his wife. He looked to DaHara, he had felt that she was the one for a long time and bowed his head, silently vowing that he would always be there for DaHara, to protect her and keep her safe no matter what. Invisible to him, his heart went out from him and settled into her heart. Looking up, he saw that she was retreating down the hallway to the library with her bag on her shoulder. He hurried up after her, taking her hand. She smiled at him and clutched his hand and they both exited the private room.

The four of them gathered in the large center of the library, their bags on their shoulders and facing each other. Serendipity spoke, "I am going to create a doorway to Gaea Seventh."

"How?" DaHara asked, curious.

"I found out when I was talking to grandpa. When I touched the bubble, my finger slipped through and I was able to touch him. The whole time, the bubble was just a hole, a gateway. I had been practicing to get it bigger for a while. I am going to try to get it big enough for all of us to slip through." Serendipity explained and held up her hands.

She conjured up the bubble. It appeared and she closed her eyes, focused as the bubble grew bigger and bigger. The others watched in awe as they recognized their blackened world appear before them. The bubble flickered and grew smaller; Odin stepped by her and whispered, "You can do it." He smiled as the shaking bubble steadied and grew. Soon, it grew large enough for them to pass through one by one.

Holding her hands up, "Hurry, get through." She said. DaHara and Jules hurried and slipped through without question and she turned to Odin, "Go, I will be right behind."  
"Serendipity?" He asked worried.

"I have to hold it up, go!" She said. He nodded and let go of her, jumping into the bubble. She looked up and saw her friends standing on the blackened ground, looking up to her. She took a breath and jumped and the bubble popped right as she slipped through, the magic broken.

Aeris stepped into the library, looking around, missing the silver of the magic in the center and called, "Kids? Serendipity? Odin? Jules? DaHara? Where are you guys?"

"What is wrong?" She screamed and turned to see Leon coming in the doorway.

"Oh, Leon. I was looking for the children." She replied, calming down after the slight scare.

Leon looked around, "They have been here since you were gone. Maybe in the room." He gestured to the private room in the library. "What is it?"

Aeris sighed, "Oh yeah, Tifa, Cid and Yuffie found a world and they're moving there. I have come to gather the children and go with them. It's safer there, small world and no shadows. Cid got a shop and we could stay there with them. You are welcome to come along."

Leon nodded, "I suppose I should. I am considering going back to Gaea Eight soon."

"Oh my. Then, come with us until you leave."

"Yes." He replied. Aeris gave a nod and walked around the library, calling out for the kids.

Aeris returned to the doors, "They're not here." She looked pale with panic. "They're gone!" She glanced around and Leon stepped up to the table where he had last seen them that morning.

"Aeris, they left a letter." He held up the envelope, "It's for you."

Aeris gasped and ran to the table, taking the letter. She tore it open and read it. She looked several shades paler. "They're gone. They just found out that Serendipity is the Sorceress Princess and left to get some answers to find the Keyblade Master." She looked to Leon and gasped softly, "The whole time… how could it be?"

Leon looked at the book of the princess, the pages lying open to Sorceress Princess. He stared at the page in shock, the whole time, they had wondered, searched and tried to discover about the Sorceress Princess and it was right there in the book, in the library under their noses. It was a very small chapter in the book, two pages long. "_A Sorceress Princess is also known as the Valkyries, the daughter of Gaea, solely known to be on Gaea the Seventh…" _He looked up to Aeris who also wore an expression of shock. "Serendipity must had found this and decided to take matters in her own hands."

Aeris glanced at the book and the few other books lying on the table. She gathered them up and told Leon, "I am taking these with us. It's not safe to have these lying around for the evil ones to find." She shook her head and turned to the doors. "They're gone. They will not return to this place. Might as well go on." Leon watched as the healer walk away, he could see tears streaming down her face. He knew she was crying, too many losses and they were only the handful of people left from Gaea Seventh. To survive three crises on their world and only to fail the fourth one, he often wondered what the fates were playing at.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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_Check Yashodoa's Bio for information and author's notes._


	70. Sere:8: Gaea Seventh

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Chapter 8- Gaea Seventh

Serendipity screamed as she felt herself being squeezed, knowing her magic bubble is closing on her. Then she crashed into Odin's arms and both toppled on the ground. Groaning, she pushed herself up and saw herself face to face with Odin and giggled softly, "I guess I will need to work on that a little bit more."

Odin screwed his face tight and helped her up, "Yes, you do." They both brushed themselves off and glanced around.

The land before them was barren and darkened. Everything was desolate, abandoned and withering away, it was unrecognizable. They all had the same thing on their mind: Is this their home world, Gaea the Seventh?

"Where are we?" DaHara asked the first to break the long silence as they had looked around.

"I am sure this is Gaea Seventh." Serendipity replied, peering off to the far horizon, searching for something she would recognize.

"Sere, what did you think of when you open up the bubble?" Odin asked.

"Gaea Seventh." She replied looking back up at Odin, questioning on her face.

"Okay, but specifically where?"

"Oh. I was thinking of the shore outside the valley." She replied and looked around once again, trying to remember. "Oh… the Sleeping Forest should be here." She pointed to the area off their right where clumped of barren tree stood up like dry reed sticks. She glanced over to her left and gasped. "That's where the ocean should be." She ran over where the shore was and stood there.

The others followed and caught up with her. They all stared out in shock, where once the blue glittering ice cold water lapped up on the pale sandy shores now lay chasm of dry grey land before them. "The waters are gone." Jules said softly.

"Looks as if Omega laid waste to the world." Odin murmured and shook his head and herded the three away from the shore. "We are here. What should we do, Serendipity?" He asked.

His voice brought her out of her shock and she slumped herself down on the ground, thinking. "I thought we would find something here. The letter said to start with Seven." She pulled out her letter. The others glanced on it.

DaHara took the paper and read it. "Why are you starting with the riddle on the bottom rather than the top?"

"Start with seven and end with ten. All I can think of the worlds here in the Gaea System, Gaea Seventh, Eighth, Ninth and Tenth. After we visit all those worlds, we go and find my brother, then he would help me to find mom and dad, I still don't understand the whole 'make things never was'."

"Why not find your brother first?" Jules asked.

Serendipity shook her head, "No. Mother never told me which world she put him. He will only be three years old now and how can he help me? I don't think mother is where he is now. She said she went to find my father, the heartless has him."

"How do you know?" Odin asked, sitting down beside Serendipity. They all sat in a circle, facing each other as they had always growing up when they were in deep discussion.

Before Serendipity could answer, DaHara gasped and glanced around. "We almost forgot the shadows are on this world! We're in danger here, they could attack any time!"

"No. I put up a shield bubble around us." Serendipity replied and reached up to touch an invisible wall, the shield crackled under her touch. "Until I figure out where we should go here, we talk this out."

"Okay, sound good to me." Jules replied. "So, how did you know about your mother and father?"

"I see them." She replied. Odin was the only one who knew immediately. "I can see a bit of the future, they come and go in flashes. I saw my father… he is with the heartless. My mother… I am not sure but she's wandering around as if lost."

Odin reached out and took hold of her shoulder, he could see her eyes glazing over, shaking her out of her trance. He didn't want her to become lost and sad. "Sere, what should we do here now?"

Blinking, she looked up, "Since we're here. We should go and see our home. Grandpa is here somewhere."

"That is good start. Should we be going?" Odin replied and stood up. He bit back a curse as his head hit something invisible. Jules and DaHara stifled giggles while Serendipity looked apologetically and waved her hand and the shield bubble was gone.

"Sorry."

They continued on into the forest where it once was vast forest of glowing white trees with silver crystal leaves, but all there was now barren stripped trees that glowed black and green with violet hint. Serendipity didn't like the look of her once familiar homeland, it gave her chills.

Not once they encountered a shadow but they knew the shadows were around, they skittered out of sight, hiding and following them. As they approached the valley that once was the Ancient City. Before them looked like charred land, blackened. It appeared as if the whole valley was burned by fire but upon closer look and touch, the buildings still stood intact, only their once pristine pearly white surface turned black. The sky above them were grey, not a hint of blue. It was desolate everywhere and the four of them couldn't help but feel the gloom pressuring onto them.

"The shadows came from the door, right?" Serendipity asked Odin while they stood on the top of the hill that led into the city below.

"Yes."

"What door?" DaHara asked as she came up behind them with Jules.

Serendipity turned around and gave a sigh, "The door in the cave that we visited a long time ago." She made a gesture toward where the cave was hidden off from the path they stood upon. "When we went to explore that cave, I touched the door and it opened, that's where the shadows came from."

DaHara looked surprised and then her face grew dark and her voice held accusatory tone, "So, you were the one who is responsible for all of this?" She made a wild gesture around them.

Serendipity looked about to cry and Odin stepped in, shielding her from DaHara's wrath. "Stop." He commanded and the red-haired girl paused, looking up at Odin with mutinous look on her face. "She didn't know. None of us knew. The shadows had been waiting for someone to open the door; they were already in the system. Don't you remember Leon?" He asked.

DaHara scoffed and turned away, "It doesn't matter. None of this could happen…" She looked toward where her home was in the valley.

"Gaea Eight was already gone when you all were about two years old. Gaea One to Six was gone long before that."

"You mean, the shadows had been around for so long? How can they take the worlds? According to the book both Ansem wrote and the Princess book, they would have to take the princess' heart." Jules asked as he took DaHara's shoulders and drew her back to hug her.

Odin shook his head, "From what I can understand, it's different in the Gaea System. They have to take the goddess of the system in order to take all of the worlds. Serendipity, being a princess of this world had the ability to unlock the door upon a touch. She never knew; none of us knew until after we went to Hollow Bastion. You all read the books. This is no time to blame anyone."

Serendipity pushed Odin aside, "Come on guys, we'll argue about this later. Let's go and check on the door. Maybe I can close it to prevent from any more shadows coming in."

They all followed her to the cave and as they got to the back, they saw the door wide open; a gaping dark hole was in the wall of the cave. Serendipity looked pale as she approached the door, keeping a shield upon herself to protect from whatever would jump out on her.

As she touched the door, a shadow shot out from the darkness and attacked her. She screamed and crouched, but the shield she had protected her while Odin jumped in and fought them off. "Close the door and hold it!" Odin ordered.

DaHara and Jules ran around and pushed the mighty door and it closed. The heartless fled and Serendipity looked up to see her friends holding the door to the wall. "Come on, you got to lock it." Jules said, straining to hold the stubborn door.

"How?"

"I don't know! Just touch it or do something with your magic!" DaHara screamed as the door rattled from the force of the heartless coming in on the other side, pushing it open.

She ran up and touched the door and tried to do many things she could think of and finally said, "There's not much I can do! Only the Keyblade Master can lock it!"

"Then why in the world we need a Sorceress Princess if she can't do it!" DaHara spat.

Serendipity looked hurt and she turned to ignore her best friend. "I can put a barricade on it. I don't know how long it will hold." She closed her eyes and held her hands out and strained to make a magic barricade.

Jules and DaHara sighed in relief as they let go of the door and saw it was staying close. They could see the shimmering barricade over the door, holding it close. Odin knelt beside Serendipity to find her exhausted and shaking. "Come on, we should find someplace to rest."

They left the cave and Odin found a large boulder and with Jules' help, closed the entrance, shutting the cave off from the rest of the world and they found another cave nearby and crawled in to rest. They all wearily spent the night there, taking turn for watch until Serendipity regained her strength again.

Close to dawn, Serendipity got up from her place on the ground and went over to where Odin had sat watch. She had not been able to get any sleep, words that DaHara had swum though her head and it had bothered her greatly. With a despondent sigh, she slumped down beside Odin and whispered, "I can't do it. I am not strong enough."

Odin looked down at her, he knew she had not been sleeping at all, listening to her toss and turn all night, hiding her tears and stifling sobs. She looked washed as she sat next to him, her eyes bloodshot and dark circles underneath. "You can do it, but you need to get some training first before you can do anything."

"How? Who can train me?"

"We will find out." Odin looked over to the clutched letter in Serendipity's hand and took it, smoothing out the wrinkles and read it once again. "King Mickey knew you were the Sorceress Princess from the start; he knew what you need to do. This is why he left you this riddle. You're here for a reason. You're meant to go to each world. Maybe along the way, you will find someone to help you."

Serendipity smiled softly and leaned her head on his shoulder. He gently wrapped his arm around her and she fell into his arms, her eyes closing at last for the first time in nearly two days, "You just always know what to say."

"I'm Odin, the god of thunder." He joked softly. She gave a small giggle before falling asleep, her breathing evened out and he held her, watching the dark gray skies turn lighter.

Later that morning, without words to each other about the day before, they all headed down the valley, their spirits weighted down with heavy regret and sorrow. They reached the fountain in the center of the city and looked around. The palace was gone, only a flattened land in the place where the palace was. It was as if the tree of the palace disappeared. The fountain didn't spew water but laid in ruin, scattered about.

"It's horrible." Serendipity finally murmured, her eyes glistening with tears that she had been fighting to hold back. As she turned back to view where her home was, a familiar figure walked up to them. A smile broke on her lips as she cried, "Grandpa!" She ran up to him and paused, seeing a dark look on his face.

"Why are you all here?" Vincent asked, glancing down to the young girl, few years older than he had last seen her. He appeared different, he no longer wore red cape but shrouded in black, looking every bit the lord of the dead walking about. "You all shouldn't be here. Odin." He glared at the young man who looked away in hint of shame.

Serendipity frowned. "I decided to come here. They were just following me. Mother and father surely are lost to the shadows, trying to find this Sorceress Princess and Keyblade Master." She sighed and looked away from her grandfather's impassive face.

"Serendipity, tell him what King Mickey told you." Odin said softly and stepped back as Vincent snapped his gaze his way. He didn't like to confront angry men of Serendipity's family, they were imposing and powerful, he knew better than to cross any of them.

"I am getting to that." She said and looked back up at her grandfather, meeting his crimson gaze. She saw bemused in them. "King Mickey sent a letter to me, after I found out that I am the Sorceress Princess." She paused, seeing the shock on her grandfather's face. "He said to find the answers, I need to return here and travel to several worlds to find my parents." She pulled the letter out of her pocket and handed it to him.

Vincent took the letter and read it. His face became impassive and replied, "I see," he then stepped away, turning his body away from the children. "Come with me, it is not safe for you all to remain exposed to the shadow out here." He said simply and walked away, his black robe fluttered behind him. The four youth followed him as they made their way through the ruin of the city and they reached to where the great tree once stood, now only remain of the tree was the base and fallen stones all around. "Few things were uncovered after you guys left. I believe they belong to you." He gestured to the center of the tree. "Still, the tomb of the treasure room remains below, but there are no accesses to the room except for a transporter."

"Transporter?" Serendipity asked.

Vincent motioned for them to follow him and they made their way through the maze of the ruin until they reached what would be the center of the palace, where the throne chairs had once sat. On the ground were a slight glowing circle with complex design upon them and in the center were two slots, for two spheres of different size. "This is inaccessible to anyone but the one who holds the key. Sephiroth, your father, once told me that only the blood of the Seraph and Seraphim could unlock this."

"That means me. Where does this go to?" She asked as she gazed at the circle, studying the design. Images of the designs popped out to her, appearing of a woman in the center, holding a sword and she had wings upon her back. If she moved and shifted her gaze, she would see a man appearing in the design, also angelic with sword. Finally, she found third image, shifting as she looked, finding another woman, holding scepter, bearing wings as well, but both wings on her back was slightly different, for one was similar to the first woman's and the second wing was similar to the man's. She gasped, "The Angels."

"Indeed, the three Angels of this world, the first is the Angel of Light, second is the Angel of Life and finally, the Angel of Fate. There are more to your family tree below." Vincent smirked and gestured to the circle. "Unlock it, it leads to the treasure room below, but I believe, it holds something for you all four."

"How do you unlock it?" DaHara asked quietly, awed by the circle's images.

"She would know." Vincent answered. "After all, she is one of the three Angels."

Serendipity's friends gave a soft gasp and she turned to them, "My mother is the Angel of Light and my father is the Angel of Life, and I am the third one, the Angel of Fate, which is why my father gave me my name as Serendipity Destiny." She then stepped up to the circle, standing over the two slots and reached in her pocket, pulling out the two Materias. She looked to the others and gestured for them to come closer. Everyone stepped into the circle and waited. She slipped the Materia into the slots and stood up, waiting. The circle glowed with bright light and they disappeared.

They found themselves elsewhere, in a dark enclosed space. The space slowly lit up and they gaped to find a long hallway before them. The walls lit up with dim glow and it looked like stained glass along the wall. Serendipity frowned, "You said treasure room. This is not the treasure room I remember."

Vincent smirked, "I see that you father had taken you to the treasure room on several occasion. This is a different entrance, you father had happened upon it with your mother and showed it to me and few other members of the family," He glanced toward to Jules and DaHara, "Your parents as well." He gestured to the hallway before them, "this lead to the treasure room, a different door. There is no way for anyone to access the main entrance without your father's strength. Here, you can access yourself; after all, you are the third key."

He walked forward and the light from the wall grew brighter where he had stepped and they stopped to look upon the image of the stained glass. They could see a angelic figure of a woman, a Valkyrie but unrecognizable to the children. DaHara asked as she noticed the rest showed different people along the hallway. "Who are they?"

"Valkyries of this world past. Here," He gestured to the wall that was behind them overlooking them, "Mother Gaia." The glass was beautiful detailed pattern showing a tall noble woman with deep green and brown robe and celestial background. He turned and moved to the first panel in the hallway, "This is Megamiki, the Valkyrie of Love and the daughter of Gaia," Vincent gestured to his right where everyone had already seen and he turned to his left, "This is Madoshi, Megamiki's love." They all gasped as the image lighted up to show a regal man in dark robe and deep crimson robe and black hair. "Cloud and Sephiroth are their reincarnation." He stepped forward to the next panel of glass. "The Twin Valkyrie, of Peace and Justice; Jenova Crescent and Alexander Judge." The two panels on his right and left showed Jenova and Alexander in their glory.

"This is the Valkyrie hallway that father told me about?" Serendipity asked in awe, having often heard the tales of each Valkyries her parents had told her since she was little.

"Yes." Vincent replied and kept on forward, pointing out each women in the panels that was in order of the descendents, "Alexander's daughter, Grinhilda, the Valkyrie of Nobility, not much is known of her. Then, there's Jenova Crescent's daughter, Lucrecia Crescent, Valkyrie of Hope." He paused to look up at the only woman of brown hair, standing before him in prayer wearing pale blue and white gown as he had last remembered her. He shook his head slightly and moved on. "Grinhilda's daughter, Freya, the Valkyrie of Mercy. She was named so because of her ability to forgive in the end. Lucrecia's son, Sephiroth, the Valkyrie Son of Courage and the Angel of Life."

Serendipity smiled upon the image of her father, in white robe and six white wings about him, wielding the infamous Masamune sword. A tear came to her eyes as she reached up to touch her father's image. "Father…" She whispered. She turned to see a beautiful image of her mother, long golden hair flowing down her back and her body shrouded in golden and white gown and armors, her hands open wide as wings of pale gold spread behind her. "Mother. Cloud Sorano, Valkyrie of Faith and the Angel of Light." She reached up to touch her mother as she had done for her father.

They realized they had come to the end of the hall way and the double doors stood before them in the darkness. Jules gave a long sigh, having held his breath as they had looked up on the Valkyrie of the past. He frowned and asked, "They're the last of the Valkyries, what about Serendipity? Isn't she one?"

Vincent turned to them and gave a mysterious smile. "That's a good question. I think Serendipity can answer that." He gestured to the door. They waited with baited breath as Serendipity stepped forward to the door and gasped as the light came on. The doors, once looked bland and nondescript came to life with brilliant colorful lights and image drew itself out, becoming glass stained, showing a tall regal woman with silver hair and pale violet gown. She held a long scepter much like a rod before herself and her eyes were closed. Her wings were not solid, but rather translucent. Serendipity's eyes widened and turned to her grandfather, speechless.

Odin spoke, "Serendipity Destiny, Valkyrie of Fate and the Sorceress Princess." His voice rang though the entire hallway, echoing.

"I can't be." Serendipity whispered as the hallway fell to dead silence once again. Despite knowing she is a Valkyrie and the Sorceress Princess, she fell to her knees and cried. "I can't. I am not strong enough, I don't know how. I want my mommy and daddy!"

Vincent knelt before his granddaughter and picked her up in his hands and held her to his body, rocking her until her sobbing had subsided. "Serendipity, you're still young and I know it is burdensome to have the fate of the world in your hands. It had always been for seven generations." She wiped her eyes as she curiously looked up to her grandfather, her eyes asking. He smiled in reply, "Since Gaia, it was her world; she created this world for her daughter and left the fate of the world in her daughter's hands. Through the generations down, each Valkyrie carried burdens for the entire world, and that also included some outside the family tree, including myself. I carried the burden of the destruction while your parents fought to keep the world safe several times over. Now you're the last surviving one, it is in your hands to deem its fate."

"There's nothing left." She whispered.

"No. Never say that." Vincent stood up, righting Serendipity on her feet. He lifted her head up and bored his crimson eyes into her sapphire eyes that were so much like her mother's eyes. "There's still hope as long you still lives. As long you all lives." He said as he looked at the others. "Come, open the door, the treasure within awaits."

Taking several breaths, she stepped up to the doors and held her hands out to push, the door glowed white before it opened up for her, revealing the familiar treasure room filled with all kinds of treasures, untouched as she remembered. She asked as she looked about, "What am I to find?"

"Must you ask me that? It's in your heart." Vincent replied and stepped away, finding a golden chair and sat down, waiting.

Odin frowned at the older man and started to explore the treasure room. He had been in the room and knew the treasure would hold no value in their journey, only something that they needed the most.

The four children set about exploring the room, searching and turning things over, opening chests. After an hour, they were ready to give up and Odin gave a shout. They all went to his side and he gasped, reaching out for a long scepter standing by the wall and a sword next to it, "Gungir and Raganork."

"That's my father's sword." Jules said as he watched Odin take it. Their eyes went wide as the weapons glowed and settled, shifting from its original form and changed in appearance. The staff had deadly blade on the top and crackled with electricity.

Odin grinned as he slammed the butt of the staff on the ground and lightening shot out from the blade. "This is my weapon." He said softly, "Gungir" And he glanced to the sword and swished it in the air. "Raganork. At one time, when I was a god, I allowed Zack to have this."

"Correct. These weapons are what you need in your journey." Vincent said, appearing from behind them.

DaHara gave a short shriek of surprise. "Oh jeez, don't do that!"

Serendipity laughed at her, "He always do that! It's worse when my father does that when he does." She sighed in sadness, missing her father. Vincent patted her shoulder to comfort her.

Jules looked away and found a familiar weapon. "That's mother's Princess Guard. " He reached out and touched it, it glowed much like Odin's did and he gasped, watching the staff shift and change, becoming into a different staff, suited for him. He smiled and felt the name of the weapon in his heart and spoke it, "Guardian Prince."

Serendipity smiled at him, "That's wonderful! I wonder…" She glanced over to DaHara, who looked distressed. "DaHara?"

"Odin got his weapon, Jules too. I bet you will use Masamune or Ulitma. I… I… my parents don't even have weapons, they are the weapons themselves."

Vincent stepped up to her and laid a hand on her shoulder. "You're right. Your parents are unique, for they were the summons. However, they foresaw that you might need aid in your growth and had something made for you. They never got the chance to give it to you before they were attacked." He gestured to a flat long wooden box on the floor. "Look there."

DaHara looked up to him and nodded, stepping over to the box and glanced upon its surface. She gasped, "It has my name on it." She reached out and touched it, tracing her name on the surface of the wood. She opened the lid and tears started to flow from her eyes as she pulled out two sais, identical to each other with an exception, on the base of each were crystals of blue and red. "It's beautiful. Fire and Water." She murmured and smiled up to Vincent and said, "Thank you."

"Don't thank me. Thank them someday." He said.

Serendipity clapped her hands together, "This is great. I suppose, we're ready to go." She looked up to Vincent and saw his frown and a shake of head. "What?"

"There are still you to have a weapon." He said and tilted his head, "The other box."

Serendipity looked and saw another box, longer and thinner than DaHara and saw her name inscribed on the top. "Mine?"

"Yes. Your parents weren't sure which weapon would suit you the best. However, Zack had an idea and made this for you. He worked hard on it and it was complete just before he also could present it to you. Not even your parents knew what it is."

Serendipity had tears in her eyes as she knelt on the floor, gazing upon the box. She loved Zack like an uncle and missed him terribly. She swallowed hard and slid the top off the box. Gasping as she reached in and picked up a long scepter staff. "It's beautiful." She studied it; it was long and had crescent shape holder on the top. "It's incomplete." She said as she looked up to her grandfather.

"Yes, because you have the final pieces to the scepter."

"What?" She looked back at the scepter and frowned, "Looks like it should hold some kind of sphere." Her eyes widened and she stood up. "The Materia!" She ran out of the room and the other followed to where they had entered earlier and she glanced on the ground. "But, if I take it out of the slots, will we return to the surface?"

"Are you finished here?"

She glanced around and looked to her friends. She smiled, "Yes we are." She reached down and took the Materias from the slots and held it in her hands. Frowning as she realized they had not gone anywhere. "We're still here."

Vincent only gave her a smirk. She growled under her breath in exasperation then placed the Seraphim Materia onto her scepter; it fit right in the holder and held fast. She glanced to her hand at the Seraph Materia. She was unsure where to place it and recalled how her father told her that the Seraphim had come from the Seraph. She shrugged her shoulder and placed it above the Seraphim and surprisingly, it stuck there. She smiled and looked at her scepter. "It's complete." As she finished saying, the area around them glowed and they found themselves on the surface.

"Now, you are finished here. It is not safe for you to remain here." Vincent said as he looked to the horizon. "They sense you all here." They saw figures of shadows creeping toward them, coming out of the hiding.

"We should move on to another world." Odin said as he gripped his sword, ready to fight off the shadows. Serendipity nodded and ran to Vincent and hugged him.

"Be safe, grandfather."

"You too, little one." He murmured in her hair and stepped back, watching as she grasped her scepter and closed her eyes in concentration while her friends fought off the first wave of the shadows. She twirled her scepter like a baton and the air crackled and shimmered, an portal opened up and one by one, her friends hopped through and she looked back to see her grandfather holding off the shadows for her and he gave her a smile before she leaped through the portal.

The shadows skittered off as they realized their targets were out of reach and Vincent was not worth the battle to fight. Vincent watched as the air crackled where the portal once was and he swished his black robe around him, disappearing as he left behind, "It begins."

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

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	71. Sere:9: Gaea Eighth

**. R O A D . T O . D A M A S C U S . C H R O N I C L E S . **

**. S E R E N D I P I T Y .**

Chapter 9- Gaea Eight

"Any luck on Hollow Bastion?" Cid asked as Aeris walked into the doorway of his tavern at Taverse Town.

The russet haired woman shook her head and leaned against the counter, watching as Cid went over his gummy inventory. "No. No changes. Leon is still there and keeping the clean sweep around the castle. The library is the only place the shadows refuse to touch, which is a good thing."

Tifa came in from the back room, holding several boxes and crashed them down on the counter, causing Cid to spew few expletives and scolding on how sensitive the gummi blocks are. She rolled her eyes and retorted, "They're gummis! They shift and changes and stretches, you can't break them!" She turned to Aeris and asked, "Do you think we need to contact Vincent after all?"

Aeris nodded, "It's time. It's been two years already." She turned to see Cid pull out a small wooden box with wires connected here and there on it. There were several knobs and a large screened circle in the center. Cid switched it on and several lights flashed and there was a crackle and a loud hiss as the electricity turned on. "What in the world is that?"

Cid chuckled and fiddled with it before he was shocked and he cursed before replying, "I've been working on this for a good while, it's a radio that can reach our home world. Let's just hope the radio there still work."

"All right." Aeris looked apprehensive as they gathered around the radio. Yuffie came bouncing in the room and beamed.

"You're pulling out the radio at last?" She asked as she made her way between Tifa and Aeris.

"Yes." Cid gruffed and worked the knob, listening to the statics and for a good while, he worked until he found the right combination. "There! Hello, anyone there?"

The radio replied with a static and a buzz. It went on for a while and Cid sighed, turning the connection off and sat back in defeat. "No go. Seem it's not working on the other end."

They turned their heads toward the radio as beeping noise came on, it was loud in the room and they stared before Cid scrambled and flipped few switches and called, "This is Gaea Seven Beta Base, over."

The radio gave a long static and then the familiar voice that spooked everyone came clear cut on the radio, "Gaea Seven Alpha Base, Cid is that you? Over."

"Dammnit Vincent! Even on radio you still sneak around!" Cid yelled into the microphone and heard a light soft chuckle on the other end. "Glad to hear you're still alive and kicking. We lost more of our people."

"I see." Vincent replied stoically. "How many more?"

Cid looked to Tifa who looked a bit pale and she nodded. "We lost Cloud and Sephiroth." There was no reply on the other end. "It's four of us left from Gaea Seven over here, Tifa, Aeris, Yuffie and me. Leon's still around, mostly on Hollow Bastion."

"That's what I've gathered."

Aeris frowned, "It seems he knows more." She leaned forward and took the microphone from Cid's hand. "Vincent, the kids are missing too."  
"I am aware of that. They just came to Gaea Seven few days ago and remained a couple of days. They just had left."

"And you didn't even think of telling them to stay or go back to Hollow Bastion?" Yuffie yelled.

"Ah, good to hear you voice, dear wife." Vincent replied and Yuffie jumped up and down in frustration, nearly pulling her hairs out. "But, from what I've spoke to them, it is best that we do not go after them. They are on a mission and it is important that they are not to be bothered with."

"Why the hell not?" Tifa asked, confused.

"Oh." Vincent went silent on the other end as if he was realizing something and then spoke once again, causing Cid to jump and scowl. "I see, you seem to not know some vital information." Aeris stared at the radio as she paled slightly; the others looked at her oddly.

"Vincent." Aeris started and glanced around the room, knowing that the others were very curious. It was no point in hiding anymore. "I know. But they're so young."

There was sound of swishing noise and they realized it was Vincent shaking his head. "Aeris, do you recall back to how young Cloud was when she left home to begin her journey? Or even Yuffie?"

"But it's not the same thing!"

"It is precisely similar, it is their fate, especially for Serendipity, seeing how she came from her parents, or did you forget?"

"No!" Aeris shouted.

"Then, let it be. Their journey had just only begun."

"Vincent," Yuffie took the microphone from Aeris' hand. "They've been gone for two years. You said they came to Gaea Seven few days ago, did they mention where they were before they arrived there?"

There was a long silent and everyone grew apprehensive. Finally, his voice came across, once again clear cut, "This is troubling." Cid cursed in the background and the other women gave him a look and he quietly muttered under his breath. "From my understanding, they came straight from Hollow Bastion and they've just only left there few days ago. Serendipity doesn't look older than her ten years of age. However, you mention two years has passed…" There was a silence again.

Yuffie broke the silent. "Vincent. How long has passed on Gaea Seven since we left?"

"Between two to three years, if I recall correctly."

Yuffie looked at the other in shock and to find the other shared the same expression. Vincent sensed silence on the other end and asked, "What is it?"

Aeris took the microphone from Yuffie. "It has been five years since we've left Gaea Seven. Apparently there is some sort of time change."

Cid looked pensively at the radio and scowled. "This doesn't make sense."

Vincent replied. "I concur. But as much I love to stay and chat, I must go." Then the radio went dead.

Aeris bowed her head, placing the microphone back down on the table and sighed. She opened her eyes to find Tifa, Cid and Yuffie looking at her with looks on their faces saying that she wasn't getting out of this one. "All right, when I went back to Hollow Bastion to get them. They were gone. Leon and I looked for them and there was a letter left for me…" She gave a soft sorrowful sigh. "They left because they learned who the Sorceress Princess is and set out to find the Keyblade Master, taking the whole thing into their hands." She closed her eyes, knowing the questions would be bombarding on her.

However, only Yuffie questioned what was on the other's minds. "Who is the Sorceress Princess?"

Aeris looked up, "Serendipity."

Tifa sat down in her chair with defeated 'whoomp', "Of course." She muttered, "It had to be her, it makes all the senses now. The daughter of the two Valkyrie heirs."

"Yes. Leon found the book they were reading; we all missed the clue entirely, seeing how most of us had already read the book from cover to cover. It was just two pages long chapter on Sorceress Princess and the signs all points toward Serendipity. The biggest key point is that the only way for a person to be a Sorceress Princess is to be the descendent of Gaia herself." Aeris explained as she reached over to the shelf next to the radio station and pulled out the said book of the Princesses. She opened to the marked page where she had left the letter from Serendipity. "Of course, Serendipity was already growing in her power and her friends, being loyal to her as ever, tagged along." Aeris said as she handed the book to Cid and he read it with Tifa and Yuffie looking over his shoulders.  
"So, that's what Vincent meant, for you to leave it be?" Yuffie asked.

"Yeah, we can't interfere but sit back and wait."

Cid stood up and took the radio and placed it under the countertop. "Well, that's done with. But it still bothers me."

"What does?" Tifa asked.

"The time difference. If Vincent is two years behind us, we ahead…" He shook his head and scowled, "Whatever the time difference, we would have not been able to get through! The whole distance time paradox thingy, don't ask me." He waved his hands in the air as if to bat away confusing thoughts.

Aeris gave a small smile. "When one cannot explain something, the simplest answer is there."

Yuffie nodded, grinning. "Magic."

Cid and Tifa rolled their eyes.

They all crashed together, albeit with much better practice than the last time around and Odin helped Serendipity up on her feet while Jules did the same for DaHara. As they brushed their clothes off and glanced around. The world was pretty much in same shape as Gaea Seven, ruins left in litters all around them, there was no sign of life and dark shadows crept everywhere.

Serendipity shivered. "This is Leon's home world, Gaea Eight."

"We won't find anything here." DaHara announced with slight scowl on her face. "We all knew that, so why are we here?"

"I don't know yet, but the clue left to me saying that I should go from Seven to Ten, so I assume to check out each world." Serendipity replied as she pulled out the crumpled letter from her pocket and smoothed it out to read it. "Begin with Seven and end with Ten. There, I have to go to each world, seven, eight, nine and ten."

"We're here, so what?" DaHara snapped. "Nothing to find here, it's empty! Let's go on to Nine!"

Serendipity frowned at her friend and shook her head. "This is my mission; you all chose to follow me. I say we take a look around and see what we can find here and then we will go."

DaHara gave much show of rolling her eyes and crossing her arms, acting like a petulant child. "Whatever."

Jules frowned behind DaHara and looked to Serendipity and saw his other friend had sorrowful look on her face. He shook his head and mouthed, "I'm sorry." Serendipity gave a small feeble smile in reply and walked ahead, looking about.

"If anything, I am sure Sephiroth would tell you to stick with DaHara and help her through this. We all have taken to the situation badly and out of all of us, DaHara is taking this rather badly." Odin whispered to Jules.

"I know. Her parents were one of the first to go. Just before her mother disappeared, DaHara was fighting with her mother and said some words she wishes to take back." Jules explained quietly.

"I see." Odin nodded and walked ahead to join Serendipity.

They managed to find a town and took a look around, only to find it deserted and shambled in ruins. When night fell, silence lingered between the four friends as Serendipity erected the barrier and they settled in a long sleepless night.

When morning approached, the sky was overcast, casting gloomy looks, and their spirits weren't in better shape than the day before. They rose and scavenged through the abandoned town and decided to pack up on necessary, finding dried food, some packs and other things.

They moved on, walking down the long road, following it to another town. During their journey, they came across some shadow beings and fought them off, putting practice with their weapons and their strengths.

After third day, they reached a large city and looked around. The tension between the four friends had reached to its highest. DaHara finally stomped her foot on the ground, pausing everyone in their track. "That's it! We've been walking around here for three days, nothing worthwhile to find!"

Serendipity turned to her friend and scowled, "We will find something worthwhile here!"

DaHara smirked and leered at her friend, "Oh, yeah? What are we looking for then?"

Knowing she was caught, she looked away. "I am not sure yet."

Smiling albeit cruelly. "Ah, ha! I motion for a vote. Who vote to move on to Ninth?" She raised her hand and looked at her other friends. Jules wasn't looking at her, rather, ignoring and looking away and Odin was scowling at her with his arms crossed, rather pissed while Serendipity looked about ready to cry. She then dropped her hand and snapped, "What's wrong with you two!" She pulled at Jules' arm to get his attention. "Are you really going to follow her around until we get caught by the shadow? She knows nothing!"

Serendipity looked up, her eyes blazing through unshed tears. "Shut up DaHara!" She stomped up to bring herself closer to her red-headed friend. "You've been moping in past three years! You're not the only one who has problems! I lost my parents too! In fact, I lost the entire planet! I am to be its next queen and not even eight year old, I lost it all!"

DaHara slapped Serendipity's face and screamed, "So what! How would you feel if you told your mother that you wish for her to go away and only to find that she was gone the next moment!"

Serendipity held her cheek, burning from the sting of the slap; she glared at DaHara and whispered with ice in her tone, "We all have burdens on our shoulders, each one of us. It is up to me to save Gaea Seven, Eight, Nine and Ten while the Keyblade Master to save the universe from the shadows. You best keep your mouth shut and your burden to yourself. I do not need to carry your problems on my shoulder." She squared her shoulders and turned, walking off.

Odin scowled at DaHara. "She's right. You best keep your temper in check, more often than not, it gets you in trouble." He then followed after Serendipity.

Jules sighed and walked after his other friends, leaving DaHara behind, only to call at her, "Come on. I am sure we'll rest soon."

DaHara stared after them and grinded her teeth, unknown to her and everyone else, a small shadow being had watched them and crept up behind her, creeping until it's tendrils wrapped around her and she shook her head, walking after her friends, but only to have the shadow settle on her back and then disappear into her.

They came to rest an hour later for lunch and sat together in circle with the barrier surrounding them. They ate quietly on the rations they had found few days before. Odin was looking at the letter that Serendipity carried around.

He finally spoke. "This is odd." He gestured to the letter. "There are so much riddles and clues in such short letter and not once there was a mention of a Keyblade Master."

Serendipity took the letter and read it again, she had memorized the letter to heart by then but to read the words, it was refreshed. "Why would I need to find my brother to find my parents?" She asked out loud.

Jules took the letter out of Serendipity's hand and read it. "We all know this at least that King Sephiroth is in the shadows."

DaHara took the letter and read it. "It says here that you know the answer." She murmured and returned the letter to Serendipity. She looked to her best friend and gave a challenging glare. "So, Sorceress Princess, what's in your heart?"

Serendipity met her glare unflinchingly. "I am sure in time I will know." DaHara knew she lost and looked away. "I think, like I did on Gaea Seven, I should find the doors on each planet and put a barrier on them to keep from more shadows coming."

"That's a good plan. But how would we be able to find a door? The planet's huge." Jules asked.

Serendipity closed her eyes. "I am not quite sure… I can sense the door back on Gaea Seven. Maybe I should try to sense it out here." She suggested and glanced around and saw Jules and Odin had somewhat pensive agreement on their faces. "I have been walking toward the feeling in past few days since we've arrived. I sensed we should keep going in that direction." She pointed in the general direction that they have been traveling toward. "Leon told me that it began in Balaam Garden a long time ago… And according to the signs we've been passing, that's where we're going."

"Then, let's not waste any more time." DaHara snapped as she stood up, grabbing her pack. "Let's go!"

The others grudgingly got up and gathered their supplies and followed DaHara, wanting to avoid her teetering temperament. They continued in pretty much same fashion they had in past few days, silently walking along, fighting whatever shadows creature came to cross their path and searched whatever town they came across.

By evening, they reached the end of the road to see the large very highly advanced building structure, dark and ominous. "I suppose that's Balaam Garden." Odin commented as they stared up at the said city.

"That's huge." Jules added in awe.

"I supposed it was glorious." DaHara whispered.

"Yeah… I wonder how we can get in." Serendipity mentioned as she walked ahead, looking from side to side, searching for some place to get in. The entrance seemed to be blocked by large boulders.

DaHara seethed behind Serendipity, "You have a magic wand, why don't you do hocus pocus and wave off the boulders away?"

Serendipity frowned, turning to DaHara. "I am not strong enough to levitate anything yet. Have you forgotten that I am just only ten years old!"

"Easy to forget when you take up as the group's leader." DaHara snapped back.

Odin stepped in between them, his hands held up to stop both of them. "Enough! DaHara, your attitude lately had been tiring and Serendipity…" He sighed and shook his head and turned to her. "As much I agree with you, but maybe you could try."

Serendipity looked up at Odin and nodded, "maybe." She turned and held her scepter up and tried to remember what Genie had taught her about levitation of object. She stood there, her eyes closed as she slowly moved her scepter in the pattern that she learned to do with her hand. The orbs on the top of her scepter glowed and hummed and she mumbled under her breath, trying to focus, feeling her power reaching out much like a giant hand, wrapping around one of the boulder in front of her.

The others watched in awe, having never seen her levitate more than a heavy tome in the past and held their breath as the boulder rattled and finally lifted weightlessly in the air and shifted, moving slowly to the side. The boulder hovered in the air, and Odin noticed it was starting to rattle. He looked to Serendipity and saw her straining, shaking. He ran up to her and grabbed as she fell to the ground, the boulder fell to the ground, hitting with much gusto and dirt flew in the air.

DaHara sighed in irritation. "Still blocked!"

Jules frowned and ran ahead to the boulder and shook his head, calling back to them. "No, not anymore, there's enough room for us to get though."

Odin held Serendipity and turned to her, "You did well, for a starter." He handed his skin to her and she gladly took drink of the water. "Come on, before the shadows find us here. I am sure you're not up to putting up the barrier."

She nodded and with his help, got up and they ran to where Jules and DaHara had slipped into the entrance and made their way into the Balaam Garden.

In the Garden, they found it was much like Hollow Bastion, deserted and teeming with shadows. They fought off every time they came across the shadows and searched around the city-like academy. It was long into the night that they finally decided to settle in one room and wait through the night before starting again.

"There's not much information here." Odin announced as he finished checking the computer log. "From what I understand this, the Shadow came on them too fast, much faster than our world. There was a last log where they sent someone away in space to get help and that was it."

"Someone in space, did they say who?" Serendipity asked.

Odin peered at the screen and mumbled, hitting few buttons and grinned, "Squall Leonhart, senior cadet of SeeD. They were doing flight training and advised for him to not return but go and get help from nearby planet…" He typed on the screen, pulling up few more information and read them.

"Squall Leonheart. So that's his name." Serendipity softly said.

"Who's he?" Jules asked.

Serendipity smiled at her best friend, "Uncle Leon. He never told us his real name, but only asked us to call him Leon. He's from this world… hey, isn't there a mention of a princess on this world or something?"

Odin shook his head as he kept reading the reports on the computer, replying, "From these information I've found, the government here is different, there's no royality or anything, but run by group of people. This is simply an academy, the entire city." He waved his arm to gesture overhead. "It's difficult to say who's the ruler or any sort. But at one point there was some problem with an evil sorceress and Leon was one of the groups that defeated."

"Maybe, there is someone in the group that could have potential to be a princess?" Serendipity asked.

"Maybe. Let's see… uh." He turned to Serendipity. "Leon fought alongside with three women in his group. None of them are royalty."

"Shoot." Serendipity replied and lay down on the mat she had created to sleep for the night. "All right, I am bushwhacked. Good night everyone."

"Good night Sere." Odin replied as he came to settle beside her, sitting and watching the fire.

"Good night Sere." Jules replied. DaHara didn't reply but was sitting against the wall in the corner, looking out of the window next to her. Jules looked toward her with concern on his face.

Odin leaned against the wall, looking out of the window of the room that they had camped the night before. Serendipity had done excellent job of keeping her barrier up through the night, protecting them from the shadows. It seems that her power was growing by bounds each day. Of course, most of the contribution of her power's growth was pretty much from stress of fighting the shadows and using them to defend themselves.

He glanced over to see Jules sitting at the console, reading whatever files that were on the computer and DaHara sitting in the corner, twirling her sais. Serendipity was sitting in the center of the room, her eyes closed and meditating. She had been like this since they woke up in the morning few hours ago and it was nearly approaching noon, from what it looks like it on that planet.

Finally, Jules sighed in frustration and turned around on his seat, facing everyone. "There's no Princess on this planet. No door or some sort. Nothing. It doesn't make sense… if the door is the factor to allow the shadow enters a planet."

Serendipity opened her eyes and craned her neck to look at Jules behind her. "The door is here…" She said as she stood up and walked to the window and pointed out of the window. Everyone gathered around to see what she was pointing at. In the sky hung a large moon, barely visible during the day time, the sky had finally cleared up from its overcast weather. "The moon…" She sighed. "That's why the planet was taken over so quickly, the door was open and the shadows bided their time and then swept down."

"Is that even possible?" DaHara asked.

"Yeah, the shadows travel in the dark, among the shadows." Serendipity replied and went over to the computer. "Let's see if I was right." She clicked at few keys and the screen came on. "Yeah. That explains it… the day the entire planet was overtaken, it was new moon." She turned around, facing her friends. "The moon was completely dark, in the shadow and that night, the shadows traveled to the planet and basically spread everywhere. Balaam Garden was the last to go. It was only morning when they realized this and Leon was already in air, his only escape."

"Yeow." Jules commented quietly. "So, what are we going to do?"

Serendipity shook her head. "Nothing about this planet. This planet had been like this since I was two years old. It's been too long. There's nothing on this planet but shadows."

"Then, we should move on to Ninth." Odin said.

Serendipity looked up to Odin and nodded in agreement and went about to gather her things. When she was finished, everyone else was ready.

"What about the door on the moon, should it at least be closed?" DaHara asked.

"It's closed for now." Serendipity replied. "That's what I was mediating for… to find the door and I found it on the moon, but it's closed for now."

"What about the seal?"

"There won't be any more shadows coming to this planet, there's nothing left. The heart's long gone."

"I see…" DaHara replied.

They all gathered in a circle, waiting as Serendipity created the portal for them to travel to. The sphere grew larger and they could see that the planet they were going to travel to appear to be untouched and with hope in their hearts, they leapt forward into the portal. The portal closed behind them and the shadows slithered in the room, searching for them only to find they were gone.

**w w w . y a s h o d o a . c o m / r o a d t o d a m a s c u s**

_Feedbacks, reviews, please, pretty please!_

_Check Yashodoa's Bio for information and author's notes._

AN: Probably one of the worst chapters I've ever written because I have no idea what to do with this chapter and I didn't play FF8 or FF9 and my knowledge of the two worlds are very limited. I don't intend for her to stay on either world very long. This chapter is pretty much a filler chapter. I know I must have misspelled Balaam/Balam, but I wasn't sure which the correct spelling is because I've seen both.

I know you're all thinking - Why did Aeris keep the information about Serendipity a secret for two years from the others? That will be answered later on (when I find the answer... ehh, I wonder that myself too).

As for the time-line… it's going to get very, very confusing from this point on. I thought I had it figured it out then went back to the notes I wrote and found I lost my brain when I read it and tried to redo it only to get one or two years off. But it's one of the vital importances to the story surrounding Serendipity. Both FF8 and FF10 dealt with timeline and it's possible in Final Fantasy worlds. I will have the timeline explained in the future chapter. Thank you for your support and patience! HUGS!


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